We must keep hope but we must act, act now, act decisively
I said right at the beginning of the campaign that at this election our future is at stake. Climate science dictates that we have fewer than 10 years to radically change our economy to restrict the emissions that are warming the planet.
Five years ago, in the Paris Agreement, the nations of the world signed up to acknowledge the overwhelming scientific evidence that gives us now just nine years before we reach a point of no return, one that threatens life on earth
Things are going to change dramatically one way or the other. Our ice is melting faster, sea levels are rising faster, food and water shortages are increasing, and vast populations are increasingly relocating in the hopes of finding more inhabitable parts of the planet.
The choice is to do something about it right now or leave the next generation struggling to survive. We need radical change now, not by putting all the pressure on individuals to change their behaviour but by using the power of governments decisively and by controlling the excesses of big business which still profit from pursuing a war against our environment.
This isn’t a time to give up hope. Quite the opposite. This is the time to take matters into our own hands, to build a Scotland that can lead Europe in tackling the climate emergency.
All the other parties talk green, but fail to address the urgency of this crisis.
Championing eye-catching targets that will not bite for decades while continuing to spend millions on new motorways and back maximum extraction of fossil fuels just won’t cut it any more.
Denmark, New Zealand, Ireland and others have already announced an end to exploration for new oil wells. Scotland needs to join them.
The Scottish Greens are the party with a plan to build a cleaner, fairer more prosperous country, to realign our economy behind efforts to tackle the climate emergency and create the jobs needed to drive that economy. Things could be so different. We can work shorter hours, build things to last, put care of one another and wellbeing at the centre of our economic planning.
I’m optimistic about the future of Scotland, but there is no time to lose. That’s why the time to vote green is now. Our future depends on it.