Final Declaration of the 2nd International Environmental Counsel

580 participants met in Gelsenkirchen/Germany for the 2nd international Environmental Counsel on 8 and 9 October 2011. Among them were international participants from Brazil, Chile, Japan, the Netherlands, Peru, Switzerland, Sri Lanka, South Africa, Turkey, Ukraine and the USA. In two plenary discussions, 10 forums and 14 workshops we discussed:

Humanity is standing at a crossroad: The foundations of life and the future of the present and future generations are directly called into question. The serious possibility is developing that humankind cannot survive on this planet. This dramatic situation is confronting the international environmental movement with the challenge to develop a new quality of worldwide, enduring and reliable cooperation.

Essential factors, in close interaction, for the development to a global environmental catastrophe are:

• the transition into a global climate catastrophe through the emission of greenhouse gases,
• this year’s development of the biggest ozone hole up to now in the northern hemisphere,
• the radioactive contamination of the earth, which was intensified enormously by the nuclear catastrophe in Fukushima,
• the destruction the oceans’ biosphere, the rain forests, the diversity of flora and fauna undermine the foundations of food production,
• the pollution of the environment by electric smog,
• the merciless overexploitation of the resources, for instance fracking and biofuel,
• new risky technologies like CCS and genetic engineering, which are developed as a part of strategies for greenwashing and have devastating consequences,
• senseless large-scale projects like Stuttgart 21 or the extension of big airports.

We want to stop the development to a global environmental catastrophe. And we want more than that: We are questioning the entire destructive system of how production and life is organized. We want to live in the unity of humankind and nature. The technological prerequisites for an economy in unity with nature are largely developed. 100 % renewable energy supply, ban of environmental poisons and a stop of overexploitation through comprehensive cycle economy have long been possible. To enforce this we have to become superior to those who are mainly responsible, the international monopolies and banks. How can we succeed in defeating those in rule, who today are determining what is happening in the world and acutely endangering the existence of humankind and nature? This was a central discussion at this environmental counsel. In a comradely atmosphere the accomplishments and weaknesses of the environmental, working class and social movements up to now were evaluated. Such challenges demand going new ways.

In Germany and internationally, the environmental movement has now grown to become the biggest movement of active resistance. Expertise and many sound, engaged and creative contributions for the development of the environmental consciousness exist. However, the active movements are still much too divided, the projects are often scattered. Hoping for the common sense and insight of the ruling powers has proven to be pure illusion. The environmental issue can only be solved in connection with the social issues. The international working class movement will strengthen the environmental movement enormously, if the dividing dogma of the “compatibility of capitalist economy and ecology” are overcome, as well as an underestimation of the environmental issue. The international environmental movement will strengthen and enrich the working class movement, if reservations and claims to dominance are overcome.

Today, social movements are only sustainable if they change themselves in face of new challenges, develop further and are open for new allies. Then we can fight and gain a society where the destructive forces of financial capital are eliminated and where the unity of humankind and nature is realized.

It is necessary today to unite all forces, to put dividing factors aside, to cooperate on an ideologically open and democratic basis and to be willing to develop determined resistance against the ruling powers. To this end, there are several forward-looking considerations at this environmental counsel, from the coordination of the movements, the close cooperation between the working-class movement and the environmental movement, as well as the idea to build up a broad 'ueberparteilich' organization of resistance for the defense of our life foundations. The idea that “We are many organizations here, but we have to act as one” found broad agreement. The idea to build up an environmental union as a strong, inspiring organization with experience in struggle and composed of environmentalists, workers, employees, young people, women, critical scientists was positively picked up as a possible new direction, but also controversially discussed.

The global environmental catastrophe is developing as an international factor and cannot be fought successfully in single countries alone. The failure of the climate summit in Copenhagen in 2009 confirmed that nothing can be expected from the ruling powers as far as the protection of the environment is concerned. The environmental counsel welcomes the “Conference on Climate Change and the Rights of Mother Earth” in Cochabamba, Bolivia in the year 2010. In its declaration of 22 April 2010 it says:

»The capitalist system has imposed on us a logic of competition, progress and limitless growth. This regime of production and consumption seeks profit without limits, separating human beings from nature and imposing a logic of domination upon nature, transforming everything into commodities: water, earth, the human genome, ancestral cultures, biodiversity, justice, ethics, the rights of peoples, and life itself.«(pwccc.wordpress.com/)

The environmental counsel supports the demand of Cochabamba for a climate protection agreement of the peoples with a drastic reduction of the emission of greenhouse gases. The call to build a global peoples’ movement for Mother Earth reinforces our ideas of the first environmental counsel 2009 to build up an international umbrella organization of the environmental movement. The environmental movement must become connected internationally: Think globally and act locally, regionally and globally. This includes international solidarity with the environmental and anti-colonial movements in the developing countries, which are especially affected by the destruction of the life foundations through the plundering of finance capital, and a practical solidarity against the oppression of active resistance through the state apparatuses in many countries.

We are calling for a strategy discussion in the international environmental movement! We take it into our organizations, initiatives, work and living contexts! We will concentrate the results in a meeting in 2012 and launch practical consequences.

We are calling for the joint organization of the 3rd international Environmental Counsel in two years. We commission a coordinating group to evaluate and publish the results of the 2nd Environmental Counsel and the convocation of a broad preparatory meeting about one year before the 3rd Environmental Counsel, supported by the participating organizations and all those who are interested.

Contact to the coordinating group of the environmental counsel: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.