| Dear friends,
The COP26 negotiations have unsurprisingly failed to deliver the solutions that we urgently need. The conference has been a parade of inaction, false solutions and greenwash from rich governments and corporations, all while claiming the summit a success. On every level, this COP was a chaotic shambles. Companies and governments treated this COP as a greenwashing PR opportunity while countries lauded dangerously misleading Net-Zero targets as a victory. The UK government, while managing COP so badly that it blocked participation of delegates from areas most affected by climate change, prioritised over 500 fossil fuel lobbyists – more than the total delegates from the 8 countries worst affected by climate change. The UK Government’s priority was to mask its own weak targets and inaction with empty announcements, reinforcing their collusion with big business and billionaires, and jetting in celebrities and world leaders with little to no part to play in the actual negotiations.
This should have been the COP that limits global warming to 1.5 degrees with rich countries doing their fair share of effort, meeting their unmet promise on climate finance and delivering on Loss and Damage. Instead, COP26 has delivered an agreement which is a betrayal of the people and science, leaving us on track for a 2.7 degrees warming – putting billions of lives at risk and sacrificing frontline communities for profit.
Whilst governments failed to act, COP26 was a historic moment of growth in power and solidarity for the climate justice movement. Through our collective work over the last two years, hundreds of thousands of people across the world mobilised under a call for climate justice demanding urgent and just solutions to the climate crisis, refusing to be complacent to the lies and business-as-usual of governments and corporations.
Over 800 actions were organised across the world, with over 150,000 taking to the streets just in Glasgow. Over 15,000 people attended both in-person and digital People’s Summit for Climate Justice to discuss, learn and strategise about building the movement. From indigenous leaders to youth climate strikers, from social justice organisations to trade unions, from anti-racist groups to direct action campaigns, our wider movement has gained critical momentum. We provided practical solidarity by setting up infrastructure to support those unable to attend or mobiles for COP otherwise: from running a Visa Support Service, to people across Scotland opening their homes for the Homestay Network.
Because of our collective action, the climate justice movement is more powerful, educated and connected than ever before. Our movements are growing by the day. Climate justice is no longer on the fringes – it’s now been brought to the centre of every struggle. We’ll continue to build power and challenge governments and corporations across the world.
Across the world and across movements, we are seeing a new wave of resistance, global solidarity and grassroots organising. The world is at a crossroad as the crisis of climate, covid pandemic and inequality further exposes the inequities and injustices within and between our societies. We can either intensify the crisis to the point of no return, or lay the foundations for a just world where everyone’s needs are met.
The era of injustice is over, the time for climate justice is now!
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How do we build on what we have achieved and ‘what’s next’ is the question that everybody is asking. There have been a number of discussions already with everyone from local activists around the country as well with Coalition member organisations, and the resounding message is that we must continue to work together, we must continue to build on the successes we achieved as the climate justice movement.
In early 2022, we will continue these discussions within the movement. We know what we need to achieve in this fight for climate justice, it needs all of us so please save the following dates:
? 2022 DATES FOR YOUR DIARY
Trade Union Caucus meeting – Zoom link – Tue 18th Jan 6:30 – 8:30pm (Receive an email reminder on the day)
UK All Coalition Meeting – Online – Tue 25th Jan 6 – 8pm (Receive an email reminder on the day)
Local Hubs Gathering and Climate Justice Weekender – Hybrid format with both digital and in-person participation – Birmingham 19-20th Feb |
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What we achieved together
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Global Day of Action for Climate Justice
806 actions for climate justice took place across the world, with 100 actions taking place in the UK and 150,000 people taking to the streets in Glasgow alone.
Many cities in the UK organised one of their biggest climate demos ever, such as in Birmingham, Manchester, Newcastle, Liverpool, Cardiff, Bristol, Leeds, Belfast, Norfolk, Brighton and Cambridge. |
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People’s Summit for Climate Justice and Movement Assemblies
15,000 people attended both the in-person and digital People’s Summit for Climate Justice. Over 200 sessions were held, which included interpretation into 11 languages. You can rewatch some of our livestreams on our YouTube channel. You’ll also be able to browse the different sessions on our website soon.
Over the two weeks of the negotiations, daily Movement Assemblies were held in Glasgow, and livestreamed to the world. These served as points to gather around key topics, including on climate justice, economic justice, work, feminism, climate reparations and decolonisation, indigenous movements, access and disability and youth organising. Rewatch the movement assemblies. |
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Global Organising
The above was only made possible because of months of organising, mobilising and connecting by activists across the world. The Coalition has convened International, Regional and Local Assemblies. In the UK, a network of 51 local hubs came together consisting of trade unions, anti-racism and migrant justice groups, faith groups, youth organisers, climate and environment groups, campaigns and activists.
Coverage
In collaboration with Brazilian media collective Midia Ninja, and dozens of movement photographers and videographers, we provided decentralised coverage of movement activities happening across COP26. See some of these photos on our Instagram.
We also produced Inside Outside – daily video brief hosted by Sabrina Fernandes and Iain Bruce throughout the COP26. The show provided a compact and accessible insight of activities inside the official event and outside among the social movements. Rewatch Inside Outside episodes here.
We took the airways with our climate justice analysis of the negotiations and were featured in every major global and UK media outlet holding both the UK Presidency and other rich countries to account for their lack of action.
Social Justice
To support activists and civil society to come to Glasgow, the Human Hotel was created in partnership with Stop Climate Chaos Coalition, where over 1,260 local people hosted 1696 people from around 127 countries around the world.
To counter the exclusion of Global South communities due to restrictive border policies and increasingly changeable COVID legislation, the COP26 Coalition provided visa, immigration and travel support, which included both financial support and information on the navigating immigration system. Making sure that the voices and demands of the global South were heard inside the talks, on the streets and within our movement, working together to build the future.
Our friends at the Global Alliance of Territorial Communities – representing indigenous peoples and local communities in 24 countries around the world sent this message to all COP26 coalition members:
“The important impact that we have achieved in Glasgow would not have been possible without your invaluable support that allowed us to make our voices more visible and forge links with civil society.
On behalf of our children, youth, women & elders, who are in the communities, and in the rivers and mountains of our territories, I want to personally thank you for your support, and to assure you that we will continue to carry forward this struggle, which belongs to all of us, to heal this planet” Tuntiak Katan, General Coordinator GATC
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With Love and Solidarity,
COP26 Coalition |
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