Dear Everyone,
After three fabulous meetings at the Paradise Valley Hotel, the Zoom meeting on Tuesday night highlighted the contrast between the two types of meetings. Every participant did their best, and Peter Ravenscroft did an outstanding job in his “Behind The Badge” presentation, but the camaraderie of the in-person meetings just can’t be replicated in the Zoom setting. We were able to mark the occasion of Don’s milestone birthday, happily.
Cardinia Shire’s “Imagine Cardinia – People’s Panel” has prepared draft community priorities and now the Cardinia community is being asked to share their feedback on them via a survey. I encourage you, your family, friends, neighbours etc. to go online and complete the survey by Wednesday 3
rd of March 2021. Learn more at
creating.cardinia.vic.gov.au/imaginecardinia/r2prioritiesPlease participate and make the process more democratic.
As mentioned last Tuesday night, I attended Rotary’s Climate and Peace Forum in the morning along with almost 600 others. Ours was one of the 150 Rotary Clubs around the world which supported the forum. Rob Edwards, one of the convenors said that the forum was not political, but it could hardly be otherwise, so I apologise if the report comes across as such. A lot of you may already know what you are about to read, but it doesn’t hurt to be reminded.
Significantly, the forum opened with a video clip and song sung by a young teenager.
Marian Wilkinson, international journalist and author of “The Carbon Club” was the first speaker. The Carbon Club refers to the climate sceptics, who are backed by powerful business lobbies in Australia. By denying climate science, the climate sceptics removed the imperative to act on climate change. Since the devastating Black Summer bushfires however, climate change scepticism is now shunned by most mainstream politicians and business leaders. Recognising the need to cut greenhouse emissions over the next decade, Scott Morrison presented his plan for a gas-led recovery post COVID, but he did not use the term “climate change” once. A gas-led recovery is more about supporting gas companies than a long-term plan, and big investors know gas is a short-term bridging fuel and that battery and hydrogen power will end up overtaking them. While Australia is grappling with delay and denial, the rest of the world is moving forward. Our trading partners China, Japan and Europe are embracing net zero emissions by 2050 in accordance with the Paris 2016 Agreement. John Kerry the U.S.’s Special Presidential Envoy for Climate will be ramping up the pressure on other countries, especially the developed ones in order to meet the Paris goal. Rapid energy transition is needed. According to Kerry, we have to phase out coal and increase tree cover 5 times faster than we have been, ramp up renewable energy 6 times faster than we have been, and transition to electric vehicles 22 times faster than we are doing today. AND, it’s all do-able! “We are the last generation that can stop climate change.” - U.N. Summit Dec. 2018.
Michael E. Mann, Distinguished Professor of Atmospheric Science at Penn State Uni., Nobel Prize winner and author wrote “How to Win the New Climate War, the Fight to Take Back our Planet.”
It was known as early as 1982 in a report by Exxon that CO2 levels were projected to rise steeply, but the report was not released to the public and the group who established the findings was defunded. Two decades of inaction have led to devastating impacts in real time: unprecedented heatwaves, bushfires, super storms, hurricanes, floods and droughts. If we do nothing now, Black Summer will become business as usual. Hard denial of climate change has given way to soft denial, delay tactics, deflection, division and doomism. Division involves attacking an individual’s lifestyle in an attempt to divide climate activists. Kerry has been called a hypocrite in order to discredit him. The Doom-mongers want us to be disengaged. But Prof. Mann argues that we have the solutions in front of us and we need to accelerate that transition to renewables with policies of carbon pricing and incentives for renewable energy. The U.S. is ready to lead once again and preserve the planet for future generations.
Briefly, Maxine Burkett, Professor of Law at the Uni. Of Hawaii, spoke about peace, security, equity and climate migration. With the prospect of rising sea levels, the Republic of the Marshall Islands and the Maldives, for example, face loss of territory which may force people to migrate. Indigenous peoples will be severely affected and the poorest of the poor the most affected.
To thank them, the host Rotary Club is donating in the presenters’ names to the Rotary Foundation to support further grassroots climate action. The forum finished with a short video of a great Rotary solar project in Fiji schools. Please watch this uplifting and heartwarming video, and the link is
here.
Thank you’s this week to:
- Lyn, Lorna and Shalini for the work they are doing on the June Deb Ball.
- Roy for assuming the mantle of the all-important All-American Chair.
- Ian Ash for setting up and hosting the Zoom meeting.
- All the Committees for the work they are doing behind the scenes.
This Tuesday night, it’s Club Assembly again chaired by Shalini back from her PETS, with an update from all Areas of Service Chairs. And our “Know Your Rotarian” is the remarkably clever and accomplished Kristine Ash.
** Next week:
on 2nd of March our guest speaker is Box Hill Central’s President and our incoming Assistant Governor and all-round good guy Mark Balla talking about WASH.
**The following week:
on 9th of March our Speaker is our very own Day Gowland who will be delivering his “Behind the Badge” talk - TBC
Don’t stay home come to the pub, stay safe and stay Rotary Even Prouder.
Yours in Rotary,
Vicki.
