Hundreds March in Santa Cruz in Advance of Paris Climate Conference

On November 22, hundreds of Santa Cruz residents joined together for the "Climate Changes Everything" rally and march to demand action at COP21, which will be held in Le Bourget, France, from November 30 to December 11. COP21 is the 21st annual "Conference of the Parties," which is a meeting of nations organized to discuss taking action regarding the climate. After assembling at Calvary Church, community members marched downtown to San Lorenzo Park, where Rick Flores greeted them by reading a welcome message from the Amah Mutsun Tribal Band.

A wide range of speakers were heard in the park, and Santa Cruz Mayor Don Lane proclaimed November 22, 2015 as “Santa Cruz Climate Action Day.” The proclamation urges all residents to, "join together to achieve carbon-reduction goals in Santa Cruz and to join the Climate Action Network in urging global leaders at the Paris conference to adopt an aggressive plan to dramatically reduce carbon emissions around the world."

The Climate Changes Everything Rally was organized by the Santa Cruz Climate Action Network, and endorsed by many local groups, including 350 Santa Cruz, Citizens Climate Lobby SC, Sierra Club, Bay Area System Change not Climate Change, WILPF SC, Resource Center for Nonviolence, Pachamama South Bay Group, UC-AFT Green Caucus, and Fossil Free UCSC.

Introduction to rally by Michael Gasser

Santa Cruz Mayor Don Lane

Suzanne Moser, independent consultant on Climate Change and Social Change

Rick Nolthenius, Astronomy Dept. chair and Climate professor at Cabrillo College

Xiomara Castro, local union organizer

TJ Demos, head of UCSC Center for Creative Ecology - expert on Climate Justice Issues

Singer Anna Stearns invited the group to face the four directions with her as she sang

Student with Fossil Free UCSC

Student with Fossil Free UCSC

Student with Fossil Free UCSC

Summer Gray, UCSC post-doc and planning to be in Paris for the COP conference