President Nasheed of the Maldives Speaks at Copenhagen Climate Change Summit

Speaking last night at the climate change summit in Copenhagen, President Mohammed Nasheed of the Maldives gave a speech that moved many environmental activists around the world.  He compared the plight of the Maldives to Gandhi’s plight in India and as far as environmentalists are concerned, President Nasheed is now something of a rock star.  The transcript of his speech follows:

Full text of Mohamed Nasheed’s speech as given at Klimaforum, 14 Dec. 2009

Mr McKibben, fellow environmentalists, ladies and gentlemen,

Four years ago myself, and many fellow activists, sat in solitary confinement in Maldivian prison cells. We sat in those jail cells not because we had committed any wrong. We sat in those cells because we had deliberately broken the unjust laws of dictatorship. We had spoken out for a cause in which we believed. That cause was freedom and democracy.

There were times, sitting in that prison, when I felt more alone than you can imagine. There were times when I started to believe the doubters, who said the Maldives would never become free. Sometimes it felt like the doubters were right. The dictatorship had the guns, bombs and tanks. We had no weapons other than the power of our words, and the moral clarity of our cause. Many democracy activists like us had vanished, forgotten by history, their struggle a failure.

But, in spite of the odds, we refused to give up hope.We refused to listen to the voices of doubt and discouragement. We refused to be swayed by those who could not see that change was on the way. And we were right to stand up for what we believed.

We won our battle for democracy in the Maldives. I stand before you today as the first democratically elected President in the history of my country.

The path to democracy in the Maldives was not straight-forward. It was bumpy and full of turns. But we were determined that no matter how difficult the terrain, we would reach the end of the road. And we succeeded in our cause.

Four years later and a continent away, we meet here to confront another seemingly impossible task. We are here to save our planet from the silent, patient and invisible enemy that is climate change.

And just as there were doubters in the Maldives, so there are doubters in Copenhagen. There are those who tell us that solving climate change is impossible. There are those who tell us taking radical action is too difficult. There are those who tell us to give up hope.

Well, I am here to tell you that we refuse to give up hope. We refuse to be quiet.We refuse to believe that a better world isn’t possible.

I have three words to say to the doubters and deniers. Three words with which to win this battle. Just three words are all I need. You may already have heard them. Three – Five – Oh. Three – Five – Oh.

Three – Five – Oh, saves the coral reefs. Three – Five – Oh, keeps the Arctic frozen. Three – Five – Oh, ensures my country survives. Three – Five – Oh, makes a better world possible.

I am here to tell you that down the road in the Bella Center the Maldives team is fighting to keep Three – Five – Oh in the negotiating text.

They need all the help they can get from you. Please keep supporting them.

And the good news is that we are now part of a growing bloc of nations, all committed to keeping Three – Five – Oh as the central guiding goal of our global survival plan.

These nations need your help and support too.

I am not a scientist, but I know that one of the laws of physics, is that you cannot negotiate with the laws of physics. Three – Five – Oh is a law of atmospheric physics. You cannot cut a deal with Mother Nature. And we don’t intend to try.

This is why, in March, the Maldives announced plans to become the first carbon neutral country in the world. We intend to become carbon neutral in ten years. We will switch from oil to 100% renewable energy. And we will offset aviation pollution, until a way can be found to decarbonise air transport too.

For us, going carbon neutral is not just the right thing to do. We believe it is also in our economic self-interest. Countries that have the foresight to green their economies today, will be the winners of tomorrow. These pioneering countries will free themselves from the unpredictable price of foreign oil. They will capitalize on the new, green economy of the future. And they will enhance their moral standing, giving them greater political influence on the world stage. In the Maldives, we have relinquished our claim to high-carbon growth.

After all, it is not carbon we want, but development. It is not coal we want, but electricity. It is not oil we want, but transport. Low-carbon technologies now exist, to deliver all the goods and services we need. Let us make the goal of using them.

Let us make the goal of reaching that all-important number: three – five – oh.

We believe that if the Maldives can become carbon neutral; richer, larger countries can follow. But if there is one thing I know about politicians, it’s that they won’t act until their electorates act first. This is where you come in.

History shows us the power of peaceful protest. From the civil rights movement, to Gandhi’s Quit India campaign; non-violent protest can create change. Protest worked in the struggle for democracy in the Maldives. And on 24 October, we saw how protests across the world put Three – Five – Oh firmly on the Copenhagen agenda.

My message to you is to continue the protests. Continue after Copenhagen. Continue despite the odds. And eventually, together, we will reach that crucial number: Three – five – oh.

In all political agreements, you have to be prepared to negotiate. You have to be prepared to compromise; to give and take. That is the nature of politics. But physics isn’t politics. On climate change, there are things on which we cannot negotiate. There are scientific bottom lines that we have to respect. We know what the laws of physics say. And I think you know too.

The most important number in the world. The most important number you’ll ever hear. The most important number you’ll ever say. These three words: Three – five – oh. (Three – five – oh) (Three – five – oh).

Maldives Holds Underwater Cabinet Meeting About Climate Change

The President of Maldives and his Cabinet ministers held an underwater meeting on Saturday October 17 to highlight the threat of global warming to their country.

President Mohamed Nasheed together with his Cabinet ministers wore scuba gear and dove 6 meters below the surface of a lagoon to gather around underwater tables. At the meeting,  the Cabinet signed an agreement calling for global cuts in carbon emissions that will be presented in the upcoming U.N. climate summit in Copenhagen, Denmark, in December.

“We are trying to send our message to let the world know what is happening and what will happen to the Maldives if something isn’t done about climate change,” Nasheed said.

Maldives People are All Going to Die

According to the Maldives government website, President Nasheed was asked what would happen if Copenhagen fails. “We are all going to die,” he replied.

After the dive, the ministers signed their wet suits which are being auctioned to raise funds for coral reef protection in the Maldives, according to the President’s official website.

The Maldives archipelago consists of almost 1,200 coral islands, located in the south of India and southwest of Sri Lanka. Most of it lies just 4.9 feet above sea level.

Rising Sea Levels Endanger the Maldives

The United Nations’ Intergovernmental Panel of Climate Change has forecast a rise in sea levels of at least 7.1 inches (18 cm) by the end of the century.

President Nasheed is hoping to set aside billions of dollars to buy a new homeland somewhere between Sri Lanka, India or Australia.

Maldives Plans Meeting for threatened nations

From the Associated Press, October 21, 2009

The Maldives will convene a summit next month of countries suffering some of the worst impacts of climate change ahead of a global conference on the issue in Copenhagen, government officials said.

The low-lying island nation has become a leading voice on the issue of global warming, even staging an underwater Cabinet meeting this month to express concerns about rising sea levels.

Government officials said Tuesday that the two-day conference starting Nov. 9 is meant to forge a common position for some of the world’s most vulnerable countries ahead of global talks in Copenhagen in December.

Those talks aim to replace the Kyoto Protocol, the first global agreement requiring modest reductions by industrialized countries in emissions of heat-trapping greenhouse gases widely believed responsible for changing the earth’s climate.

Wealthy nations want broad emissions cuts from all countries, while poorer ones say industrialized countries should carry most of the burden.

“We have chosen island states and countries suffering from deforestation, glacial melting and desertification,” said Ahmed Naseem, the Maldives state minister for foreign affairs.

The Maldives conference is expected to include Bangladesh, Barbados, Costa Rica, Ethiopia, Ghana, Guyana, Kenya, Kiribati, Nepal, Philippines, Rwanda, Tuvalu and Vietnam.