Action - Activism
What should you do when politicians aren't doing the job we pay them for - namely keeping us safe from harm? You make your voice heard. And if enough people do the same, change follows.
In this country we had, until recently, the right to protest enshrined in law; however, the current government has recently given the police powers reminiscent of authoritarian regimes that allow them to shut down protests before they even begin.
Protest is by definition annoying - as someone once said, if you don't "p*ss" people off, nothing changes. Signing petitions and writing letters is a very important part of driving change, but so is noisy and visible protest - which has often been the driving force behind major social change such as the right for women to vote, the civil rights movement and gay rights.
But given that most of us don't want to glue ourselves to an oil tanker, there is no shortage of other ways to make a difference. All that is required for evil to triumph is for good people to do nothing...
Politics and Democracy
Writing to your MP and to local councillors about issues will influence the way they vote - for example on environmental issues (they work for us, so it should). Politicians don't actually lead, they follow public opinion - otherwise they wouldn't get elected. So, it's important that they know what matters to us...and to give them the confidence to adopt more progressive policies.
And if you've got a thick skin, stand for election!
Climate Change
There are lots of environmental groups and organisations, all taking different types of action - from Friends of the Earth and Greenpeace, through the Wildlife Trust and Woodland Trusts, all the way to Extinction Rebellion and Just Stop Oil.
The Climate Majority Project has been set up recently to appeal to the huge numbers of people who are concerned about the climate crisis, but for whom XR and JSO seem a bit too extreme, and Mammoth - A Climate Action Cinema exists for similar reasons.
Corporations
Companies, especially large ones with high profiles, tend to be pretty sensitive to criticism, so shame them on social media, ask them difficult questions and boycott them if they refuse to change.
Social Justice
Climate change is intimately connected to racial justice. Many of those suffering already from the devastating effects of climate change live in poorer countries and are often former colonies of countries such as the UK. And yet it's the richer countries that have polluted our shared atmosphere to a much greater degree since the start of the industrial revolution. That's simply not fair.
Sport and The Arts
Many sectors are waking up to the crisis we face and are working together to reduce their carbon and environmental impacts. If you work, make sure your industry is getting its house in order!
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