The concentration of greenhouse gasses (GHGs) in the atmosphere is already so high that the climate system has been brought out of balance. The CO2 concentration and global temperatures have increased more rapidly in the last 50 years than ever before on Earth, and will rise even faster in the coming decades. This adds to a multitude of other serious ecological imbalances, the impacts of which threaten the lives and livelihoods of the people of the world, most acutely, impoverished people and other vulnerable groups.

The imbalance of the climate system leads to greater and more frequent extremes of heat and rainfall patterns, tropical cyclones, hurricanes and typhoons, extreme flooding and droughts, loss of biodiversity, landslides, rising sea levels, shortage of drinking water, shorter growing seasons, lower yields, lost or deteriorated agricultural land, decreased agricultural production, losses of livestock, extinction of ecosystems, and diminished fish stocks, among others. These phenomena result in food crises, famine, illness, death, displacement, and the extinction of sustainable ways of life. Interacting with this is the introduction of genetically modified organisms (GMOs), monoculture farming, and industrialized agriculture, all strongly promoted by corporations. These seriously threaten the stability and diversity of ecosystems, marginalize and impoverish small-scale farmers, and undermine food sovereignty. Corporate controlled agriculture is geared to meet an inflated global demand generated by over-consumption especially in the North, rather than for local basic needs. The same can be said about modern industrial fisheries, intensive forestry and mining, which destroy ecosystems, diminish biodiversity and destroy the life and livelihoods of local communities.

These effects of climate change together with growing social inequalities and severe impacts on our common environment are already devastating the lives of millions of people as well as their local communities. However, we – the people – are not prepared to accept this fact as our fate. That is why there are fast growing popular movements determined to defend their livelihoods and stand up against those forces and causes that have led us onto this ultimately suicidal route of environmental destruction.

In Asia, Africa, the Middle East, Oceania and South and Central America, as well as the periphery of North America and Europe, popular movements are rising to confront the exploitation of their land by foreign interests, and to regain control over their own resources. A new type of activism has revitalized the environmental movements, leading to a wide variety of protests and actions against mining, dams, deforestation, coal-fired power plants, air travel, and the building of new roads, among others. There is a growing awareness about the need to change the present economic paradigm in a very fundamental way. Among various movements, alternative ways of life are proliferating. At the same time it is becoming evident to the public that the present holders of power are unwilling to face and deal with the threats of climate change and environmental degradation. The so-called strategy of “green growth” or “sustainable growth” has turned out to be an excuse for pursuing the same basic model of economic development that is one of the root causes of environmental destruction and the climate crisis.