In January 2019, Cornwall Council declared a Climate Emergency, committing to work towards a zero-carbon Cornwall by 2030. To achieve this will require rapid, substantial change across all sectors of Cornish society, as well as a major change of direction by the UK government.
However, this declaration is also an opportunity for a bold new vision. Cornwall has the real potential to become a national, even a global leader in sustainability. Our local economy, currently one of the poorest in the EU, could be revitalised with Green investment. We could live healthier, more connected lives that restore dignity and harness Cornwall’s legacy of resilient innovation to navigate an uncertain future. But we need real leadership. Unless words become action the declaration is meaningless.
The Green Party has been responding to the impending climate crisis for the last 30 years, developing evidence-based policy that offers an alternative Green future. We are a party who believe that a better society is possible, one that values people and planet. At the heart of Green policy is a commitment to resilient local economies that give all of us more power over our lives.
This next decade is a watershed for human life on Earth. Either we make radical, rapid changes to the way we live, or we pass over into a future from which we may never return.
This Green Vision for Cornwall begins a Green response to the Climate Emergency Declaration, on how to achieve net-zero-carbon by 2030 in a way that works for all of Cornwall. Single policy changes on their own are not enough. Cornwall needs a renewed vision of its future as a model net-zero-carbon local economy. This is not just the most evidence-based response to the climate emergency; it is also a way of improving the lives of all the people in Cornwall.
A Green Vision for Cornwall turns a climate emergency into a new lease of life.