China and US Youth Ready for Climate Action « It’s Getting Hot In Here

As President Obama wraps up his trip to China today, he and President Hu should be looking at Chinese and American civil society for an example of how their countries can work together in tackling the climate crisis. On the 350 International Day of Climate Action, over 300 events took place in China along with nearly 2,000 across the United States, making October 24 the largest day of climate action either country had ever seen.

It’s clear that the US and Chinese public are ready for climate action. Now, it’s time for our leaders to step it up. In case they needed some extra inspiration, here’s a collection of October 24 photos from both countries:

Read on for more images and some thoughts on US-China Collaboration.

President Obama’s trip was an incredible opportunity to foster a new partnership between the US and China based on building a clean energy economy that can tackle the climate crisis. The past few days have seen a few small steps in that direction including announcements about a joint clean energy research center, agreements on energy efficiency, and some good words (at least) about China and the US working together in Copenhagen to make progress on a “comprehensive agreement.”

But as many of us know, the time for small steps is over. The International Energy Agency — which provides the data which many countries and top businesses use to shape their energy policy and investments — estimates that every year we delay tackling climate change will cost the world $500 billion. If we wanted small steps, Chinese and US citizens would have organized 10 or 20 rallies on October 24, not hundreds and thousands.

That said, Obama’s trip has helped laid a solid foundation for future collaboration between the US and China. It looks like the leaders are beginning to finally catch up with their citizens!

Click here to see a slideshow of 50 actions from the US and China.

About Jamie

Jamie is the co-coordinator of 350.org, an international global warming campaign. A recent college graduate, he lives in San Francisco, CA. In 2007, he co-organized Step It Up, a campaign that pulled together over 2,000 climate rallies across the United States to push for strong climate action at the federal level. He's also an early member of the youth climate movement, leading one of Energy Action's first campaigns in 2005: Road to Detroit, a nationwide veggie-oil bus tour to promote sustainable transportation. He's traveled to Montreal and Bali to lobby the UN with youth, but he's a strong believer that change happens in the streets not in meetings. Jamie received the Morris K. Udall award in 2007 and has been recognized by the mighty state of Vermont for his work on climate change. You can also find him blogging at Campus Progress' "Pushback," Changents.com, and 350.org.