Kia ora - this is another quick update with a few items of interest coming up soon (I'm not making a habit of this though).. As always, thanks also to the Glean Report!

Note date correction (HCC got it wrong): Appeals against the decision to abolish community boards must be in by 15 October. (not 12 as stated earlier) This newsletter is brought to you by the EB Climate Network and ECB.

Ngā mihi nui.

We are pleased to invite you to our next webinar: (Wednesday 16th October, 7 PM - 8.30 PM)

COMMUNITY RESILIENCE: CLIMATE ADAPTATION, EARTHQUAKES, BASIC NEEDS – THEY’RE ALL CONNECTED – BUT WE’RE NOT

Presented by Jack Santa Barbara

This webinar will discuss the uncertain future we face with multiple risks increasing steadily.  Governments are failing to protect us, placing responsibility onto local communities.  Community resilience building to ensure everyone’s universal basic needs are met is a critical aspect of a secure future.  There are many examples of communities beginning this process, but more is urgently needed.

Is your community ready?  Be part of the discussion about how to build community resilience where you live.

Jack is a long-time member of Our Climate Declaration and has organized and facilitated many of OCD’s Economy of Enough webinars over the years.  He is a retired academic and CEO, and has been a peace, environmental and justice activist for many decades.  He is currently facilitating a DANZ (Degrowth Aotearoa New Zealand) initiated Community Resilience project.

DATE: Wednesday 16th October
TIME: 7 PM - 8.30 PM

ZOOM: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/82810645558?pwd=1F1Hp3bNCIOb32v3bt0IRRdzfYXoyy.1
Meeting ID: 828 1064 5558
Passcode: 772104

See you there!
Our Climate Declaration Team
https://www.ourclimatedeclaration.org.nz/

Your donation will help us to continue our work for a world that is safe for humanity.

Donate to Our Climate Declaration general fund:
Kiwibank # 38 9018 0711725 00

Donate to the Jeanette Fitzsimons Climate Action Grants fund:
Kiwibank # 38 9018 0711725 01

Our number as a registered charity is: CC60027

Please let us know when you make a donation - Contact us or email info@ourclimatedeclaration.org.nz

Thank you. Your donation will be wisely spent.

Have you heard of climate litigation? Do you know how it will impact business here in Aotearoa? Join us for an insightful Westpac Smarts event that’ll help you understand climate litigation, and what claims against governments, investment managers, and companies mean on our shores in a changing, climate-conscious world.

What’s in-store:

Claims often focus on driving action rather than seeking financial penalties. Our speaker Olaf Adam, Head of ESG Advisory at Westpac, will demonstrate why that is and cover what international trends in climate litigation mean for New Zealand businesses.

You’ll leave with:

• Highlights local cases involving the local authorities, large emitters and government.
• Valuable context on how increased transparency can lead to higher expectations throughout you value chain.
• Practical steps for your business, including identifying what matters, setting targets, make a credible plan and communicate.
• Useful resources to get you started and when to seek expert help.

While few businesses face direct legal action, the impact of climate litigation matters. Come and equip yourself with the knowledge and strategies needed to navigate this evolving landscape effectively.

Event details:

12:00-12:15pm – Networking, 12:15-1:15pm – Presentation from Olaf Adam

The Kākā by Bernard Hickey

Extreme weather events coming for us all

Long stories short, here’s the top six news items of note in climate news for Aotearoa this week, and a discussion above between Bernard Hickey and The Kākā’s climate correspondent Cathrine Dyer:

1. “Why does everywhere seem to be flooding right now, Vox asks, as a new study predicts that 70% of humanity will be hit by extreme weather events within the next 20 years.

2. Distilled examines insurance retreat as Hurricane Helene wipes out entire communities in states where fewer than 5% of home owners have flood insurance. A 2020 study predicts full insurance retreat from flood-prone coastal properties in Aotearoa’s four main coastal cities within 20 years, with partial retreat occurring within the current decade. Loss of insurance cover can trigger mortgage defaults.

3. “A child born now will experience 24 times the number of extreme climate events as a politician born in the 1960s.” Tim Winton rails against leaders who collaborate with fossil fuel colonialists, in this Guardian op-ed. He encourages active resistance as a way to restore agency, dignity and health.

4. Alert to the risk such action poses to their social license to operate, fossil fuel lobbyists have been co-ordinating with lawmakers to enact new laws that apply harsh penalties, including lengthy prison sentences, for peaceful protest.

5. In the same week that the UK celebrated the closing down of its last coal-fired power plant, the Australian government approved a plan to expand mining operations at three NSW coalmines, a plan that will ultimately generate more than three times Australia’s entire annual emissions.

6. NASA has produced a set of high-resolution maps depicting coastal and groundwater flooding at the request of Pacific Island countries highly vulnerable to sea-level rise. The analysis shows irreversible sea level rise by 2050 that will now occur regardless of changes to greenhouse gas emissions in coming decades.

Related news items from Radio NZ

What we know about the cyclone risk in New Zealand this season

Major freshwater u-turn ‘snuck in’ to unrelated bill

Select committee told environmental group to save its concerns about out-of-scope policy changes ‘for another day’, and then made those changes anyway

The primary production committee has arbitrarily recommended weakening keystone freshwater policy – even though the bill it was reporting on never even mentioned that policy by name.

The committee read submissions by industry groups that sought a way to sidestep obligations surrounding waste discharge into highly polluted waterways. These groups, alarmed by a recent court ruling, suggested adding changes to the policy as part of an otherwise-unrelated bill. 

Forest & Bird heard of these requests, and asked during its submission on the bill if it ought to offer a counter-argument. They were told to save it “for another day”. But that day never came, and the committee’s final report included the concessions sought by industry groups, with no opportunity for public scrutiny.

Curated events - see Glean Report for full list of events.

Thu 10 October 18:30 - 20:00 Transitioning to an energy secure future. A talk by David Keat *ONLINE* | More information 

Fri 18 October 18:00 - 19:00 Climate fiction and non-fiction, springing to life? A panel discussion *IN PERSON* | at Newtown Library | Ngā Puna Waiora, 13 Constable Street, Newtown, Wellington 6021 

Tue 22 October 12:00 - 12:30 Waste-free Tuesday. A webinar by Sophie Wolland and Diane Stanbra *ONLINE* | More information |

Tue 22 October 12:00 - 12:30 Waste-free Tuesday. A webinar by Sophie Wolland and Diane Stanbra *ONLINE* | More information

Wed 23 October 8:50 - 15:30 Nitrogen: friend or foe? A forum *ONLINE* | More information | 

Wed 23 October 10:00 - 15:00 Te hui taumata moumou kai o Aotearoa/ New Zealand food waste summit *ONLINE* | More information | 

Eastern Bays Climate Response Network on Facebook. Feel free to comment or post on topics related to the goals of this group on the Facebook page.

EBCRN is focussed on the need to act now to both mitigate the causes of accelerating climate change as well as prepare for the impact on our community. You can find out more about Eastbourne and the Network here. If you have climate related events, resources, requests, suggestions or any other information you would like to share please send it to us.

 Note: we create this newsletter "on the fly" as information and events come to our attention. Sometimes short notice of event dates mean the event passes before we send this out, so each email may be triggered but an upcoming event rather than a reasonable interval since the last release. Please feel free to give feedback on content and frequency of news, and send through items you might feel are of interest to the group.

You can forward this to someone if they would like to  join the Eastern Bays Climate Response Network and/or subscribe to the email updates