Yesterday’s passage of the Clean Energy Act into law means we’ve finally taken action to secure our clean energy future.
To mark the occasion, Al Gore passed on these kind words: 1
"This is a historic moment. Australia's Parliament has put the nation's first carbon price into law. With this vote, the world has turned a pivotal corner in the collective effort to solve the climate crisis. This success is the result of the tireless work of an unprecedented coalition that came together to support the legislation, the leadership of Prime Minister Gillard, and the courage of legislators to take a vote that helps to safeguard the future of all Australians.
I have spent enough time in Australia to know that their spirit of independence as a people cannot be underestimated. As the world’s leading coal exporter, there’s no doubt that opposition to this legislation was fierce. But through determination and commitment, the voice of the people of Australia has rung out loud and clear.
Today, we celebrate. Tomorrow, we do everything we can to ensure that this legislation is successful."
- Al Gore, November 2011
Click here to watch a video that tells the story of how we arrived at this day:
http://www.getup.org.au/
Yesterday's success is yet more evidence of the fact that coordinated community action has the power to lead our Parliamentarians toward just, environmentally sustainable outcomes. But a wider community movement will be needed to protect these laws and grow further investments in clean energy.
Tony Abbott has made a ‘blood oath’ to repeal our hard won laws, so it's up to us to make every effort to protect and continue our campaign for a clean energy future.
Yesterday was able to happen because of people like those featured in our latest video, who didn’t sit back just because the challenge seemed too large - people like you.
Thank you for being a part of the journey and we look forward to all that is to come,
The GetUp team
PS - A big thanks should also go out to environmental and civil society organisations around the country, including those that were part of the Say Yes Coalition, who've campaigned in support of climate action for decades. Check out the story (beginning back in the 70s) of how grassroots activists made this movement possible.
Source: 1http://blog.algore.com/
