#142: Good Cop, Bad Cop

Who gave up their website for climate change? You’ll have to read RIGHT to the end to find out

Mōrena, and happy Tuesday!

We’re currently in the month of COP - the annual global climate summit where leaders from over 200 countries meet to discuss climate action (here’s a good explainer). We’re seeing more pressure on countries to address their emissions, but COP has also become a huge display of power, with governments, corporations, and lobbyists all shaping the conversation. If you’ve been following the news - especially around things like carbon capture lobbyists at COP, pushes for natural gas, human rights abuses - you might feel disheartened by the way power is being levered internationally. 

But this kind of large-scale power doesn’t exist in isolation, and this week, I want to look at a couple other "levers of power" that we can influence with our own actions:

🛠 The Business Lever:

We all know businesses care about profit—but they also care about their reputation and staying ahead of the curve. And when customers or investors make their voices heard, it can make a real impact.

Examples: Boycotts, divestment campaigns, and consumer pressure can all serve as reminders to corporations that their bottom line is linked to public perception and ethical responsibility. It’s not just about asking for change—it’s about creating a scenario where inaction becomes bad business.

👩🏽‍⚖️ The Local Politics Lever
Local politics is another powerful lever, whether we’re talking about the party in power or the opposition. We tend to focus on the current government, but even if a party isn’t in power, we can still hold them accountable by showing them where their voters stand on key issues. It helps shape future policy, even if they’re not in control right now.

Example: Our 15 min action today with the Crown Minerals Bill is a great example of this - here we’re pushing for the opposition party to make a promise. This would discourage overseas fossil fuel companies from investing here, making it unlikely that new projects would start before the ban is restored.These are definitely not the only two levers of power we have, but they are two that we focus our actions around regularly.  

The power we have to drive change might not always be the kind we see at COP, but it’s just as real.

What can we do today?

The most-clicked link last week was the petition calling for the International Criminal Court to investigate those who have funded climate denial.

🐝 5 minutes: Let’s not cop out of COP29

• Japan remains one of the world’s leading investors in fossil fuel projects. A 350 campaigner is in Baku right now for COP29 and will personally deliver this petition next week to the Japanese environmental minister.
  Action: Ask Japan to finance renewables and stop investing in fossil fuel projects.

• One of the key aims of COP is to get a commitment from rich countries to help poorer countries pay for a fair and fast transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy. NZ has made a start on this this week with a $4 million climate reparations deal with Vanuatu. The EU and UK governments have committed to strong climate action on paper, but haven’t shown the money…yet.
  Action: Call on the EU and the UK to lead the way in committing to a loss and damage fund.

• Above, we said rich countries should pay loss and damages for their past sins emissions. Why not also make fossil fuel companies specifically pay for their damages?
  Action: Sign the petition to get big oil to pay for their damage

• Did you think it was a bit wild that this year’s COP was hosted by a fossil fuel emitter that called oil & gas ‘a gift from God’?
  Action: Sign the petition to get the next COP to be hosted by indigenous people.

🐇 15 minutes: Let’s Labour the point about banning oil 

• The Crown Minerals Amendment Bill, which overturns the hard-won ban on oil and gas exploration, just passed its second reading. To minimise the harm that this bill would cause if it passes into law, we can ask opposition parties to commit to revoking new permits in future governments. 

  Action: Use our quick template to email Megan Woods (Labour, former Minister for Energy) to ask Labour to join the Greens in disincentivising new oil & gas expansion

In case you missed it:

• Tāmaki Makaurau/Auckland folks: The Community Climate Action Network currently has funding grants of $500 to $4,000 to bring your idea to life! This is a great chance for community groups in Auckland to take action on climate change.
  Action: Apply before 5pm Friday 22 Nov, or share with a mate

• Tāmaki Makaurau/Auckland, every third Thursday, 6:30pm: People Planet Pint is a monthly sustainability meet-up for conversations on climate change. Join the group on the third Thursday of each month.
  Action: Save the date for a climate meetup this Thursday in Morningside

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That’s all for today, folks 👋🏽 Thanks for taking action. Enjoy this COP29 website which has been (very fittingly) appropriated, and this lovely acknowledgement: 

See you next week, 

Dhanya & the Climate Club team

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