Fighting for Climate Justice From the Front Lines of Disaster · Global Voices
Aftermath of Typhoon Haiyan (Yolanda). Photo by Flickr user <PERSON>. CC BY-NC-SA 2.0
This article by <PERSON> was produced by the Global Alliance for Incinerator Alternatives (GAIA) and Other Worlds and posted by 350.org, an organization building a global climate movement. It is republished on Global Voices as part of a content-sharing agreement.
It’s been a year since Super Typhoon Yolanda (often called Typhoon Haiyan in other countries) swept through the Philippines, killing more than 6,000 people and destroying the homes of many more. As UN negotiator for the Philippines <PERSON> explained in his 2013 address to the United Nations, for many people, this is what climate change looks like:
To anyone who continues to deny the reality that is climate change…. I dare you to go to the islands of the Pacific, the islands of the Caribbean and the islands of the Indian Ocean and see the impacts of rising sea levels; to the mountainous regions of the Himalayas and the Andes to see communities confronting glacial floods, to the Arctic where communities grapple with the fast dwindling polar ice caps, to the large deltas of the Mekong, the Ganges, the Amazon, and the Nile where lives and livelihoods are drowned… And if that is not enough, you may want to pay a visit to the Philippines right now.
Following the typhoon, survivors in affected communities in the Philippines came together in a deep expression of solidarity to help each other rebuild their homes and lives. Using only reclaimed materials—remains of their homes and other disaster debris—residents of the municipalities of Bantayan and Madridejos worked together to reconstruct their neighbourhoods, one house at a time. <PERSON>, a resident of Bantayan Island, explained that 50 of her neighbours built her house with her.
The residents also worked together to increase resiliency against future disasters, particularly around the issue of waste management. <PERSON>, Asia-Pacific Coordinator for the Global Alliance for Incinerator Alternatives (GAIA), explained the connection. “Yolanda made us realise how much waste, more than anything else, is relevant to disasters, because the aftermath of a disaster is garbage and waste, equivalent to a year’s supply. A sustainable treatment of waste builds our preparedness for disasters and it builds the resiliency of communities.” Residents worked with local and international non-profit organisations to conduct waste audits and seminars in the impacted communities.
A sustainable treatment of waste does more than build preparedness for disasters—it also helps to combat climate change. 202
Waste disposal through dumping or burning is a major contributor to climate change. On the flip side, waste reduction and recycling significantly decrease greenhouse gas emissions. Given that climate change is causing increasing extreme weather, better waste management actually helps to prevent events like Super Typhoon Yolanda.
But reducing waste in the Philippines is not enough to stop climate change or to protect vulnerable communities living there. What’s needed is for the issues of waste and climate crises to be solved collaboratively across borders. And in an inspiring Asia Pacific grassroots partnership, that is exactly what’s happening.
Solidarity for clean air, good jobs, and justice
One of the greatest injustices of climate change is that those who have done the least to cause it—like the residents of the Philippines hit by Super Typhoon Yolanda—feel the impacts first and worst through rising sea levels and extreme weather. Meanwhile, areas that are responsible for the largest greenhouse gas emissions often feel little pressure to reduce their emissions. They tend to be wealthier with more powerful governments, thus they are less susceptible to international pressure and often have infrastructure that is better able to withstand extreme weather. For example, while Super Typhoon Yolanda was ripping through the Philippines, just across the sea, Prime Minister <PERSON> of Australia continued to deny the existence of climate change.
Yet underneath the political divides of the Asia Pacific region, at the level of the citizenry, strong international bonds have formed. Grassroots communities of the Philippines and Australia have been supporting each other in a common fight against incineration.
In addition to being a major contributor to climate change, incineration releases cancer-causing toxins, kills jobs, and violates the principles of environmental justice. The Philippines stands out as the only country to have banned incineration, setting this important precedent 15 years ago. However, this ban is currently under attack by companies, elected officials, and government agencies. Meanwhile, Western Australia is facing an unprecedented onslaught of incinerator proposals from polluting corporations trying to pass the dirty practice of waste burning as “green.”
People from both countries have been meeting to share information about incinerators, reports, and strategies. 876