Earth Hour: Sustainable economies for sustainable environment

 

PRESS CONFERENCE OF ANDROS KYPRIANOU, GENERAL SECRETARY OF THE C.C. OF AKEL, ON “EARTH DAY”

AKEL C.C. Press Office, 28th March 2015, Nicosia

 

“Earth Hour” has been established for about eight years now. It has assumed an international dimension however with so much scope in recent years, especially here in our country. It is noteworthy that in 2009 tens of millions of people in more than 4,000 cities and towns in 88 countries turned off their lights for one hour. This was the first time that people around the world with this symbolic gesture, tried to convey a message to world leaders that a global agreement to tackle climate change is more necessary than ever before. Unfortunately, this agreement has not been achieved so far.

AKEL calls on the Cypriot people to participate in this symbolic event today, switching off lights for an hour. This does not mean that we downgrade the real causes of the current environmental degradation, nor do we shift the problem to an individual level.

AKEL’s position is that the pursuit of a consistent and effective environmental policy is closely linked with issues regarding economic development and national independence. Furthermore, the struggle for the protection of the environment is inextricably linked with the assertion of the principal social asset, namely peace. It is worth pointing out that while we are in a period of intense reflection on the very prospect of the planet’s survival, even until the end of the 21st century, the international agendas that are set by the same circles that are responsible for the planet’s critical situation, they never talk about changing the system that has created and is exacerbating the problems.

The global consensus about the need for a new sustainable path for economies and societies presupposes a change in these practices which are causing the problems our planet is currently facing. Regretfully today, the term “sustainable development” is being used in a misleading way. Sustainable development refers to economic development that is planned and implemented taking into account environmental protection and sustainability. We can therefore reach the conclusion that only a radical change of the destructive model implemented today, can achieve effectively what the term Sustainable Development demands.

Hugo Chavez once said at some point something very characteristic: if the climate were a bank, they would have been saved it. Their primary concern is their profits. At this critical juncture in human history, the Left is the only political and social force of hope. With these brief words and slogan “Earth Hour is now” we call on the people to participate in this struggle.