Without a doubt, the strength of our movement for climate justice lies in its people. People all over the world taking action against injustice and fighting for the solutions we need to tackle the climate crisis. But as pandemic restrictions have put an end to marches and protests, and climate action has had to move online, it’s been easy to feel isolated.
So to check in with our community, and get everyone’s input and ideas as we shape our plans for the coming year, our 350.org Europe team sent out our annual supporter survey a few weeks ago. And now, after thousands of us responded, the results are in. Take a look at some of the highlights!
How hopeful are you about the climate movement’s work to stop climate breakdown?
It’s great to see that a majority of us (75%) feel moderately to very hopeful about the climate movement’s work to stop climate breakdown. We’ve all been through a lot this past year, and the fact that so many of us still feel hope is a testament to the strength and resilience of this movement.
Around a quarter of us feel less hopeful, or not hopeful at all, and that’s understandable too. It’s easy to feel powerless in the face of such an enormous challenge as the climate crisis. But the antidote to hopelessness is joining together with others and taking action for climate justice.
How effective is 350.org in engaging you in campaigns and organising to address the climate crisis?
It’s great to see that overall we lean towards thinking 350.org is effective in helping us take climate action. But looking at these numbers, we also realise that there’s a lot of room for improvement. Luckily, in 2021, as soon as the pandemic allows, we’ll be scaling up all our campaigns and there will be plenty of opportunities to get involved in taking action to tackle the climate crisis.
“Take a look at the following activities. In your opinion, which of them are most interesting for 350.org to pursue?”
Overall, our supporters are as keen as our team to get back to work, and the support for our main areas of work is high across the board.
However, there are some areas that we are more excited about than others. A whopping 90% of us are ‘interested’ or ‘extremely interested’ to pressure banks and governments to cut off financing for fossil fuel corporations and projects. This is great news, as it will be the main focus of 350.org’s (and much of the wider climate movement’s) work in the coming months and years.
We believe that cutting off the vast money flows from banks to fossil fuel companies is absolutely key to tackling the climate crisis. Our work to get the European Central Bank and the Bank of England to fund people, not polluters, is part of this but stay tuned for many other campaigns and actions to get involved with in the coming months.
Almost as high is the support for a focus on just recovery campaigning, at over 89% ‘interested’ or ‘extremely interested’. It’s absolutely crucial that we ensure the recovery spending for the pandemic goes towards building back better – not funding companies that will only make the climate crisis worse.
350.org will continue pushing to ensure a just recovery from the pandemic and will fight to ensure governments and central banks do not get away with funding climate criminals. Our first step is the Global Just Recovery Gathering on April 9-11: a three-day online event featuring interactive workshops, cultural sessions, and trainings aimed at building skills and strengthening the movement. Want to join in and help design a new path towards a better future? Find out more and pre-register now.
We’re dedicated to fighting for climate justice, and building strong and diverse networks that can tackle the climate crisis at the same time as tackling racial, social and economic injustice. Thanks to this survey, we now know that we need to spend more time and effort in highlighting the links between climate justice and racial and social justice. We can’t have one without the other.
Which of the following activities are you most excited about participating in to support our movement for climate justice?
We’re all desperate to get back out on the streets again (as soon as it’s safe!) and that’s very much reflected in these results, with almost 33% of us excited about joining big marches and rallies. In-person actions might still be a while away, but in the meantime we are still keen on digital climate action, with 64% of us being excited about sharing petitions, videos and climate content online. At 350.org, our digital teams are busy thinking up new ways of taking action online and building digital tools that we can use to put pressure on those in charge.
Almost half of us (42%) are up for protesting corporate targets like banks or insurance companies that support fossil fuels. This is great to hear, and in the 350 Europe team we are very much thinking along these same lines. That’s why we’re making big plans for taking on fossil finance in 2021.
How could we better help you to contribute to the climate movement?
It’s clear: we want to know more about solutions and policies that are working in the fight against the climate crisis. If this applies to you too, keep an eye out for upcoming green new deal-campaigns in the UK and Germany. These campaigns will focus on the alternative world that is possible if we move away from fossil fuels and toward a more sustainable and just society.
Almost half of us want direction of where to best focus our efforts and energy in the fight against the climate crisis. At 350.org we firmly believe that the most important way to tackle the climate crisis is stopping the vast flows of money that go from banks to fossil fuel companies. If you want to get involved in the fight against fossil finance, a good place to start is the 350 End Fossil Finance website, where you can find more information and advice on how to start taking online and offline action.
How do you feel about climate action during the Covid-19 pandemic?
It’s impossible to talk about 2020 without mentioning Covid-19. The pandemic has affected everyone and changed all our lives. Climate action is as urgent as ever, but we also understand that some people are not able to focus on it to the extent that they have been before. Still, many of us want to keep taking action in some form, be it online or either as long as it’s safe.
What even more of us want, is to focus on campaigning for a just recovery, and ensuring that pandemic recovery money is going to fund people and communities, not polluters. This makes sense – we need to make sure that the vast amounts of money being spent on pandemic recovery help us build a healthier, greener and fairer society and isn’t just a return to business-as-usual. In 2021 we will focus a lot of effort on making sure this happens.
Are you ready for the next step of this journey?
Our work relies on small donations from our supporters and community members across the world. It’s thanks to this that we can stay flexible and independent, and keep challenging those in power. Will you take the next step and become a monthly donor?