In the lead up to the federal election, please join me in delivering an urgent message to all Australian Political Parties

"I will not vote for a party with no plan on climate change." 

On Monday August 9th, the IPCC issued the world with a code red warning. We have just 10 years in which to cut our emissions by 75% to avoid catastrophic destabilisation of our climate system.

Currently, the Liberal Party’s target for 2030 is a 26–28% reduction in emissions. This target is one of the lowest in the developed world, and is considered 'woefully inadequate'. 

Labor's target? Non-existent.

It has never been more urgent for our leaders to follow the rest of the world in committing to strong climate targets. It doesn’t take an expert to know this, all it takes is someone who will listen. This election is our last chance to change direction.

The vast majority of Australians want action on climate change. And every single one of these people votes. 

So what will the impact of signing this petition be?

If you’re like me, you want to know that signing this petition will have a real world impact, a concrete outcome. Once this petition has gathered signatures, each and every signature acts as a pre-voting card. A tangible message, a promise, that you will not be voting for any political party with no adequate plan on climate.

Like Groundswell Giving says, politicians will only ever aim as high as their citizens demand.

We need to let them know how we feel, urgently.

They are not watching our social media as we repost calls to climate action, and they’re not in our heads as we read the daily news. They don’t feel our stomachs drop as we read the IPCC code red warnings, or feel the conviction and hope that eventually bubbles up inside ourselves, replacing the fear.

We need to tell them now, in something as simple as a single sentence,

That we will not vote for a party with no real climate policy.

We will not vote for a party with no 2030 emissions reduction target in line with the Paris Agreement.

We will not vote for a party with no plan to protect us.

With no care for the natural world.  

With no guts to do the right thing.

We will not put our trust in you.

Our nation of Australia is a country blessed by some of the best natural resources in the world. We have unlimited wind and sun, the space to put vast amounts of renewable energy, and the technology and resources to develop them. With the right leadership, Australia could become a renewable energy superpower. 

We ask our politicians to follow the rest of the world in enacting solid climate policy and ambitious 2030 targets, to ensure a safe and prosperous future for all Australians. 

Please join me in urgently sending this message. 

Photo Credit - ABCMyPhoto: Martin Von Stoll