Protest outside the Bank of England

• WE have a problem – it is proved that human activity is destroying the Earth.

The science has been clear for decades; burning coal, oil, and gas is responsible for climate change.

We have been lied to by fossil fuel companies. They have been spending trillions of dollars suppressing data, greenwashing and discrediting climate science for years, and now some of them are on trial in the US.

Fossil fuel companies have been subsidised by governments and have profited massively while polluting and brutalising the planet, resulting in a rise in temperature causing a catastrophe for all living things.

The rich in the richest countries are the most responsible for this global crisis and the poor are the first to suffer the consequences.

The burning of fossil fuels is melting our ice caps, sea levels are rising dramatically, the oceans are heating-up. Land and sea are becoming uninhabitable resulting in mass migration and loss of human and animal life.

A recent report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change said it’s “code red for humanity”.

It will not affect some imagined future generations in other countries; it’s happening to people living now and will have an impact on you, your children, and your grandchildren.

It’s literally on our doorstep. Flooding in London will now be a regular occurrence that we have to adapt to.

The good news is there are solutions. As Sir David Attenborough said in his speech to COP26 delegates this week, “we fail to see the bigger picture in pursuit of short-term goals”.

But he also said “we are the greatest problem solvers that ever existed on Earth. We must fix our sights on keeping below 1.5 degrees.”

We have a choice, we can put this in reverse as solutions are available and we will all benefit.

There’s a decision to make; do we stand by and watch our own destruction over the next decade or do we act now? We all have busy lives but there is time, it can be found.

As individuals we can make changes by altering our behaviour right now.

This week you can reduce: car use; consumption and waste; eat less meat and lobby your leaders and politicians to enable us to make better choices.

World leaders have been meeting for COP26 in Glasgow to discuss how they work together to limit temperature rises to 1.5°C.

Should we sit back and wait for them to provide the answers? No.

They are falling very far short of meeting the targets set by the Paris agreement in 2015 and every individual action makes a difference.

We must do everything we can to protect our loved ones and our planet. If we don’t, can we look our children and young people in the eye and say, “I did everything I could to reverse this climate catastrophe?”

Get involved and use your energy to find solutions not problems. We need to work together.

Wherever you are join millions of people tomorrow, Saturday November 6, for the Global Day of Action and show world leaders the time for action is now.

It’s expected 100,000 people will march at COP26 in Glasgow. The other main march is here in London – Global Day of Action, 12pm, Bank of England, Threadneedle Street, London. See COP26coalition.org for details.

If you’re not able to join the march there are many other ways to get involved. Whatever your interests and skills, they are needed.

Join a community group such as islingtoncleanairparents.com, or join national organisations like the Friends of the Earth. Get informed and act now.

RACHAEL, N1