Voices of Hope

EMOTIVE 'GREEN' TEAM MAKE IMPRESSION AT COP 26

On Monday 1st November 2021, the day when world leaders outlined their climate commitments at COP 26, the personalities of two of the most recognisable and admired people of our nation, British naturalist and presenter, Sir David Attenborough and Her Royal Majesty the Queen, both shone through their familiar and respected voices of reason and hope.

Described by some as "arguably the most important 7 minutes of Sir David Attenborough's distinguished career to date" his impassioned speech, which drew a standing ovation, urged delegates "to turn tragedy into triumph" and "to rewrite our story".

Speaking alongside screens showing our history, the climate the beauty and fragility of our planet and a graph that tracked the rise of carbon concentration in the Earth's atmosphere, Sir David, said the graph was "the clearest way to chart" the story of humanity. "Our burning of fossil fuels, our destruction of nature, our approach to industry, construction and learning, are releasing carbon into the atmosphere at an unprecedented pace and scale," he told the conference. "We are already in trouble."

However, he also said that humans were "the greatest problem solvers to have ever existed on Earth. If working apart we are a force powerful enough to destabilise our planet, surely working together we are powerful enough to save it," before concluding, "In my lifetime I've witnessed a terrible decline. In yours, you could and should witness a wonderful recovery."

You can watch the film below:-

At the other end of the day, the Queen, in a recorded message played at the COP 26 evening reception for the 120 world leaders said, "History has shown that when nations come together in common cause, there's always room for hope". As she recalled how her late husband Prince Philip had warned of the threat of "increasingly intolerable" world pollution over 50 years ago, she asked that everyone would play their part and that those leaders present would think of the future and be the pioneers who take decisive action.

The world has "the chance to join in the shared objective of creating a safer, stabler future for our people and for the planet on which we depend", she said. "Working side by side, we have the ability to solve the most insurmountable problems and to triumph over the greatest of adversities." You can watch below.

Many others gave impassioned and emotive speeches including Kenyan environment and climate activist Elizabeth Wathuti, who asked for fearlessness and feeling when she said: "We need you to respond with courage to the climate and ecological crisis for these next two weeks which are so critical for the children, for our species, for so many other living beings, let us step into our hearts."

Footnote: Tuesday's programme of events will continue with further national statements as well as leader events on forests and land use, accelerating clean technology, innovation and development. News came through late on Monday evening that the climate change conference's first major deal had been struck as a group of world leaders promised to end deforestation by 2030, including Brazil, which is home to the Amazon rainforest. A full detailed announcement was released by the UK government in the early hours of 2nd November 2021. For more information click HERE.