On Saturday 20th April, Extinction Rebellion Te Whanganui-a-Tara will be holding a human wave for action on climate change. The wave will be gathering at 11am at Waitangi Park before moving throughout the CBD waterfront at midday.

This is part of an international week of non-violent direct action (NVDA) by Extinction Rebellion (XR) groups around the country and the world.

“We would like to warmly invite everyone who wants to see strong action on climate change to come along and show our leaders that the seas are rising, but so are we,” says Wellington XR spokesperson Dr Sea Rotmann. “Please dress in blue or wear a marine creature costume or your best mermaid/men outfit if you can. This is planned to be a fun, family-friendly event causing some minor disruption.”

“We know people get angry or frustrated when their daily commute or travel gets disrupted,” Dr Rotmann says, “We are not doing this to upset people, but to make a hugely important point about the catastrophe that we are all facing. This minimal disruption is nothing compared to the massive disruption to their, and their children’s lives and lifestyles if we do not take immediate action. Our activism is based on science and the latest State of the Environment Report in New Zealand and IPCC reports, which clearly show that there is no time to waste or we will suffer irrevocable damage to our ecosystems and our society.”

“Our human wave will be showing the threats of rising sea levels and coastal inundation. Recent modelling just showed that sea level rise will cause $7b worth of damage to Wellington unless emissions are drastically cut. This is so much more than smart investment in a sustainable and resilient city would cost now.”

“The government needs to be taking stronger action and the City Council and Regional Council need to be focusing on ways to make our city more resilient and sustainable. Let’s invest in walking, cycling, and public transport that works for all Wellingtonians, not waste billions on motorways and airport extensions in vulnerable locations. We simply cannot afford to dilute our efforts if we take our city’s future seriously.”

“Some of the people most at risk from climate change are those who already get a raw deal in our society. All action on climate change must be strong, inspirational and transformative to make our world a fairer, safer and sustainable place. Our ship is sinking. We hope many Wellingtonians will join us in demanding action!”

Extinction Rebellion Te Whanganui-a-Tara demands that our Government:
1. Tells the truth about the climate and ecological crisis
2. Takes the necessary steps (declaring a state of emergency and reducing greenhouse gas emissions to net zero by 2025) to address it, and
3. Creates Participatory Democracy to oversee the process.

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