Brazil 2020 Climate Leadership Campaign: Achievements and Outcomes

Dear friends,
 
In place of my regular monthly letter I’m pleased to offer you this post-event update from Jim Garrison of State of the World Forum on the 2020 Climate Leadership Campaign that we launched in Brazil earlier this month. The energy in Brazil was palpable and the momentum it generated was really incredible, bursting out now to similar campaign designs in countries all over the world. 

Robb

The Belo Horizonte Forum launched the global 2020 Climate Leadership Campaign and the Brazil 2020 Climate Leadership Campaign.  Over 250 specialists from 20 countries and around Brazil came together and developed the basis of the 2020 campaigns, establishing the general areas of work and collaboration.

• Our mission is to catalyze climate leadership everywhere so that people and institutions are empowered to take personal and institutional responsibility to stop global warming.

• Our goal is to reduce carbon emissions by 80% by 2020 and establish sustainable economies and lifestyles.

• Our assurance to all those adopting the 2020 timeline is that success an be achieved using existing technologies and that climate leadership will catalyze savings, jobs, opportunities and innovations.

• Our commitment is to provide Rapid Response Teams of specialists to support any city, state or institution joining the 2020 campaign to ensure that climate leadership generates climate prosperity.

The conference launched an online community via Gaiasoft that will allow ongoing sharing, collaboration and project development. The results of the conference are already online and the participants will continue working together online. The online platform will also be made available to people across Brazil and the world to that are interested in joining the 2020 Climate Leadership Campaign.

There is now a new website www.brasil2020.com.br that will serve as the website for Brazil 2020 campaign. The main site of the global 2020 Climate Leadership Campaign is www.worldforum.org 

Additionally, there were significant initiatives announced during the Forum upon which we can now build moving forward:

1. Globo premiered its national ads on global warming supporting our 2020 Climate Leadership Campaign.  This act of climate leadership is unprecedented and allows for the first truly national mobilization anywhere in the world on global warming. The ads will continue indefinitely into the future in support of Brazil 2020 and develop themes related to climate leadership. Already we are in touch with media companies elsewhere interested to learn from and potentially join Globo in its commitment to educate the public on this critical issue.

2. The Brazilian Ministry of the Environment has agreed to work with the 2020 Climate Leadership Campaign to develop  national campaigns around climate leadership among Brazilian youth and Brazilian cities.  This is unprecedented and marks the first time anywhere in the world that a federal ministry has committed to a national mobilization among critical constituencies on global warming.

3. Governor Aecio Neves announced Minas 2020, making Minas Gerais the first state in Brazil, indeed the first state anywhere in the world, to commit to reducing carbon emissions by 80% by 2020.  He has allocated R$ 6 million ($3 million) to a specially convened scientific panel to begin 2020 planning.  Minas is the first state in Brazil to have already completed its carbon footprint.

4. Mayor Beto Richa of Curitiba announced Curitiba 2020 and plans to convene a Climate Prosperity Summit in 2010. Curitiba is the first city in Brazil to join the campaign. The Climate Prosperity Summit will be developed with the Federation of Industries/Parana. Curitiba is considered the leading environmental city in Brazil.

5. Mayor Eduardo Paes of Rio de Janeiro has agreed that Rio de Janeiro will join the 2020 Campaign and will be making an official announcement in the next two months. Sergio Besserman, Chairman of the Rio Sustainability Council, is actively involved in developing this commitment.

6. The University of Experience (UEXP), based in Curitiba, launched the Brazil 2020 Youth Campaign. This campaign is linking with international youth groups and will provide training programs for youth across Brazil.

7. We have set up a 2020 Climate Leadership Fund to provide seed money to catalyze 2020 campaigns and to catalyze specific projects and to develop Rapid Response Teams comprised of specialists ready to support any city or state anywhere that joins our 2020 campaign. These Rapid Response Teams, developed in partnership with the Climate Prosperity Project, Earth Policy Institute, and various Brazilian groups, will be comprised of both international and local specialists and will work with cities, states and institutions joining the 2020 campaign to complete carbon emissions assessments, plan 2020 strategies and timelines, and work with local leaders to implement the 2020 goals.

8. Climate Leadership Training programs are being developed in partnership with Integral Life and others to provide a spectrum of climate leadership training programs to local activists, business executives and political leaders.

9. 2020 Campaigns are now also being developed in Australia, Mexico, the Netherlands, and South Africa.

Thank you for your ongoing support.

Jim Garrison

President
State of the World Forum