On April 20, 2010 Bolivian President Evo Morales launched the World People's Conference on Climate Change and the Rights of Mother Earth, welcoming over 10,000 people from 135 countries, to what he declared to be an alternative to the United Nations climate talks. This World People’s Conference on Climate Change held at Cochabamba in Bolivia was an experiment in replacing the less-than-democratic UN process, with one that invites public participation.
One of the greatest obstacles to fighting climate change is the culture of ignorance and denial surrounding the science of global warming in amongst the conservative and the elites. Statistical analysis of October 2009 from Pew Research Center for United States revealed that certain demographic groups are systematically more likely to reject the consensus that global warming is real. These groups include: older Americans (as compared to the young), Republicans and Conservatives (as compared to Democrats and Liberals), whites as compared to non-whites, men as compared to women, born again Christians, and the wealthy. Most of these variables have one major attribute in common: privilege.
In general, privileged individuals are more likely to be ignorant about the dangers of global warming than those who are less privileged. This shouldn't be all that surprising, given the fact that world’s economic and political elites have benefitted from an unsustainable economic system for decades; a system that allows the degradation of natural environment in the pursuit of profit and greed. The elites reflect the attitude that believes that everything will sort itself in the end, while they will continue remaining at the top of the heap. As for the poor and downtrodden they are destined to anyway suffer and wither, no matter what the outcome is due to climate change.
The rush of global environmental changes is occurring at ever faster (much faster than predicted) rates and governments put forth mild platitudes acknowledging that there is a problem of some kind. They make weak futuristic recommendations to merely pacify the scientists and concerned public. However, things are already starting to look bleak for the poorest of the poor on the planet. Rich nations and poor nations look at long-term challenges of the environment differently. Today, while rich and emerging nations (including India) are basically concerned with their respective ways of life and ongoing competition for global economic and political power, some poor nations in Africa, Latin America and Asia with growing populations and scarce resources are struggling to provide citizens with the means to meet basic human needs, such as water, food, and shelter.
The Copenhagen summit had produced new visions and solidarities among the powerless nations. They include Sub-Saharan Africa and small island nations in the Pacific, Indian, and Atlantic Oceans, some of which are only two meters above sea level at their highest point and thus most vulnerable. These are places where millions live on the edge, directly impacted by climate change, dealing with the effects from cyclones and droughts to erosion and floods. Tuvalu (near Fiji), Maldives and other island nations, for example, are concerned that rising sea levels will wipe their countries off the map. They have been vocal in asking for early action to reduce carbon dioxide emissions as well as halt deforestation and the destruction of the Earth. Theirs is a small but righteous voices speaking on behalf of the planet that is home to us all.
Today pastoralists in arid regions face drought, desertification, and disruptions in water supplies because worldwide rainfall is shifting away from the equator towards the poles, warming the Polar Regions. Canadians benefit the most from this trend. Thus it is widely believed that the first victims of the change in global rainfall patterns will not be people from rich, polluting nations who engage in ruinous consumption, but pastoralists and fishing communities who exist precariously at the southern hemisphere. The sad reality today is that our consumerist society has blinded the world’s privileged elites to the dangers that their actions pose to humankind. Equally problematic is the political lobby (a` la Tea Party activism) that's dedicated to questioning the scientific consensus on global warming.
Indian scientist and activist Vandana Shiva was among those who addressed the climate justice rally of 100,000 in Copenhagen last December. She was asked to respond to the position of Obama administration that US is willing to pay its fair share, but that donors “don’t have unlimited largesse to disburse.” Shiva responded, “I think it’s time for the U.S. to stop seeing itself as a donor and recognize itself as a polluter, a polluter who must pay. ... This is not about charity. This is about justice.”
How does one challenge the climate change deniers? According to the Pew data, increased education plays a major role in decreasing public ignorance about global warming. Progressive and liberal-minded forces share a major responsibility for educating fellow citizens about the scientific consensus on climate change. While conservative radio, T.V., and think tanks may enjoy a privileged economic position in the mass media, progressives can take advantage of their power in numbers, in addition to the support of the scientific community, in challenging global warming distortions.
I hope that the Knanaya community spread around the globe, doing reasonably well economically, will hopefully take this global challenge personally and seriously. We should take a moment to ponder as to what Christ would have had to say on this issue. If he had attended the Copenhagen summit held last December; he would likely have reenacted his famous Temple scene of lashing out at the profit-mongers. He would have unequivocally rebuked the Wealthy Nations for their militarily oriented and consumptive egoistical life styles. He would have extended his hands of solidarity to the poor nations of Sub-Saharan Africa and the small island nations and declared: “Blessed are the meek and humble…”
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