“We can’t stand by and let another year pass without pulling all the stops.”
HAPPENING NOW: Climbers have scaled the Sydney Harbour Bridge calling on Prime Minister Scott Morrison to declare a climate emergency.
Catch all the action live now and add your name now.
My name is Laura. I’m writing to you from beneath the Sydney Harbour Bridge where I’m suspended dozens of metres above the water. I’m up here to call on Scott Morrison to declare a climate emergency and take the urgent action needed to prevent catastrophic climate damage.
I am here with a team of people from across the country – including people affected by the damage being done to our climate by burning coal – bushfires, drought and floods – and young people who are having their futures stolen, who are all watching on from the ground.
All over Australia and across the world, people are waking up to the harsh realities of climate damage as our homes flood, our backyards burn and our rivers run dry. Coal is the biggest cause of climate change, and coal-hugging politicians have gutlessly put corporate greed before people for far too long.
We can’t stand by and let another year pass without pulling all the stops.Politicians are just people and they answer to us. That’s why it’s so important that you add your voice to this call. This is an uprising, and this is your part to play right now.
I grew up in the La Trobe Valley – the heart of Victorian coal country. The backdrop to my childhood was smokestacks in every direction. My family home was about a kilometre from an open cut coal mine and coal-fired power station.
The community has been plagued by coal-related health impacts like asthma, respiratory and cardiovascular diseases and cancer. For such a long time it felt like all of this was just a way of life, but these devastating health and environmental impacts can be prevented and we must do everything that we can to make sure that they are.
I’m here because this is the most important thing I can be doing right now for the climate. But I need thousands of people like you to join this call.If we can do that, Scott Morrison will have no choice but to acknowledge the crisis that we’re in. The most important thing you can do right now is join me.
I am here in solidarity with people who have incredibly important stories to tell. I’m planning on being up here until Scott Morrison acknowledges the truth: this is a climate emergency.
Throughout the day you’ll hear from some of the people affected by climate damage that we’ve partnered with and the days’ events as they unfold. Make sure you’re following all of the action live here.
It means the world to know that you’re with me,
Laura, from beneath the Sydney Harbour Bridge
P.S. This is the best place to see the live action as it unfolds.
