Antinuclear

David Suzuki on Tony Abbott, solar panels and his book

Environmental activist David Suzuki on Tony Abbott, solar panels and his book, Guardian, Oliver Milman, 24 Sept 15 The Canadian environmental activist, who is in Australia next March for WOMADelaide’s Planet Talks series, speaks to Oliver Milman Canadian environmentalist David Suzuki, who was the subject of a solo Q&A broadcast in 2013, is back in Australia in March to take part in WOMADelaide’s Planet Talks series. Suzuki, a vocal advocate for action on climate change, spoke to Guardian Australia about Tony Abbott, the upcoming Paris climate talks and his new book.

What did you make of Australia’s latest change of prime minister?

I had no idea this was going to happen. I thought ‘my God, I’m not a religious man but you’ve answered my prayers.’ I know Malcolm Turnbull is not a climate denier, so that’s a step up, our prime minister [Stephen Harper] is a denier. It all depends on why Tony Abbott was booted out. Is his party committed to action on climate change?……..

So how is Australia doing?

When you’ve got nine out of 10 solar panels made in China, you have to ask what the hell is wrong with Australia, you’ve got the solar resource, you are crazy. Canadians would kill for that sunshine, you have the CSIRO, some of the top scientists in the world and you’re not taking solar seriously, what’s wrong with you?

You have Gina Rinehart, the big coal magnate, look at stuff she says! How does it get published?

You recently put your name – along with the likes of Ellen Page, Leonard Cohen and Naomi Klein – to the Leap Manifesto, which calls for a rapid transition to renewable energy. What do you think of the argument put forward by Klein that capitalism isn’t suited to the challenge of doing this?

I’m completely with Naomi. We can’t fiddle around with little bandage attempts, more insulation in houses, small carbon taxes and so on. We’ve reached a crisis point where we have very little time to get off fossil fuels.

Al Gore said over five years ago that we need to be fossil fuel free in 10 years – that’s the kind of big call we need. We can’t fiddle around any longer. Our economic system treats air, water and soil like it’s free, we treat it like a garbage can.

We demand growth forever – growth is defined as success. But economies grow by using up the rightful legacy of children and grandchildren.

So you’re not a fan of market-based systems to deal with climate change?

People say market-based systems – come on now. The atmosphere is what keeps us alive, then you can talk about markets and capitalism.

Those things aren’t part of nature, we invented them. We asked nature to suit our agenda – it’s crazy. We should be shoehorning economics to suit nature’s needs, not the other way around.

We must start in Paris [at the UN climate conference] defining what the most basic things humans have. The most important thing a human being has is a breath of air – if you don’t have that, you’re dead. Our highest priority is protecting clean air.

We are 60% water by weight, we need to keep drinking. If you don’t drink water you’re dead, if you have polluted water you’re sick. If you don’t have food for four to six weeks weeks you’re dying, you eat contaminated food you’re sick. So put clean soil up with clean air and water in terms of importance.

These are the fundamental things we need. Once we make that commitment we then ask how do we have an economy, how can we make a living?

Are you hopeful about the upcoming Paris climate change talks?……… http://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2015/sep/24/environmental-activist-david-suzuki-on-tony-abbott-solar-panels-and-his-book?CMP=share_btn_tw

September 25, 2015 - Posted by Christina Macpherson | General News