Australia’s Greens Fight for Climate Emergency Recognition

On the 2nd of December 2020, Australian Green Party leader Adam Bandt urged the parliament to declare a climate emergency which would help the government recognize the desperate calls for climate action. While presenting the motion, he emphasized the importance of the motion as a jumping off point to tackling climate change as increased risks of climate catastrophe are expected to affect the country in the near future.

The debate stressed the need to suspend standing orders and to immediately act upon the current global issue. In the debate Bandt stated that “the scientists have told us, ‘Don’t let the planet get hotter than two degrees or we might not be able to stop it and it may become an unstoppable chain reaction’”. While the history of the Greens and the government witnessed many disagreements regarding climate change, there is now a growth in the demand for action.   

The Green leader pushed for Australian participation in the upcoming Global Ambition Summit of 2020 in which different countries are taking part, including the UN, France, United Kingdom, Chile and Italy. This initiative sets the stage for government and non-government actors to showcase their support to the progress of climate change plans, and to promise to contribute to short term plans. 

“ The first step to fixing a problem is admitting that you’ve got a problem, and at the moment the government doesn’t admit we’ve got a problem” 

Australian Green Party Leader Adam Bandt said during the motion to suspend standing orders 

Australia’s carbon emissions have dropped significantly, in comparison to previous years, when restrictions were implemented in the country to limit the spread of COVID-19. Citizens are alarmed that government officials were unable to acknowledge the fact that it required a complete lockdown to lower emission rates. Minister for Energy and Emissions Reduction Angus Taylor misleadingly implies the government had a role in these reductions while commentators believe that the government should not be credited for them. 

“The pandemic is not an acceptable emissions reduction strategy. You can talk about 2050 all you like, but what matters is what we do over the next 10 years.”

Australian Green Party Leader Adam Bandt. Retrieved from The Project.

The Australian Green Party which was formally formed in 1992 presented well-planned strategies to address national problems affecting the community and the environment. The party fought and is still fighting for justice, equality, and clean energy in Australia to help secure more jobs and shift the economy to a clean energy one. 

Throughout the years, the Australians’ support for the Greens has increased and allowed the party to expand. Many are witnessing the transformation of the familiar two party culture due to the Green’s powerful and committed stances towards the environment and well being of the people. In recent years, this has attracted more attention than other traditional parties. Melbourne continues to shift away from its long history of being a Labor Party electoral division ever since the Greens won their first seat in a general election in the 2010 federal elections. The Greens are now the third largest political party in Australia with 9 senators and one member of parliament (Adam Bandt).

In Adam Bandt’s first media conference in Canberra after being elected as Australia’s Green Party leader, he introduced the Green New Deal which is a plan intended to save Australia from its rising economy problems, inequality, and climate issues. 

After having to go through drastic life changes and unacceptable health conditions due to COVID-19 and 2019 bushfires, many Australians began looking for organized and planned actions to create meaningful change. The Green Party of Australia plans to address and propose solutions to the current economic inequity, unemployment and climate crisis.

The Green New Deal is a big governmental initiative intended to raise the number of jobs and create new industries. With huge investments and proper planning, it will ensure a successful transition into an environmentally-friendly economy while appropriately preparing the community to adapt to these new changes. The Green New Deal will focus on not just the climate crisis, but also the Australian society.

Lojain Azzam

Lojain Azzam is a member of the Golden Key International Honour Society and is currently working toward a BA degree in Political Science at Concordia University. She believes in a just world where everyone is equal and the economy goes hand in hand with the environment. To progress into this kind of world, she has taken a decision to set her life journey to be a meaningful and informative one. Lojain is determined to provide credible and authentic news coverage to the audience through her journalism at Global Green News.

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