Inverell farmer Glenn Morris joined the Time2Change Rally in Sydney recently along with other farmers and other community members from around NSW to demand effective action on climate change. He wrote about his motivation in his local newspaper The Inverell Times earlier this month.
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Last
month I joined twenty-five farmers on horseback from across NSW riding through
the middle of Sydney to raise awareness about the impacts of climate change on
the people who live in and make their living from rural Australia.
I’ve been
noticing the impacts of climate change on the land around me for the last
thirty years. It seems to me as these impacts mount up for farming communities
across Australia, the government is doing less and less to tackle the issue and
making more and more excuses instead.
The
scientific evidence for climate change is clear – and the evidence us farmers
are seeing on the ground is even clearer. We’re suffering the devastating
effects of record heatwaves, rainfall deficiencies, fires, floods and storms on
a regular basis and we can’t take much more of it.
So we
decided if the politicians wouldn’t act on climate change, we would! We rode in
support of the #Time2Choose rally, a united NSW-wide protest about the thermal
coal industry that’s threatening our existence.
We’re
getting close to the point of no return as a country – but that point is not
here just yet and there are choices we can all make to make a difference and
protect this Great Southern Land we all love. It’s time to choose a better life
and a safer, healthier climate.
If we
don’t take care of our land and stop pillaging it, our food supplies and water
resources are at risk. Every time we destroy another area of land, we are
effectively destroying the living connection which protects and nurtures us,
with clean air, clean water and healthy food.
This is
not just an issue for farmers, this affects everyone.
Since
riding in support of the rally, I’ve been inundated with messages of support.
One of the comments I have kept hearing is how inspired everyone was by this
action: those who were there at the rally and saw first hand the magnificent beauty
of the horses, those who saw us in the media and we, the riders, were probably
most inspired of all. We’re inspired to continue to raise awareness of this
issue and we will not rest until we make people aware that the individual
choices that they make that will determine our future.
Australians
need to demand better respect for our land, water and climate. We need to
expect our politicians to take action on this matter – and to be prepared to
use our vote to create that change if we need to. We need to join organisations
that are fighting for our food supplies and water resources like the many who
were at the time2choose rally including Farmers for Climate Action.
For the
future of our land it’s now time to choose: respect or destruction. I choose
respect.
Glenn Morris, Inverell Farmer, NSW.
