Uncle Sam may have been a tough task master at the Copenhagen climate summit, refusing to commit on carbon reduction.
Uncle Sam may have been a tough task master at the Copenhagen climate summit, refusing to commit on carbon reduction, but in retrospect, the world’s top economy perhaps realises that the way ahead is not oil and gas but sustainable “billion acts of green”.
In its latest effort at making the developing nations, mainly India and China, partner with the developed world to combat global warming, the US dispatched environmental expert and activist Kathleen Rogers to Ahmedabad.
Rogers, the president of Earth Day Network, visited VIKSAT on Monday to interact with climate change students and members of the organisation. She has worked for more than 20 years as an environment attorney and advocate. For the 40th anniversary of Earth Day, to be celebrated on April 22, Rogers said India and China are the countries in focus.
“India is one of our target countries for the Earth Day celebrations. We concede that India and China are superpowers in terms of technology and ideas to deal with the challenges of climate change,” she said. “A lot of technology will now come from these nations. We need change; cannot stay stuck with economies built on oil and gas.”
Rogers has visited Mumbai and will also go to Kolkata and Delhi. “We look to work with NGO networks and the government,” Rogers said. An informal civil society connect is also being undertaken, in addition to spreading environmental awareness in schools.
In India, Earth Day rightly seems to have identified the impact cricketers have on society. For the celebrations, cricketers will be roped in to endorse the green message. Globally, athletes and artists will be involved to lend their voice against climate change.
“When they talk, they have a lot of impact on people. Popular icons can be effective in spreading the Earth Day message,” Rogers said.
She feels those countries who have resisted external audit of their environmental efforts are being childish in their approach. “Some countries call it interference, but we have to work together towards this.”
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