People throughout Ilkley are invited and encouraged to 'clang for climate’ for ten minutes at 6pm on Saturday 30th October, as leaders gather in Glasgow for the COP26 climate summit. The aim of the action, which is taking place in communities around the country, is to send a loud and clear message, using pots, pans, buckets or bells: this is an emergency and we need governments to take immediate and decisive action on the scale so urgently needed. The event draws inspiration from Greta Thunberg’s words: “I want you to act as if our house is on fire. Because it is.” It also draws on a long history of communities using pots and pans as a means of protesting or raising the alarm, from Spain and Argentina to Canada and Iceland. Kath Steward from Climate Action Ilkley, who is helping to plan the event in town, said: “We’ve all seen the scenes of terrible fires and floods in the past few months, everywhere from California to Siberia. The world is accelerating towards complete climate breakdown, and the emissions that are causing this are not falling but continuing to rise. Empty words and promises are insufficient. Net zero pledges by 2050 are deceptions. We all need to step up to the dire reality we are all facing. “Climate Action Ilkley is supporting the national Clang for Climate action. Together with the newly formed XR Ilkley (Extinction Rebellion Ilkley) we are calling on everyone in Ilkley to sound the alarm about the Climate Emergency. We need to send a loud and clear message to the world and our political representatives that we demand decisive action” Some people will be taking part in the event in groups in town and city centres; others will be banging pots and pans from their doorsteps. People planning to take part from their doorsteps are encouraged to let their neighbours know in advance what is happening and why. In Ilkley people are being asked to support this action from their doorsteps or to gather on the Grove opposite Bettys by the bandstand at 6pm. Bring something to clang with and let’s sound the alarm.
As David Attenborough said recently: “The only chance we have at the forthcoming COP is if people actually say to their politicians: we want action.” The aim of Clang for Climate is to underline that message.
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