The EcoRes Forum Call for Action

To Local and National Governmental Leaders & Policy-Makers

Given that the most devastating social, economic, and environmental consequences will
fall on the poorest countries who have not only contributed least to greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, but whose economic fortunes are significantly impacted by Western development
and values, Western nations have a moral and ethical obligation to take the lead in developing
a comprehensive and systematic plan of action for GHG reduction. Moreover, because Western industrialization is itself responsible for the lion’s share of GHG production, nations benefiting from this industry bear greater responsibility than nations that do not.

We call upon all political leaders and policy-makers:

• To take a long-term, cross-border perspective that aims to see beyond immediate, parochial problems and the next electoral cycle, and shows a willingness to cross party lines to craft joint action on the basis of the shared conviction that these supranational challenges demand both intra- and international cooperation at a level never before achieved;
• To campaign for safe, peaceful, sustainable, and economically viable geographical spaces in which the basic essentials of food and water, clothing, shelter, and health care are made available equitably;
• To advocate for human, civil, social, political and economic rights consistent with the UN Charter, recognizing that basic human needs must be met if we are to effectively address global climate issues;
• To collaborate with the UN and other transnational and national institutions and networks both in complying with existing international environmental and social protocols and conventions, and in actively monitoring member compliance of the same;
• To make the strongest possible commitment to stabilizing greenhouse gases at the critical levels identified by ongoing scientific research;
• To listen to the concerns of those most vulnerable to and affected by climate change,
  and to incorporate these concerns in the decision-making process while simultaneously ensuring that equal access to and participation in these platforms both exists and
  takes place;
• To incorporate ethical principles as well as social and environmental justice components in deliberations in all democratic decision- and policy-making fora;
• To take a four-prong approach of prevention, mitigation, ecological restoration, and adaptation, each where applicable, in planning and action programs;
• To address underlying economic and social issues, including fully implementing the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights, with special focus on minority and gender rights and social equity issues, particularly in education, labor, empowerment, and access to resources;
• To immediately begin work on alternative, sustainable energy policies, making use of existing technologies while continuing to research and explore new possibilities;
• To develop a crash program to accelerate the development of renewable and advanced energy technologies and to shift to these technologies as rapidly as possible, offering government incentives to promote this process as needed;
• To halt energy subsidies associated with fossil fuels, and ensure that the hidden,
  additional environmental costs associated with their use are fully accounted for in energy decision-making, thereby promoting the development and adoption of less carbon-intensive energy sources;
• To develop, approve and enforce new regulations requiring serious energy conservation for automobiles and households and industrial uses of electricity,
• To work with environmental and social justice civil society organizations (CSOs) to protect natural resources and diverse ecosystems, from wetlands to rainforests, from oceans to deserts, protecting these systems from further over-exploitation and unsustainable use;
• To cooperate with businesses, CSOs and government agencies in exploring the economic aspects of climate issues, recognizing the greater cost of maintaining the status quo and identifying the positive economic outcomes of proactive approaches, as well as considering alternative sustainable approaches to current systems and structures;
• To ensure that each community and nation is free to choose its own approach to these issues within a sustainable development framework that balances social, environmental and economic concerns, relying more on local solutions, consulting local experts, and involving sustainable local resources, rather than using an outward-looking approach; and
• To provide publicly supported education systems with the resources necessary to incorporate the above principles.