A year after the petition “The Affair of the Century”, several associations are now calling on the French to become “witnesses of the climate”. According to the complainants, the climate emergency does not seem to have been really taken into account.
Testifying for the climate
Last year, nearly 2.3 million signatures were collected through the Affair of the Century petition. The objective was to support the appeal filed by various environmental associations. In the event of non-action on the part of the government, the associations had promised to take legal action, which had been done in March 2019. However, despite a report written by the French State, this collective, notably made up of Greenpeace and Oxfam France is still not convinced.
“One year after the Century Affair, state actions are still not up to the climate emergency. Faced with this Delay of the Century, the Affair of the Century takes a new step and calls on citizens to become #TemoinDuClimat ”, we can read the official page of the Affaire du Siècle.
The goal is to invite any citizen to testify about the consequences of climate change. This happens in particular through social networks using the hashtag #temoinduclimat. At the time of writing, more than 12,000 testimonials have already been published.
An impact map in France
The other way to testify is to write a few lines on a map of France provided for this purpose. These are often very simple observations, but they have the advantage of being easy to understand and above all, easy to locate. Thus, the testimonies published on social networks and on the map will be taken into account in the preparation of a new dossier targeting the French State. It’s about lobbying, demanding concrete responses and actions for the environment.
“I have lived in Savoie for ten years, I have been able – in such a short time – to observe the increase in temperatures and the decrease in eternal snow and alpine glaciers. Each winter, I see snowfall decreases. Alpine flora and fauna are very fragile, these changes have dramatic consequences for the Alpine ecosystem ”.
“I see a disruption in the seasons with changes in the maturation of plants, but also a change in the coastline. In addition, as a doctor, I see global anxiety and a loss of confidence in my patients of all ages ”.
“I live by the ocean, on the southwest Atlantic side. Our coastline and forests are falling apart from year to year with a very visible acceleration in recent months. Indeed, many storms sweep everything in its path: houses, public infrastructure but also forest, dunes, marine animals, birds are seriously affected … I’m afraid for the future !!! “
