Red Pepper News

Carbon Offset Controversy at Phone Co-op AGM

Heidi Bachram writes:On 28 January at the UK based Phone Co-op’s Annual General Meeting, members revolted against the company’s use of so-called ‘carbon offsets’. Member Andrew Wood put forward a motion to remove discontinue the practice and called such offsets, provided by Oxford-based firm Climate Care, a “scam” warning fellow members that their use “seriously threatens the ethical reputation of our brand.” He added that according to the Phone Co-op’s own surveys, 70% of its customers move their telecom services to the company because of its rigorous ethics and environmental commitment. Wood stated that because of the controversial nature of carbon offsets, the Phone Co-op’s reputation could be harmed.

Climate Justice, or, what's really going on in Montreal

If you're unimpressed by the 'greenwashing' that routinely accompanies intergovernmental climate change talks, then the Climate Justice blog is an excellent source of information from environment campaigners at the summit.

And if you still want to check in on the official course of the negotiations, try here
or here

Around the web

First of all, peace activist Milan Rai is currently in prison for Defacing the British Foreign Office. Please send messages of support to Milan Rai, HMP Lewes, 1 Brighton Road, Lewes, East Sussex, BN7 1EA. He's keeping a prison diary which can be viewed here.

Secondly, with the COP 11 (the Conference of the Parties to the Climate Change Convention) in Montreal coming up from 28 November to 9 December, it's worth checking out www.carbontradewatch.org. Their new book Trouble in the Air: Global Warming and the Privatised Atmosphere is edited by Patrick Bond and Rehana Dada and can be downloaded from here.

And finally... it seems that the British neo-cons are getting organised.

UK CO2 emissions keep on growing

Carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions in the UK have continued to rise in the first six months of the year, according to analysis by Friends of the Earth. Emissions were up by 2.5 per cent in the first six months of the year – further proof, if proof were needed, that the government’s pledged reductions to help tackle climate change are a load of hot (and polluted) air.