Post G7-Summit Media Event
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: June 27, 2022
Media Contact: Joseph Robertson,Executive Director Citizens’ Climate International
jr@citizensclimate.org
What: Representatives from around the world in Citizens’ Climate International’s network will be available to respond to the outcomes of the G7 Summit, their Steer Us to Safety Campaign and key climate demands from the G7’s Civil Society networks.
When: Wednesday, June 29, 2022 7:30 am EDT / 11:30 am UTC
Convert time here: https://dateful.com/time-zone-converter
Where: https://citizensclimate.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZIvcO2urTIsGdzWCCjD3g0DfCyQhRPM-lhC
The 2022 G7 Summit in Germany: From June 26 to June 28, the G7 leaders will meet in Germany. The G7 emerged from the energy crisis in the early 1970s and G7 navigated the economy out of the financial collapse in 2007-2008. Thus, it has proven capability to steer the world away from danger at times of crisis. Behind the scenes, in the lead-up to these meetings, hundreds of Civil Society networks collaborated and sent demands to the G7. Citizens’ Climate International was part of those networks.
Citizens’ Climate International (CCI) and the G7: Citizens’ Climate International (CCI) has been engaging within the Civil Society Networks that send demands to the G7 leaders since 2018. Our primary policy focus is carbon pricing and border carbon adjustments and more generally financial flows. The policies we support must be rooted in human rights and gender justice.
From January 2022 to May 2022, a dozen CCI members from ten countries (Belgium, Canada, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Nigeria, Spain, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, and the United States) worked within and monitored carefully several civil society networks representing over 300 global organizations that sent demands to the G7 in Germany this year.
Citizens’ Climate International’s Steer Us to Safety Campaign: On June 6, the day after World Environment Day, CCI launched a digital letter campaign to the G7 leaders based on the key climate demands sent to the G7 leaders from the Civil Society (C7) Network. The campaign is called “G7 Leaders Steer Us To Safety”. Almost 1200 climate advocates from 80 countries have sent letters asking the G7 Leaders to:
- Rapidly redirect financial flows away from fossil fuels and towards an equitable and resilient future. These policies must align with the Net Zero Scenario from the International Energy Agency (IEA).
- Negotiate the Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty to complement the Paris Agreement and financially support a rapid, equitable and managed phase-out of fossil fuels.
- Finance successful adaptation and resilience measures to keep vulnerable communities safe from preventable harm.
The letter in its entirety and the current number of letters can be found here: https://citizensclimate.earth/2022/06/12/g7-leaders-steer-us-to-safety/
Carbon pricing and financial flow statements from the G7 Civil Society
In 2022, all the major civil society groups that work within the G7 had carbon pricing or financial flows in their key demands under their climate crisis pillar.
Business 7 (B7): Openly applauded the G7’s work on climate clubs and carbon pricing.
https://www.g7germany.de/g7-en/news/g7-articles/b7-recommendations-2054510
Youth 7 (Y7): Their number one demand was carbon pricing. It was their 1st time demanding carbon pricing.
https://ijab.de/fileadmin/redaktion/PDFs/Y7/Youth7_Communique_2022_-_final.pdf
Women 7 (W7): included carbon pricing in their key demands for this first time.
https://women7.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/W7-ImplementationPlan_pre-layout.pdf
Civil Society 7 (C7): Asked the G7 to “redirect financial flows away from fossil fuels and towards a resilient and equitable future”. Redirecting financial flows is an umbrella phrase for carbon pricing, border carbon adjustments, subsidy reform, tax reform, financial regulations and special drawing rights. https://civil7.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/Civil7-Communique-2022-1.pdf
The Science 7 statement (S7): “Reinforce decarbonisation efforts by establishing a global CO2 pricing mechanism, complemented by more direct and fast-acting measures.” https://www.leopoldina.org/fileadmin/redaktion/Publikationen/G7-Statements/Stellungnahme_Decarbonisation_G7_2022_final_web.pdf
The Think Tank 7 (T7) statement: “Create (open and inclusive) climate clubs with a G7 core in close partnership with the EU members and other countries willing to join to lower greenhouse gas emissions by 60% by 2030 compared with 2010 levels, including by […] e) a joint approach to carbon pricing with a common price floor and a differentiated and fair carbon border adjustment mechanism to avoid carbon leakage;”
https://www.think7.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/20220520_T7_Communique.pdf
This is really good news. We are in a climate emergency and there is no time to lose. The Civil Society networks have collectively realized that redirecting financial flows, a.k.a following the money, is the most powerful tool to reduce greenhouse gas pollution. If redirecting financial flows is done well, the G7 leaders will leave a resilient and equitable world for those who come after us. History has its eyes on the G7 leaders.
QUOTES
“Africans will be watching the outcomes from the G7 carefully. The G7 can and must steer us to safety. They just need to follow the money. If they do it well, a resilient and equitable world awaits. ”
– David Michael Terungwa CCI Africa Regional Coordinator
“As a Women’s 7 advisor and a long-time carbon pricing advocate, I will be looking carefully at the G7 statements on financial flows. These policies must not burden nor overlook women globally, in all their diversity. I also expect the G7 to recognize that care work is a “green job” and recognize low and unpaid care work as systemically relevant for climate change resilience and adaptation.”
– Cathy Orlando CCI’s Director of Programs and W7 Advisor to the 2022 G7
CCI Panelists
Joe Robertson is the Executive Director of Citizens’ Climate International (CCI). He was the Director of the International Division at Citizens’ Climate Lobby in 2014 and became director of Citizens’ Climate International in January 2021. Joe was a C7 representative at the G7 in 2022.
Cathy Orlando works as the Program Director at CCI and National Director of Citizens’ Climate Lobby (CCL) Canada. She was a Civil Society (C7) representative at the G7 and G20 in 2018, and the G7 in 2021 and 2022. She was a Women’s 7 (W7) representative at the G7 in 2021 and the W7 Advisor in 2022. https://citizensclimatelobby.org/?team=cathy-orlando
David Michael Terungwa is Field Development Lead for Citizens’ Climate International, and serves as Africa Regional Coordinator for Citizens’ Climate volunteer chapters across the continent. He is founder of the Global Initiative for Food Security and Ecosystem Preservation (GIFSEP), based in Nigeria. This year, David Michael participated in the G7 civil society networks.
https://citizensclimate.earth/?team=david-michael-terungwa
Other panelists:
1. Rod Mitchell – National Chair of Citizens’ Climate Lobby Australia
2. Kohei Noda – Citizens’ Climate International Lead – Tokyo Japan
3. Alex Krantz – Citizens’ Climate International Summer (Canadian)
4. More T.B.A.
Citizens’ Climate International
Citizens’ Climate International (CCI) is a sister group to Citizens’ Climate Lobby (CCL) USA. CCL has operated since 2007 in the USA and 2010 in Canada. CCI is organized in 76 countries with almost 20,000 supporters outside the US and 152 active chapters in 52 countries. CCL and CCI have civil society status at the G7, the G20, the World Bank, and observer status at UNFCCC COP meetings. The organization is a founding strategic partner of the Carbon Pricing Leadership Coalition, which brings together leaders from the public sector, the private sector, and civil society to investigate and promote carbon pricing.
Websites
Citizens’ Climate International: https://citizensclimate.earth/
Citizens’ Climate Lobby Australia: https://au.citizensclimatelobby.org/
Citizens’ Climate Lobby Belgium: https://www.citizensclimatelobby.be/
Citizens’ Climate Lobby Canada: https://canada.citizensclimatelobby.org/
Citizens’ Climate Europe: https://citizensclimateeurope.org/
Citizens’ Climate Lobby France: https://www.citizensclimatelobby.fr/page/689489-notre-solution
Citizens’ Climate Lobby Germany: https://www.ccl-d.org/
Citizens’ Climate Lobby Japan: https://japan.citizensclimatelobby.org/
Citizens’ Climate Lobby Sweden: https://www.klimatsvaret.se/
Citizens’ Climate Lobby UK: https://citizensclimatelobby.uk/
Citizens’ Climate Lobby USA: https://citizensclimatelobby.org/
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