UN Secretary General Ban K-Moon was there. So were NYC Mayor Bill DeBlasio and Leonardo DeCaprio. So was an unnamed baby resting on his Mother’s chest. My wife and I were there, too. We were among the 310,000 marchers who gathered in Central Park on Sunday for the People’s Climate March just 2 days before the UN Climate Conference on September 23.
New York City was not alone. Hundreds of thousands like-minded people came together in cities around the world to support climate change action now.
The purpose of the UN Conference is to catalyze “action by governments, business, finance, industry, and civil society … for new commitments and substantial, scalable and replicable contributions …that will help the world shift toward a low-carbon economy.” The Secretary General called for UN members to “innovate, scale-up, cooperate and deliver concrete action that will close the emissions gap.”
March organizers said it was time to “demand action not words.” Yet, it was through the words in chants and on banners that participants got their message across.
“There is no planet B”
“Don’t nuke the climate”
“Don’t frack with us”
Fracking= Climate change
“Treat your mama (Earth) with respect.”
My wife and I were fascinated that people of all ages, nationalities, religions and political perspectives marched peacefully and energetically united in a common cause. As concerned citizens who worry about the future of our planet for our grandchildren and yours, we were proud to be part of the Climate March and left NYC feeling hopeful about the “day after tomorrow. “