In bed with Bush, Putin and Chirac

A new TV ad sending a “wake up call” to G8 leaders on the need for immediate leadership on climate change will run in keycapitals on three continents in early February. The first of its kind campaign will include a global on-line advocacy effort enabling citizens from every country to demand that world leaders commit to bold greenhouse gas emissions reductions to prevent catastrophic climate change.
The campaign is sponsored by Avaaz.org, a new online network that provides opportunities for
citizens of every country to take concerted action on urgent global problems like climate change, poverty, and the crisis in the Middle East. Avaaz.org’s mission is to ensure that the views and values of the world’s people shape global decisions. It will launch with 880,000 participants from 198 countries and is already active in 11 languages.

“Our political leaders need to wake up to the fact that we are approaching a point of no return on the nightmare of catastrophic global warming,” said Ricken Patel, the Canadian-British Director of Avaaz.org. “Global public opinion has been called the ‘new superpower’, but there is a huge gap between the world that most people want, and the world we have. The lack of action on climate change is a powerful example of that gap, and Avaaz.org will work toclose it.”

The Avaaz.org team hails from five continents. It was co-founded by Res Publica, a global civic advocacy group, and MoveOn.org, an American internet advocacy group. It uses the latest technology to empower people to contact key global decision-makers, corporations and the media, when there is an urgent need for action. One billion people already have access to the internet, and 2 billion use mobile phones. Thenew technology allows people from around the world to connect up as an effective political force.

See the tv-spot in 11 different languages at YouTube.

• Share on Tumblr