CCJN/RRN Interaction on Climate NegotiationAn interaction programme was organised in Kathmandu, relating to Global Week of Actions today (21 Nov 2012). The programme was participated by diverse groups of Nepalese CS and government representatives including the Minister of Environment (UNFCCC Focal point), human rights activists, journalists and trade union leaders.

The main points raised/discussed during the interaction are as follows:

• No debt creating financing for addressing problems due to climate change. The aid must be grant, it should be new, additional and adequate for reparations. 
• Nepalese hills and mountains (including Himalayan range and the snow cover) are most affected by the consequences of climate change, so the problems should be addressed in priority. It would not only affect people living in Nepal but the whole of South Asia.

Global campaign to demand Climate JusticeThe international climate negotiation is not the only arena of our struggles for climate justice.  But it is a critical one which now more than ever requires much stronger concerted efforts  --  to counter moves by powerful governments, international institutions and global corporations that will bring more harm to people and planet, and to fight for global measures that will stave off catastrophic climate change and enable people to deal with present and future impacts.

To pave the way for more powerful collective campaigning - several organizations worked together on a call for a  "Global Campaign to Demand Climate Justice" that is directed at all governments and the international climate talks and effectively combines "inside" and "outside" actions.

The call serves as an appeal and invitation to work together in advancing the demands outlined.  These demands are expressed only in general terms in the Call but certainly should be expanded and substantiated based on unities already reached by climate justice movements and updated to address current developments. We urge you to join the Global Campaign to Demand Climate Justice and sign on to the call as an expression of your commitment!

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Arjun Karki

We reject green economyJUL 19 - The present situation of the Least Developed Countries (LDCs) is alarming and inhumane as the majority of the LDCs peoples are still deprived of even the bare necessities of life such as adequate food, healthcare, water and sanitation, housing, decent work, energy and education. The international political economy presents a pessimistic image of the current world order. The richest 10 percent of people on this planet hold 57 percent of global income, while the poorest 20 percent has less than 1 percent; this one percent also includes the share of the LDCs. LDC livelihoods, which are already inadequate, are further threatened by the expansion of corporate control over agriculture, forests and fisheries. Productive employment and decent wages are not available for a huge percentage of the LDC labor force, and 40 percent of youth— who comprise 60 percent of the LDC population—are unemployed. These economic burdens are further exacerbated by war, conflict, political instability, violence and women’s oppression, which is prevalent in the LDCs. This is the result of a deeply flawed system of injustice, inequity, exclusion and marginalisation that deprives LDC peoples of the universal right to development, peace and freedom. It is all too clear that peace and political stability are prerequisites for sustainable development in LDCs, as development makes no sense for hot spots like Afghanistan, Sudan and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, where people live in constant fear for their lives every ticking second.