Is Coventry Apathetic About Climate Change?
Media Release from United Nations Association Coventry Branch
Coventry, 11 February 2019
Greta Thunberg image by Jan Ainali
The Coventry Branch of the United Nations Association has issued an urgent call for councillors, business leaders and the public to meet students on March 15, the day of the Global Student Strike for Climate, in Coventry Council House to discuss how they can work together to avert a climate catastrophe.
If our current consumption and production patterns remain the same until 2050, the United Nations predicts we will need almost 3 planets worth of resources to sustain our current way of living.
Clearly something has to change.
Since she started the first school strike for climate outside the Swedish parliament building in August 2018, Swedish schoolgirl Greta Thunberg has become a global figure raising awareness of the lack of adequate action to prevent catastrophic climate change in the near future.
Inspired by her example, tens of thousands of students around the world now Strike for Climate every Friday. They have designated March 15 as the first Global Student Strike for Climate.
Tackling climate change is one of the main aims of the United Nations.
The United Nations Association Coventry Branch therefore calls on city councillors, Members of Parliament, business leaders, political parties, climate activists and others to come and talk to students at the Climate Emergency Forum from 1 to 3 pm on Friday 15 March in Coventry Council House.
Places are limited so people should register to attend as soon as possible at
For those who cannot get into the event, it will be streamed live on that site.
We call on schools to send students to this Forum, thereby avoiding the necessity of going on strike while giving them the opportunity to express how they feel about climate change and find out more about what is currently happening to reduce carbon emissions and discuss how these efforts could be increased.
We call on city councillors and members of parliament to come and listen to what the students say, explain what Coventry is currently doing about climate change and show they care about this key issue for all our futures.
We call on businesses to come and explain what they are doing now to reduce carbon emissions and what plans they have for the future.
We call on members of the public to come and find out what they can do in their everyday lives to help reduce their carbon footprint.
We call on the media to come and communicate the discussions to a wider audience.
More Information
Greta Thunberg
Greta Thunberg was born 3 January 2003. In August 2018, she became a prominent figure for starting the first school strike for climate outside the Swedish parliament building. In November 2018, she spoke at TEDxStockholm. In December she addressed the United Nations Climate Change Conference. In January 2019, having just turned 16, she spoke at the World Economic Forum at Davos.
- https://unacov.uk/schoolgirl-greta-thunberg-addresses-world-economic-forum-on-climate-change/
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greta_Thunberg
- https://unacov.uk/schoolgirl-greta-thunberg-addresses-cop24/
Global Student Strike for Climate
Climate Change and the United Nations
Climate change is the defining issue of our time and now is the defining moment to do something about it. There is still time to tackle climate change, but it will require an unprecedented effort from all sectors of society. To boost ambition and accelerate actions to implement the Paris Agreement on Climate Change, UN Secretary-General António Guterres will host the 2019 Climate Summit on 23 September to meet the climate challenge. The Summit will showcase a leap in collective national political ambition and it will demonstrate massive movements in the real economy in support of the agenda. Together, these developments will send strong market and political signals and inject momentum in the “race to the top” among countries, companies, cities and civil society that is needed to achieve the objectives of the Paris Agreement and the Sustainable Development Goals.
- UNEP prediction about state of earth in 2050: http://bit.ly/1Niu2q7
- https://unacov.uk/what-is-the-un-doing-about-climate-change/
- https://unfccc.int/process-and-meetings/the-paris-agreement/what-is-the-paris-agreement
- http://www.un.org/en/climatechange/
- http://www.un.org/en/sections/issues-depth/climate-change/index.html
UNA Coventry Branch
UNA Coventry Branch is affiliated to the United Nations Association UK. This charity is the UK’s leading source of independent analysis on the UN, and a UK-wide grassroots movement. The Branch believes that a strong, credible and effective UN is essential if we are to build a safer, fairer and more sustainable world. We run events and activities aimed at making the people of Coventry more aware of the work of the UN. We work with Coventry and Warwick Universities, Coventry City Council and a range of other partners to present workshops and conferences to young people. We also run a popular website and issue monthly newsletters.
- For more about UNA Coventry: http://unacov.uk/
- Our Twitter handle is @UNACoventry
- Our Facebook page is https://www.facebook.com/unacov/
Media Contact
Philip Brown
United Nations Association Coventry Branch Secretary
unacoventry@gmail.com