Cambridge People & Planet

Interested in getting involved with People and Planet next year??! Well, now's your chance!   

Kick off your summer from 29 June - 3 July with four packed days of skills and issue workshops, campaign updates, speakers and evening entertainment. By the time you´ve finished you will be equipped with the skills to run expert campaigns across the country, addressing the root causes of social injustice and environmental degradation.

Spend your days in the beautiful Oxfordshire countryside with loads of other student campaigners sharing ideas and make regional connections and plans.

 To sign up, go to:

http://peopleandplanet.org/summergathering

 If you do fancy going, please email Julie on jkw32@cam.ac.uk as a group of us will be going from Cambridge. 

Cambridge People & Planet supports the Go Greener campaign which is part of CUSU Green. The petition can be signed at:

http://www.camgogreener.org.uk/

P & P is also a part of the Cambridge Climate Coalition, a coalition of student societies who share a common interest in climate change issues with the aim of working towards common goals.

The First Climate Change Conference; 'Climate Changes-What Next?' took place on 16th February 2008 and was attended by many student societies as well as students from universities nationwide, in association with the Student Climate Project.

On Saturday 24th November Cambridge P & P group run a stall outside St. Marys Church, Cambridge and encouraged members of the public to sign a petition asking the government to fulfil their pledge on universal access to AIDS treatment by 2010.

Michael Buick from Climate Care visited Cambridge on 25th October 2007 as part of Cambridge Green Week to attend the Debate on Carbon Offsetting:

'Carbon Offsetting: Hot topic or hot air?'

Michael Buick's talk on the benefits of carbon offsetting was followed by a talk from Steve Stretton of the Zero Carbon Society on the concerns. It was a lively and interesting discussion followed by questions. 

 The debate was followed by an exclusive screening of 'An Inconvenient Truth' in the St John's College cinema.

On October 22nd a group of P & P members went to visit the local MP David Howarth as part of ‘Green Week’ to discuss the upcoming Climate Bill. As the Liberal Democrat MP for Cambridge, David Howarth, has been supportive and active on climate change issues in the past, having been the Lib Dem Energy spokesperson.

The ‘People & Planet’ group asked David Howarth if he would support the ‘Ditch Dirty Development’ campaign to ask the Department for International Development (DFID) to stop funding new oil and gas extraction projects.  It was argued that this funding is counter-productive as it ties us into a fossil fuel economy long into the future, which is in direct contradiction with the government’s climate change policy. Moreover, the UK government gives subsidies to the oil and gas industry. 

Steve Stretton of the Cambridge Zero Carbon Society asked David Howarth about the progress of the Climate Bill in parliament.  David Howarth said he knows there has been a delay, and that the Bill was probably a “victim of the general election debate”.  He agreed that this was an issue in which no delay should be occurring.  He advised us writing to your MP is a good way to show that there is a groundswell of opinion, to encourage government to move forward.

David Howarth MP also expressed his concern that the emissions targets in the upcoming Climate Bill should be made stronger.  The Liberal Democrats had pushed for the target of an 80% reduction in emissions by 2050, which was the necessary target according to the latest science.  The Conservatives had not pushed for an 80% target.  Howarth told us that government may have been influenced by the lobbying from the Confederation of British Industry. 

Altogether David Howarth MP was very supportive of a strong Climate Bill.  In the course of discussion, the viewpoint of Terry Barker of the IPCC Report came up, who argued that there is an advantage in early action, since the whole world has to move and the UK would have the “first mover advantage”.   Mr Howarth also told us that he hopes to attend the demonstration in support of the Climate Bill, which will be held outside Westminster this Saturday.