Target: Dennis Francis, President of United Nations General Assembly
Goal: Financially penalize countries emitting high levels of pollution that instigate devastating natural disasters.
In the Bahamas alone, almost half of the nation’s debt is attributable to rebuilding and recovery from increasingly powerful tropical storms. Caribbean nations as a whole face rising dangers and death tolls from record-breaking hurricanes. Fed up with reaping the consequences of more influential nations’ environmental irresponsibility, this region is taking its case to the international stage and launching one of the planet’s most consequential climate justice initiatives.
Frustrated by years of inaction from the United Nations (UN), Caribbean leaders will request an opinion from the International Court of Justice regarding the financial liability that the highest-polluting countries should face. As the attorney general for the Bahamas stated, “we firmly believe that, in order to make a real impact or a real change, unfortunately, you have to do it where it hurts the most, and that is in the pocketbooks.”
Sign the petition below to demand the UN General Assembly do its job and address these concerns at once.
PETITION LETTER:
Dear Mr. Francis,
Debt sustainability and debt disasters were the focus of a recent UN general assembly meeting. What of the crushing debt cycle caused by the climate crisis, and what of the long-term complaints of the tropical nations most afflicted by this crisis? When Caribbean leaders filed a request for the International Court of Justice to clarify global climate justice standards, these leaders were accused of politicizing the issue.
The powerful storms fueled by the climate crisis are no mere matter of politics for individuals who suffer, rebuild, and lose their lives to these disasters. Their voices are valid, and they should have been heard by the general assembly long ago. But according to Caribbean leaders, the opposite has occurred. A leader in the Bahamas recently spoke for many when he affirmed, “we have tried diplomacy for many years as a region, as a country. We attend all of the United Nations meetings … we attend COP. We do all the diplomatic things that are expected of us. As we can see, that has gotten very little traction and the results are minimal. The temperature rise continues. The effects of severe storms in our region continue.”
Don’t wait for the International Court of Justice to force your hand. Do the right thing now and develop a sound, equitable, and binding framework for climate justice going forward.
Sincerely,
[Your Name Here]
Photo Credit: NASA
Rich countries are responsible for climate change. This is the responsibility of Big Oil. Get the oil companies to help these island nations. Although they do use oil they don’t use enough to pollute as horribly as this world is polluted now. I blame the governments of countries and feel the richer countries who are still producing oil products must help these island nations in recovery. This is a world problem and needs to be funded by those using the most oil and are continuing to use oil. We all know by now that the earth can not stand more insult. Big oil, big governments, both need to pay for the damage done. Countries with leaders like Putin, Trump, and others need to pay the highest prices. It needs to be priced bon those who use and continue to use Bg Oil. Big Oil needs to die.