UCL People & Planet’s Go Green Campaign Motion

This Union notes:

1. That the 20th Century was the hottest century for a millennium and the 1990s was its hottest decade. The level of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is up one third on that of pre-industrial times: a level higher than it has been for at least 400,000 years.
2. That the evidence that human activity is changing the climate is now overwhelming. The UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change predicts that future greenhouse gas emissions are likely to increase average global temperatures by between 1.4 C and 5.8 C this century.
3. That continued global warming threatens to undermine or even reverse human progress as flooding, drought, disease and ecological disruption increasingly affect the world’s population. Ultimately, `run-away´ climate change threatens a global catastrophe of almost unimaginable scale.
4. That this Union currently lacks a comprehensive Environmental Policy and as such is contributing to the problem.
5. That implementing efficiency measures can result in long-term economic benefits.

This Union believes:

1. That there is an urgent need to reduce emissions of the greenhouse gases that cause climate change, especially CO2, by replacing fossil fuels with alternative, renewable forms of energy.
2. To this end, there is an urgent need for a new international emissions reductions treaty that will reduce total global emissions to a level that will not dangerously destabilise global climate.
3. That the UK Government needs to do more to cut national emissions of greenhouse gases.
4. That as far as is economic the Union should operate in an environmentally friendly and sustainable manner.
5. That as an education institution and a global university, UCL has an obligation to educate its students about climate change and to improve its environmental performance.

This Union resolves:

1. To support People & Planet’s Go Green campaign.
2. To provide financial assistance to produce leaflets, posters and other campaign materials as required by the campaign.
3. To run a campaign educating students about climate change and encouraging them to be more environmentally friendly.

4. To work towards making this Union more environmentally friendly and to lobby the University to do likewise. Specifically this should include:

   a) The active, public support of senior university management for a programme of environmental performance improvement. b) Employing a full-time staff dedicated to environmental management. c) Producing a written, publicly available environmental policy. d) Conducting a comprehensive review to investigate all the environmental impacts of the institution.

5. For the Union Environment Officer to work with the People & Planet group on these campaigns.