Thread by @simonahac

we're about to start the @LiteFootPrints local community forum:

"Climate Change: Why Should I Care?"

a wonderful lineup of speakers — climate and energy experts, and candidates for #hawthorn at the upcoming state election. #LFForum

i'll be live-tweeting in this thread.

speakers covering perspectives:
• joelle gergis — climate science
• sarah barker — legal
• oliver yates — finance
• @markwakeham — community
…in conversation with @VictoriaMcKMcH of @CAN_Australia.

we'll be joined later by three candidates for the upcoming victorian election:
• @JohnPesutto — @LiberalVictoria
• nicholas bieber — @VictorianGreens
• john kennedy — @VictorianLabor

if you have a question tonight for the #LFForum, please send it through:
slido.com
event: s306

.@LiteFootPrints convenor carolyn ingvarson begins introduction — 330 seats now full, late arrivals being shepherded upstairs. great turnout. 2/3 identified as #hawthorn electors.

…and the good folks at @LiteFootPrints are broadcasting the #LFForum event live on facebook live as @VictoriaMcKMcH takes the stage.

tune in here:
facebook.com/LighterFootpri…

IPCC contributor @joellegergis — "When it comes to climate change, Australia is the most vulnerable nation in the developed world – 77% of the country is classified as arid or semi-arid"

heat extremes are on the rise:

"australia’s land and ocean temperatures have warmed by 1°C since 1910
— all natural variability is now occurring on the background of a warming climate."

98% NSW, and about 58% of queensland is currently in drought…

"australian maximum temperatures for 2018 to date are the second warmest on record (only behind 2013) – warming trend compounding rainfall deficits"

"we can't talk about the current drought without talking about #climatechange"
"50% of the great barrier reef’s corals are now dead with just 1°C of warming."

increases over our children's lifetimes…

the good news… it is possible to limit warming to 1.5°C.

a quick plug for @joellegergis' excellent book: sunburnt country.
(maybe i should send you a copy, @laurieatlas.)

taking the stage: sarah barker, special counsel at @minterellison:

as a lawyer, she talks with her clients about 3 climate risks:
• physical risks
• economic transition risks
• liability consequences

sarah: the paris agreement is the mother of all market signals. add in technology and social shifts.

"think how quickly social attitudes to plastics have changed over the past year alone."

those hippies at the @wef outline the global risk landscape — climate change tops the charts.

"doesn't matter if you are a climate change denier" — global capital is alive to the risks.

now oliver yates: renewables are cheaper, and getting cheaper.

getting cheaper…

driven by scale and volume…

batteries getting cheaper…

oliver yates: hydrogen is the "mother" of all ingredients in our economy.

oliver yates takes us on a tour of total policy failure:

oliver yates (OY): government has backed in failure:

OY: we're not going to meet paris in a canter — we're going to miss it by a long way:

OY: liberals used to be strong on the environment.

oliver yates: liberal party has lost its way on the environment.

.@markwakeham takes the stage and shows animation of global warming from 1880 to 2015.

svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/4419

…victoria is the leader we need on global warming…

…no leadership from canberra…

where are victoria's parties on climate?

first up — @VictorianLabor:

…the closure of hazelwood…

next up — @LiberalVictoria:

…matthew guy's response to hazelwood closure…

lastly — @VictorianGreens:

.@markwakeham on why the #victorian state election matters:

a reminder that the #LFForum event is broadcast live on facebook live — we're on to the panel.

facebook.com/LighterFootpri…

.@markwakeham — recent vic study found:
• 78% of #victorians think climate change is an issue requiring urgent action, now
• 93% of victorians believe state government should be acting on #climatechange

why would anyone go into the election with no climate policy?

.@joellegergis we now have the science of "detection and attribution" that allows us to determine to what degree #climatechange is responsible for extreme weather events.

eg. bleaching of the great barrier reef was 175 times more likely because of anthropogenic climate change.

.@markwakeham the coal industry has become so desperate they now send their representatives into parliament with lumps of coal…

sarah barker to all the #babyboomers in the house: if a super fund gets a letter from 10 members, it is a landslide opinion. write to them!

"play the man, not the ball."

sarah barker: you can't sue the government for crap policy, but you can sue businesses for crap decisions. 🤔

globally there are claims on foot against directors of oil companies, investment funds, etc. here next.

"find the pressure points, and push those buttons."

.@joellegergis once we kill the reef, there's no coming back.

2°C is the upper bound of the paris agreement. we can see from the historical record that the climate starts to get very unstable above that level.

.@markwakeham: never forget that we are up against vested interests. the only antidote to organised money is organised people.

the victorian election, followed by the NSW election and the federal election are critical.

oliver yates: in australian politics, influence is for sale — if we want our politicians to represent us, we need structural reform.

sarah barker: insurance company in illinois sued municipalities for not taking precautions against reasonably foreseeable climate impacts.

oliver yates: the reason we don't have donation reform is that parties don't want to change the corrupt system.

governments seem to be happy to live with their hands dirty, hands in the till.

sarah barker: a shoutout the the great work of @AustCCR for taking the voice of shareholders to corporate australia.

.@joellegergis: we need to rethink some values — not everything comes down to money. sure you can value the jobs and tourism income of the reef, but the loss of the reef is worth far more than that.

oliver yates: the only way an MP will move their position is if their seat is threatened.

"why do we have to have a fiscally conservative liberal who doesn't care about climate represent us locally?"

.@markwakeham if parties look at the surveys/polls they'll realise that they need to take action on #climatechange.

sarah barker: one of the most important things you can do is call 🐂💩 — call them out!

oliver yates: criticise the government and you can expect the prime minister's office to call your boss — how is this acceptable?

.@VictoriaMcKMcH what can we do?
• @markwakeham get involved for the election — contact @EnviroVic
• @joellegergis 1.5°C is possible, no time for apathy, take a stand for your values and ethics
• sarah barker: #babyboomers protect your nesteggs! write to your super!

• oliver yates: knock down primary vote of incumbents — if you're planning to vote for the majors, put them second so they get a message
• @VictoriaMcKMcH sign up for @LiteFootPrints, switch your power company, switch your bank!

…thanks panel, now on to the candidates…

this is the first time in the decade that @LiteFootPrints has had candidates from the three major parties in the #hawthorn electorate — very grateful to @JohnPesutto.

➡️ nicholas bieber, @VictorianGreens, social worker
• health impacts of #climatechange are significant
• heat waves cause more loss of life than any other natural event
• bushfires in winter, lakes drying up, farmers struggling, risks to food security
• you can't buy rain

➡️ john kennedy, @VictorianLabor
• goethe "as knowledge grows, so does doubt" — #climatechange is an exception. the science affirms what we know
• vision: an victoria that is fair, productive and compassionate
• need all three to solve this challenge
• #CC a party priority

➡️ @JohnPesutto, @LiberalVictoria, shadow attorney general
• start with what we agree upon — #climatechange is real, we have to transition to renewables, we have to do these things
• where we might differ is how we get there
• want to preserve the environmental heritage

…pesutto cont.
• sometimes despair at the quality of debate, we descend into tribes
• great respect for @LiteFootPrints
• aiming for more respectful conversation
• party has been explicit in opposing #CSG
• current gov spending $42m on gas studies

…pesutto cont.
• opposition has announced solar on all schools
• local content laws for renewable developments
• always prepared to engage
• stands as a candidate who thinks we should act on #climatechange

calls from the audience:

"when will we see a #climatepolicy from @LiberalVictoria?"

indeed.

…and with that, @LiteFootPrints #LFForum draws to a formal close — over 400 in attendance. hope you enjoyed the torrent of tweets!

next events:
• jane morton, darebin climate action network — 28 november
• @simonahac 😬 — 27 february 2019

it's a wrap!