Instead of offering just a talk shop and making a noise about climate change, Greenpeace Africa maintains that their take is to offer solutions. And their Use Me campaign speaks volumes. –> The underlying message of the campaign is to urge people to use more of solar energy as well as wind turbines, which is why Greenpeace’s exhibition at Durban’s Bay Lawn is powered by solar and the wind turbines. An initiative that proves to be a good showing, all of the electronic gadgets on the exhibition site are powered through renewable energy. Members of the public who support Greenpeace’s Use Me campaign are then urged to sign a petition, jot down their name on the wind chimes, hang the chime which in turn will create a humming sound as it is blown by the wind. Greenpeace says the humming sound from each chime represents the voice of all those who signed their names on the petition, for the duration of the ongoing COP 17 talks. The idea behind the petition is to secure 100 000 signatures by the end of the COP 17 deliberations. Evident of how creative juices were flowing to conceptualise every idea, the exhibition space also features two solar renewable energy trailers which comprise of solar panels and wind turbines which are used to power up all wi-fi gadgets as well as to run their documentary shows.The shows provide ideas on the impacts of climate change. Greenpeace Africa’s Outreach Co-ordinator, Tshepo Peele, says that they will be launching Greenpeace’s own and first documentary at 7pm. As of today, they will be showing two films a day, one at 10am and another at 2pm, all with the focus on climate change.
Greenpeace hopes people will use electricity efficiently and for a sustainable and green future.
Peele says as part of their partnership with Uhuru Productions, they have showcased short films like the Weather Gods, Age of Stupid, which premiered in 2009 and was screened at Rosebank’s Cinema Nouveau earlier this year, as well as Dirty Oil. All films, according to Peele, focus on raising awareness around the effects on people by the inconsistent weather patterns we experience today. He says it is because of such weather patterns that Africa is vulnerable, that it should take the lead during COP 17 talks and that world leaders should take the continent seriously, more so that Africa is host to the talks. –> Speaking to Songo Didiza, a Johannesburg-based volunteer for Greenpeace Africa, she concedes that the Greenpeace bug bit her after taking part in the SOS human banner initiative last year. During the campaign, they marched to the Eskom plant in Germiston, since then she decided to become a full time active volunteer for the movement. Greenpeace, through its many initiatives to galvanise support among members of the public, has erected tents at Birnam drive in Durban where they are residing. The organisation’s Positive Messages of Hope idea, which has been on in the run-up to COP 17, is a breath-taking image of a tree, colourful paper messages hanging from it in the form of leaves, shouts awareness and raises concerns from members of the public who take climate change issues t heart.As droves of people flock to sign Greenpeace’s Use Me petition, mostly youths, Peele says while they intensify their campaign on climate change issues, Government is blowing hot and cold. “At one point they promised to invest in renewable energy and next they build two of the biggest coal-fired power stations in the world.” He carries on to say Greenpeace hopes people will use electricity efficiently and that they hope for a sustainable and green future.
– By Tshepo Tsheole, Durban
