Act on Copenhagen

This article is part of the Climate project of Spinwatch.

Act on Copenhagen is the UK government's climate change campaign in the runup to the Copenhagen summit. It is affiliated with Act on CO2, a government initiative mainly promoting individual behavioural change to stop climate change. The site asks punters to support DECC's appeal for an 'ambitious' global deal at Copenhagen and links to a multitude of business, NGO and faith initiatives promoting the Copenhagen summit. It portrays the UK government as at the forefront of the push for strong targets, and includes a countdown clock suggesting the urgency and importance of the Copenhagen deal.

It was launched alongside the government's Road to Copenhagen document in June 2009. The site is managed by the Road to Copenhagen team in DECC and the Digital Diplomacy Group in the FCO, with collaboration and support from other UK government departments.

Activities

The government's Back the UK bid in Copenhagen campaign defines the 'ambitious' deal and asks people to sign up. The pledge is very general, and can be read to support technology transfer such as Britain's clean coal technology. It makes no mention of the mechanisms which should be used to deliver carbon reductions, and no UK commitment for drastic cuts which will achieve our portion of the cut-backs.

'I call for a global deal on climate change, and I want it to be:

• Ambitious – no more than 2 degrees temperature rise, developed-country emissions to peak in five years; the whole world in ten
• Effective – keep countries to their word, and let money flow to where it will make most difference
• Fair – support the poorest countries to cut their emissions and adapt to climate change.'