Following a European winter of extreme cold and heavy snow, the “Stormy Europe“ report launched in March 2006 showed that there is more risk of severe storms and extreme weather in the future as a result of climate change.
The report summarized recent scientific findings on future storm activity across western and central Europe. It showed that the UK would be worst affected by the deterioration in winter weather conditions, with the number of storms by the end of the century increasing by up to 25% each year.
Awareness raising is one way to increase the support, building new coalitions is another.
A major success of the PowerSwitch! campaign was to bring people together and form new coalitions across Asia and Europe. In summer 2005, WWF UK joined a coalition called “Stop Climate Chaos“. 18 campaign groups in the UK with millions of supporters joined forces to launch the biggest climate change coalition the country has ever seen. The photo shows 500 volunteers forming a giant human banner on London's South Bank to mark the launch. Today similar coalitions are forming in many European countries.
Like “Stop Climate Chaos” and similar coalitions in Europe, PowerSwitch! also connected people in Asia Pacific.
“Coal Trail” started as a coalition of activists from communities across the region, lobbying against new coal power stations and promoting alternative energy solutions. “Our Power” is a network of consumer groups to introduce good governance into energy sector decision making, lobbying for transparency, accountability and public participation. Like the new coalitions in Europe, “Coal Trail” and “Our Power” are meant to stay and grow further.
Increased awareness and growing coalitions helped to put serious pressure on the power sector and governments.
Across the Asia-Pacific region PowerSwitch! activists took to the streets to demonstrate for a switch from coal to clean energy. They actively helped to stop the construction of new coal power plants and to push legislation for clean energy. This photo shows protesters from local communities and environment groups in the Philippines. In January 2005, thousands gathered outside the Clean Fossil Energy seminar of the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) in Cebu.
In early 2005, members of the People Against Coal Coalition in Thailand interrupted the CoalTrans party in Lampang, where the power industry celebrated the 50th anniversary of Thailand’s largest coal mine – Maeh Moe.
Villagers and environmental activists from provinces all over Thailand gathered outside the conference to protest against the devastating impacts of coal on people and nature. Their campaign against an enlargement of Maeh Moe was successful.
