TUED Bulletin 81 — November 30, 2018 - COP24: TUED and Allies Will Bring a Strong Pro-Public Message to Katowice

View this email in your browser

TUED Bulletin 81 — November 30, 2018 COP24: TUED and Allies Will Bring a Strong Pro-Public Message to Katowice Working with key allies in energy democracy advocacy, TUED has organized several meetings and strategy sessions during the upcoming “COP24” UN climate talks, which will take place December 3-14, 2018, in Katowice, Poland. These sessions will take place over several days, from Thursday, December 6th until Monday, December 10th. They have been co-organized with Trade Union Confederation of the Americas (TUCA), Rosa Luxemburg Stiftung-New York Office, the UK’s Public and Commercial Services Union, Friends of the Earth Europe, transform! europe, and Transnational Institute (TNI). The full schedule and registration details are available here. UK Labour Party Shadow Minister to Address Energy Democracy Gathering As part of this series of events, Rebecca  Long-Bailey, UK Labour Party Shadow Secretary for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, will join us for a discussion on the Party’s climate and industrial policy. The Party is currently committed to bringing transmission and distribution networks back into public ownership, and to achieving net zero emissions by 2050. The Party is also committed to ensuring 60% of the UK’s energy comes from low carbon and renewable sources within 12 years of coming to power, and to working with energy unions and workers to deliver a ‘green jobs revolution’ at the heart of Labour’s industrial strategy. The meeting will take place Sunday evening, December 9th. Registration is required, and can be done here. TUED and co-organizers have planned the following four events over the four days; please see the online program for full details and any updates, as well as for logistics and registration information: Thursday, December 6 (afternoon) TUED Roundtable: Analysis, Allies and Action Time: 13:00-17:00 (with lunch at 13:00) Friday, December 7 (afternoon) Energy Democracy: Reclaiming Energy to Social Ownership and Full Democratic Control Time: 13:30-16:00 Sunday, December 9 (evening) Climate Change and the Energy Transition: Alternatives to Market Failures, and the Role of Public Ownership Time: 19:30-21:30 Special guest: Rebecca Long-Bailey, UK Labour Party Shadow Secretary for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy Monday, December 10 (morning) Energy Democracy “Next Steps” Working Meeting Time: 09:30-11:30 Again, the full program is available here. For An Independent "Public Goods" Approach In preparation for these meetings, TUED has prepared a discussion paper, which provides an updated assessment of where the world stands with regard to tackling the climate and energy crisis, When “Green” Doesn’t “Grow”: Facing Up to the Failures of Profit-Driven Climate Policy. As the paper argues: "After more than a decade of speeches and assurances from global elites, the “green growth” approach to climate protection has failed to make any meaningful progress in addressing the climate crisis. Renewable energy is on an upward course, but overall energy consumption has continued to rise even faster; as a result, fossil fuel use continues to expand, emissions continue to rise, and nearly every major country is off-track to meet their Paris commitments. "It is time for us to collectively confront these stark realities and formulate a radical, independent, and internationalist trade union alternative based on a “public goods” approach. One way or another, rising emissions hurt everyone, and reducing emissions would benefit everyone. Considerations of private profit must be taken out of the equation. Emissions reductions must therefore be regarded as an absolute necessity and a collective human right. And since most emissions come from how we generate and use energy, energy systems must be radically reshaped by needs-based and pro-public policies. This means reclaiming energy to public and social ownership, and democratic control." The full paper is available here. As always, we welcome feedback.

About getting involved   For unions considering being formally involved in TUED, most of the information you need is here. There's also more information on why it's important for unions to support TUED here. Need more information about energy democracy?  Take a look at our working papers series (y también en español) Videos: Including This is What Energy Democracy Looks Like! in English, French and Spanish visit our website for more info