Climate change is already having a profound impact on our environment, our economy, and our society, and the impact is growing. It’s time to end our dependence on fossil fuels and build a climate-friendly world. Together, we can grow the movement that makes better transportation, food supply and energy solutions a reality.
The UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change made it clear the science is conclusive: our activities have lead to global warming which is dangerously destabilizing our interconnected global climate in dangerous and unpredictable ways.
If we act now, we can stop the worst impacts of climate change.
Climate change
Carbon dioxide in the atmosphere acts like a blanket, trapping heat that would otherwise have been released from our planet’s surface into space. Carbon dioxide, released by burning coal, gasoline, natural gas and other fossil fuels, has increased in our atmosphere by 35% since the Industrial Revolution. Increasing temperatures disrupt weather across the globe, leading to unpredictable storm events, heat waves, and changed patterns of rain and snowfall.
We must quickly reduce the carbon emissions from burning fossil fuels, with legislated goals on reducing our carbon emissions that are set by the best science available. We need to:
- Stop the expansion of fossil fuel extraction, like the Athabasca Tar Sands or proposals for oil and gas exploration throughout BC.
- Stop expanding freeways and invest in public transit, cycling and walking infrastructure instead.
- Protect our wild lands, because the destruction of forests and wetlands is a very significant source of greenhouse gas emissions, and intact ecosystems are much more resilient than clearcuts.
Around the globe people are mobilizing to meet these challenges. But too often, the communities that have done the least to create the climate crisis are asked to bear the highest cost. We must make sure that we leave no one behind in building a climate-friendly world.
Together, we can build a fair and equitable conservation economy that gives all communities a place at the table, create sustainable and effective transportation solutions, protect our wild places, and preserve our farmland to improve our food security. All of this can help us quickly lower our carbon emissions, build more livable communities, and create a better future for all.
Find out more about the work we are doing to stop coal mines.
