The outreach continued in December for the volunteers of Climate Action Burwood-Canada Bay, with more planned for 2024.
Meeting with Jason Yat-Sen Li
On December 1, three members of the CABCB committee – Ken Enderby, Billie Ayling and Rick Eyre – had a meeting with Strathfield state MP Jason Yat-Sen Li.
Among the matters they raised with Jason were the proposed extension of the Eraring power station, the need to ban new gas connections in NSW and the need for subsidies to encourage the uptake of home batteries. They also asked him to pass on CABCB’s congratulations for the successful passage of the NSW Climate Change Bill.
It was a productive meeting, and we thank Jason for his time and commitment.
During 2023, Climate Action Burwood-Canada Bay took part in meetings with our local Federal MP (Sally Sitou, Reid) and both State MPs within our region (Jason Yat-Sen Li, Strathfield; Stephanie di Pasqua, Drummoyne), achieving a goal of full and bipartisan engagement with parliamentarians across all levels of government.
Vigil at the PM’s office
On December 8 a multi-faith prayer vigil was held outside Anthony Albanese’s Grayndler electorate office in Marrickville. Organised by Australian Religious Response to Climate Change (ARRCC), the event was part of a broader national campaign “Turn Up The Heat on Labor” co-ordinated by Move Beyond Coal to send messages to Labor MPs across the country during COP28 to improve federal government policies on climate and especially to end fossil fuel approvals.
Dozens of events of various descriptions (non-religious and religious) were held outside electorate offices across the country during the fortnight of COP28. In the local metropolitan area, actions were held in the electorates of Grayndler, Sydney, McMahon, Bennelong and Parramatta. We decided not to conduct an event in Reid, but had a representative at the Grayndler action.
The event outside PM Albanese’s office included the singing of Climate Carols and concluded with the presentation of a seasonal greetings card to staff inside for forwarding to the Prime Minister. It read:
“Dear Prime Minister,
We, people of faith in Grayndler & surrounds, call on you to:
1. Phase out fossil fuels: fast, fair & forever;
2. Increase investment in climate solutions;
3. Beat our emissions reduction target of 43% by 2030;
4. Support the Port Vila call for a just transition to a fossil-free Pacific;
We applaud the Government’s great work so far at COP28, but we also know more needs to be done at home and in the region.”
