The Climate Reality Project is a non-profit organization involved in education and advocacy related to climate change. The Climate Reality Project came into being in July 2011 as the consolidation of two environmental groups, the Alliance for Climate Protection and The Climate Project, both of which were founded by Al Gore.
The community manager of Climate Reality Project Ben Sackler said to Egypt Today that Climate Reality Project organizes climate reality trainings ever year around the globe, the purpose of these trainings is to educate interested climate activists about climate science, climate justice and all the other issues related to climate change.
“ Our trainings are tailor made to educate climate activists in order to be able to distribute this knowledge to people in their own community, the main speaker in our trainings is our founder and chairman, former US vice president Al Gore” said Sackler.
Sackler added that through these trainings Climate Reality Project is keen to teach the climate activists how climate change is impacting the world and what to do to address it in order to raise awareness of people in their communities to find climate solutions to the global crisis.
“Climate reality project performs educational role and promotes youth activism as well, lobbying work, legislative advocacy and all the issues related to climate change” Sackler recounted.
Sackler elaborated that they look at the climate change solutions that are economically valuable, like using wind and solar energy, because these sources of energy are extremely cheap, clean, safe and accessible as well.
“ They are renewable sources of energy so will not run out of solar energy or wind energy unlike the non-renewable sources of energy like fuel which not only will run out but also is harming our planet by increasing greenhouse gas emissions and these gases are trapping heat to the atmosphere and worm the earth causing temperature to rise at a very fast rate” Sackler explained.
Sackler added that the transition to renewable sources of energy is the primarily solution to climate change crisis.
“There are a lot urgent topics now like the war in Ukraine but I think climate is really unique because it is a little bit slow burn because it progresses slowly so people have to educate themselves how critical climate change is” Sackler said.
There are things people can do in their personal lives to cut down greenhouse gas emissions like reducing the use of plastic, which are personal lifestyle choices.
“ We need to hold fossil fuel industry accountable for the damage they are doing” Sackler said.
About the major changes Sackler has seen over the past years of environmental activism Ben said that there is an obvious increase in the awareness pertaining to climate change.
“The main conversation about climate recently revolves around extracting greenhouse gases out of the atmosphere, limiting greenhouse gases and limiting carbon in order not to worm our planet but also on the forefront of the conversation how specific countries and communities around the world are being more impacted with climate change more than rich countries, countries in the global south are effected by climate change way more than countries in the global north we need to listen more to our folks who are marginalized and they should sit with us on the same table” Sackler added.
Sackler said that in COP15 it was agreed that countries in the global north should contribute with 100 billions dollars to countries in global south to help them counter the effects of climate change unfournately that promise wasn’t met since COP15, so Sackler hope for this promise to be fulfilled in COP27.
The world is busy with so many urgent topic what we need to do right now is to try as much as we can to attract people attention to climate change which is not an easy task because unlike the other urgent topics like Ukraine war and COVID-19 the effect of climate change is like slow burn and not that obvious.
“ I am looking forward to hear from COP27 about loss and damage, when we talk about loss and damage we don’t talk about adaptation we talk about irreversible damage and global south countries who suffer severely from the consequences of climate change. There are countries who suffer from displacement, climate immigration where people have to move from one place to the other because of climate crisis” Sackler explained.
For example there is a small island in the pacific that purchased land in anticipation that they will have climate immigrants.
Sackler elaborated that there is the economic part of loss and damage as tourism is effected by climate change and the agriculture industry as well because the weather negatively effected the corps yields in many countries.
“ So what we are going to do to address the loss and damage because of climate change that many countries are experiencing, what the world will do to stop further damages because of climate change, I think people in global north who contribute more to greenhouse emissions owe people in global south money and resources to counter the effects of climate change” Sackler recounted.
Sackler admitted that it is really unique position for Egypt to host COP27, because Africa is severely effected by climate change and contribute the least to greenhouse gas emissions so Egypt will advocate for these countries.
“My message to the international community is listen to those who are most effected by climate change and know their stories” Sackler recounted.
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