Arthur Girling travels to Cochabamba and to report on the World People's Conference on Climate Change and The Rights of Mother Earth for ResonanceFM and Climate Radio.
Written, researched, narrated, edited and produced by Arthur Girling for ResonanceFM.com and ClimateRadio.org
When Bolivian President Evo Morales announced his alternative summit two weeks after the UN meeting in Copenhagen, it could have been easily dismissed as an attention-grabbing stunt. Bolivia was one of the most vocal opponents of the âCopenhagen Accordâ, the non-binding document that emerged on the last day of talks in 2009.
But Morales got the timing right. After the cynicism and recriminations of the failed summit, civil society, climate campaigners and governments see hope in his positive message of rights and justice.
Arthur Girling travelled to Cochabamba to learn about new political proposals from some of the worldâs poorest countries. He presents 48 minutes of political debate, music and talk of revolution from âthe city of eternal springâ.
The programme includes interviews with representatives from the North American Indigenous movement, Via Campesina, Working Group 18, the Ecuadorean government, Climate Justice Action and Jubilee South, as well as commentary, analyisis, field recordings and diaristic observations.
Topics covered include: an assessment of the "Copenhagen Accord", proposals to address Climate Debt and establish an tribunal on climate crimes, the Yasuni proposal to keep their oil in the soli, struggles within Bolivia against the extraction industry and large development projects, the outcomes of the conference and implications for the direct action movement.