Talking To The Blue Greens
Over the weekend I attended the BlueGreens forum on Waiheke. I was invited to give a presentation and so naturally I jumped at the opportunity. I chose the topic what is necessary, what is fair and what is wise when it comes to tackling climate change and also used the chance to challenge the National Party on its recently-released energy strategy.
This is the second time that Greenpeace has been invited to the National Bluegreens conference and it’s a good thing. There are 80 plus National party delegates and members that show up and it’s a good opportunity to talk to them directly. John Key opened this year’s conference, outlining the party’s target of a 50% reduction in emissions by 2050 and explaining that they’d do some tinkering with the ETS next year if in power - which I have to say was not nearly enough to convince me they are taking climate change seriously.
I was then on a discussion panel with Nick Smith, (the National Party’s Environment spokesperson) and Phil O’Reilly from NZ Business. Greenpeace was clearly the odd one out. Very few people at the event seemed to grasp the link between the environment and the economy and the fact that unrestrained growth can’t be the only thing we’re striving for. The planet is simply not up for it.
Here’s the full text of my speech for the record. Read more »
