Bauwens,

I'm sending the latest Fossil Free News again because I don't want you to miss last week's big news about declarations of climate emergency in the UK. 

Here's a short video rundown – can you watch and share? And as usual, the full newsletter with stories from around the world is below. 

Activists from Extinction Rebellion brought London streets to a standstill with a pink boat named after murdered Honduran environmental protector Berta Cáceres last week.

Recent global events have flung open the window of opportunity to treat climate change as a global emergency. And people power is forcing politicians to pay attention. 

As eyes turn to what happens next (another global school strike on May 24, a global climate walkout in September), we look back at some of the extraordinary developments of the last two weeks. 

Enjoy, 

Nicole

In Case You Missed It

Tipping point? Both Paris and London witnessed new powerful acts of climate civil disobedience. Over 1000 Extinction Rebellion activists were deliberately arrested in London and their stark messaging and controversial tactics caught the public mood as a heatwave struck the UK over the Easter weekend. Similar scenes erupted in Paris as 2000 people took direct action targeting the state and its complicity with big polluters like Total. Read more

Greta Thunberg at the UK Parliament. Photo: Evening Standard

Telling the truth: Greta Thunberg and British youth climate strikers were in the UK parliament last week, adding their voices to the demand for a climate emergency. Greta gave her uncompromising indictment of the government’s continued support for fossil fuels. She called their push to develop fracking and new coal mines “beyond absurd’.

Climate emergency: Just yesterday, on May 1, the Parliament responded by declaring a climate emergency, hot on the heels of the Welsh government earlier this week. “This can set off a wave of action from parliaments and governments around the globe,” said Labour leader, Jeremy Corbyn.

No jobs on a dead planet: Also on May Day, people marched around the world to celebrate the rights and contributions of all workers. In Manila, Philippines, thousands marched to call for a just transition away from the age of fossil fuels. It’s a reminder that as we shift to a renewable future we have a huge responsibility to address inequality and leave nobody behind.  


Events in Kenya, Nigeria, South Africa and Ghana from days of action in 2018. 

Hardest hit: A category 4 cyclone hit Mozambique again last Friday, just weeks after the devastation of Idai left millions struggling further down the coast. As the reality of climate change sets in and worsens, there's renewed determination to push for a fossil free Africa, with over 50 Afrika Vuka actions already planned for 25 May.  

Sexy Killers: a documentary about coal is going totally viral and sparking national conversations about political corruption and the future of coal in Indonesia. The film Sexy Killers has already had nearly 20 million views and over 1000 community screenings in its first two weeks despite attempts by police and some local authorities to ban them.

Big win: Ecuador's Waorani indigenous tribe won their first victory against big oil companies in a ruling that blocks the companies' entry onto ancestral Amazonian lands for oil exploration. 

The One To Watch

This 7-minute documentary takes us to the island of Tigtabon in the south of the Philippines, where ways of life for the Sama Badjao indigenous people are at severe risk from climate change. Watch

The Inside Story

 

20 year-old Pacific Climate Warrior Brianna Fruean, from Samoa, and 17 year-old UK school striker Anna Taylor talk about their journeys into the climate movement and what inspires them. Read their conversation

That's it for now! I'll be back in two weeks with more.