Green Liberal DemocratsLiz Lynne MEP has today joined the Paddle for Life Campaign which is travelling the world raising awareness of climate change.
The campaign was started by former Olympic coach David Train, founder of Fladbury Paddle Club in Worcestershire, to get young people involved in watersport by making their own wooden paddles and replanting double the trees used to help the environment.
The campaign has since travelled across Europe and more recently to the USA, with campaigners and politicians signing in Mississippi to send a signal to their leaders that they already had the tools to fight climate change and must act. A paddle will now travel to Beijing ahead of the Olympics next year to get the Chinese authorities and President Hu Jintao on board.
Speaking after the signing Liz Lynne said:
"The idea of signing the travelling paddles is a wonderful idea to raise awareness of climate change. We have seen with the horrific floods this summer how climate change is affecting our community so all efforts to remind local people and world leaders alike to do their bit to help are a step in the right direction.
"The European Union demonstrated it was a force for good, persuading others, such as the United States of the dangers of climate change at the recent Bali summit. However, we now need to see real action from world leaders.
"More attention must be given to helping developing countries cope with climate change and raising awareness of it, so getting the Chinese authorities to sign up to the Paddle for Life campaign next year would be a major symbolic step!
"I believe there is also a campaign to get Gordon Brown to sign up which sadly may be difficult - he is a man who badly needs to demonstrate his green credentials!"
ENDS
Photo caption: Liz Lynne MEP (c) signing the 'paddle for life' in Stratford today, with David Train (r), President of the Paddle for Life campaign and Ryck Williamson (l), student and climate change campaigner at Pershore High School
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