I watched the US elections last night with some disbelief. Who would have thought? Even when the polls indicated Obama had it - I couldn't quite bring myself to believe that this young black man was going to be the next US President. But he is. And this morning when I woke up the world felt slightly different. Hope tinged with trepidation? It's hard to express but I think Brian over at Greenpeace International does it well in his blog post this morning so I'll share it here ...
Thank you, Barack Obama, for giving all of us new hope for a changed America.
We're non-partisan here at Greenpeace. We don't have any permanent allies or enemies. We support policies, not politicians. We endorse deeds, not words. So even while a lot of us (in our personal capacity as human beings and not Greenpeace employees) are jumping up and down this morning with glee, we want to take a moment to remind you of the promises you made in your election campaign.
It's delivering on these promises, or bettering them, that will be the true mark of your leadership. As you yourself said
This victory alone is not the change we seek - it is only the chance for us to make that change. And that cannot happen if we go back to the way things were.
When the oil company sharks and the coal industry crooks and the nuclear energy shisters begin to gather at your door, please remember what you promised us in this election. Please remember the reasons you gave us to hope:
You've promised us 80 percent reductions in global warming pollution by 2050.
(Obama-Biden New Energy for America Plan)
You promised to use executive action to regulate global warming pollution, if necessary. (Bloomberg News, October 16)
You promised to re-engage with the U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCC)—the main international forum dedicated to addressing the climate problem.” (Obama-Biden New Energy for American
plan)
You committed to attend or send a personal representative to the next UN climate talks in Poland this December. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I_TD4OL-15U)
You committed to helping create five million new green jobs by investing $150 billion in clean energy over the next ten years, requiring that we get 10 percent of our electricity from clean sources by 2012, and putting at least a million ultra-efficient plug-in hybrid vehicles on the road. (Obama-Biden New Energy for America Plan)
Don't betray the hope.
Don't sell out the future.
Don't break our hearts.
They're brimming.
Originally posted here