Cycling for Climate Change Action

The Climate Tour de Shore, one of New Zealand’s first climate rallies, cycled through Auckland’s North Shore earlier this month. Organised by local community organisations, including Nicholas Mayne of A Rocha Auckland, participants utilised cycle paths and public roads, passing through Unsworth Reserve, the site of one of Auckland A Rocha’s restoration projects, as they journeyed from Brown’s Bay to Takapuna. Electric bikes and push-bikes were joined by electric cars – including Tesla sports-cars and even a bus! A foretaste of the future of transport!

With the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change Conference (COP 21) starting later this month in Paris, more New Zealanders are hitting the road to make clear their hope that the negotiations will reach an agreement on lowering global greenhouse gas emissions, and encouraging New Zealand to do more to respond to the reality of climate-change.

While Nicholas completed the rally in the comfort of a borrowed Nissan Leaf electric car, Murray Sheard (chair of the A Rocha Board) donned his lycra for the cause! Speakers included Auckland councillor Wayne Walker, Dr Sally Birdsall from Auckland University, and Zoe Lenzie-Smith, a NZ Youth Delegate to the Paris talks. Murray addressed participants on the impact of climate change on the developing world, noting that: “in the last 20 years we have lifted more people out of poverty globally than ever before, but climate change threatens to reverse this. We may be the first generation who can end extreme poverty but we are the last generation who can stop climate change”.