Rise for Climate demonstration

On 29 June, members of Volt attended a demonstration organised by Rise for Climate Belgium. The event was held in response to the continued blocking of the Nature Restoration Law by the European Parliament. Nor was the climate crisis on the agenda of the European Council summit from 29 – 30 June. This demonstration brought together representatives of the European Greens, Extinction Rebellion, the House of Compassion, You are Nature Brussels, Stop Ecocide Belgium, Students in Transition, Espirito Mundo, Attac Bruxelles 2, Tout Autre Chose, 350.org and L’Agora des Habitants de la Terre.

Our co-president Carlo GIUDICE made a speech in which he called for the EP to “safeguard food security and vote in favour of the Nature Restoration Law” in a time when the “sixth wave of mass extinction” is being “driven by human activity” rather than natural phenomena:

“Contrary to what opponents of the law claim, this law does not put food production at risk. The opposite is true: It is biodiversity loss and the degradation of ecosystems which are continuing at an alarming rate that threaten our lives, the economy and the climate. Measures taken so far have had no results. The European Union's voluntary target to restore at least 15% of degraded ecosystems by 2020 was not reached. We need this law to restore degraded wetlands, rivers, forests and agricultural ecosystems and to reduce the impact of agriculture on climate change.”

Fittingly, scientists and science communicators were at the forefront of this event, with speeches given by Dr. Noël C. BAKER of the European Geosciences Union and Esther BOLLENDORFF from Climate Action Network Europe. European Greens Co-President Philippe LAMBERTS also delivered a message for the EU’s 27 Member States. As a stark reminder of the uphill battle we are currently facing, portraits of environmental activists who have been threatened, imprisoned and murdered around the world were presented by Anne Theisen of Rise for Climate.

Along with all the other organisations who attended, we call on the EU to adopt the Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation treaty. Furthermore, Volt demands substantial investments from the European to the local level in improving digital, green and hard infrastructure to enable inclusive and sustainable economic growth that works for everyone. Learn more about our 2024 electoral programme.

We only have a few weeks to convince the Members of the European Parliament to support the Nature Restoration Law.

This is not a lot of time. But together as Europeans, we still have a fighting chance!

So spread the word about why this law is important. If we care, so will our politicians!