Dear Friends,
Dear friends, colleagues, allies, and fellow fighters from all over Europe!
Once Again - Welcome to Copenhagen. Welcome to Denmark.
***
We are here because we share a concern. And share a common vision.
We are united in the fight for the green transition; not only here in Europe, but all over the entire world.
We must reorganize not only our society but also the entire world, based upon green and sustainable principles.
There is not a single, not one single agenda that is larger, more important, or more pressing.
It is time for the adoption of a global Social Contract.
A global Social Contract that includes us as individuals, our studies, our research.
A contract that includes the business world and our economy.
A contract that includes every politician, at every imaginable level…
From the smallest village in the smallest municipality in the smallest country- to the largest parliament in the largest country.
We need a social contract that dares and is capable of obligating humanity to achieve the green transition. And we need it now!
***
I mentioned earlier, that we as EGP are here, because we share a concern and a vision.
We share concern for our world, for our planet, and for life on Earth, as we know it.
Our plants are disappearing. Our wildlife is disappearing. Climate change, exploitation, degradation, and pollution of nature, the entire basis ofhuman life, accelerates at a pace we once never thought possible.
That is our shared concern.
But we also have a shared vision…
We have a shared vision, that the genius of the human race, our ingenuity and desire to innovate, our research and entrepreneurial spirit, and ouradaptability provide us with the ability to turn the tide on the negative developments.
Our resolution, willpower, and actions provide us the ability to not only change the way we think, but also
…change our way of being in the world
…change the course of our shared future and
… change the dire perspectives for future generations.
We can change, and ease the judgement handed down to us by our descendants.
That we knew better, but failed to act.
Because we didn’t show due diligence.
It has been said that we are the first generations that experience climate change - but at the same time the last generations that can do something about it.
And this is true.
This is true.
In all of its peril. In all of its simplicity.
There is therefore an indisputable obligation, a responsibility beyond discussion on the shoulders of our generations.
It is this responsibility… this obligation… that is required of us, that this EGP conference is a part of.
And thank you for this. Thank you all!
***
But when I speak of a social contract.
When I speak of a social contract, I speak of a contract across generations.
A contract that ensures participation from each and every corner of our society.
Where it is not possible to call in sick
Where it is not possible to say you don’t have time
Where it is not possible to clock-out because you have other matters to attend.
The reasons of the concern we share, do not wait for us.
They will not disappear on their own.
But the way I see it, we will not reach our goal…
We will not realize our vision
We will not reach our goal, unless we succeed in convincing all people andall parts of our society to sign on to the cross generational social contract.
This requires the participation of all
And therefore this warning.
A warning to all of us, which already share a concern for our planet:
We have an obligation to get everyone involved.
We have a responsibility to persuade and include all - and care not to push people away
We have an obligation not to shame those, who for different reasons refuse to look the seriousness of the situation in the eyes - or simply cannot cope with the consequences, as they have so many other troubles in their lives.
Across the European continent, citizens are feeling the effects of inflation.
Families lose their homes. Citizens are extremely pressured due to the high prices of energy, food, and most other commodities in our society.
Our businesses are challenged.
And maybe soon, we will face a shift in the market. A shift that will force us to deal with a weakened economy, high unemployment, and rising inequality.
We must take this seriously.
[…]
We therefore have another obligation. We must ensure that our fight does not become a sectoral, religious, or moral crusade…
Such a crusade would push too many parts of our society away from us- rather than persuading them to sign on to the social contract.
We have a responsibility to make our vision, a shared vision.
We cannot pause from this work. This job cannot wait.
***
While we are gathered here, war rages on in Ukraine.
There is war on European soil.
In a tragic manner, the revolting war has sown the seeds of one positive development: the acceleration of the transition away from fossil fuels.
A movement towards energy self-sufficiency fueled by renewable sources.
This is what my friend, Robert Habeck, calls Freedom energy
Freedom energy concerns each country in Europe.
Climate policy and the green transition is security policy. We cannot be free and independent nations while being in and lining the pockets of fascist regimes.
We must neither be dependent on dictator’s like Putin nor Islamists in the Middle East.
And I would like to take the opportunity to send two clear messages to President Zelenskjy:
We wholeheartedly support your fight for freedom and security.
We hope that soon we can begin rebuilding the parts of Ukraine Russia has destroyed. We will do our utmost to assist.
I see it as a specific duty for us Europeans to contribute to the rebuilding of Ukraine, especially when concerning the green transition, sustainable solutions, and the future of Freedom Energy.
Slava Ukraini!
***
I am so proud to be standing here today.
I am honored that I, as the leader of Denmark’s oldest green party, can bid the European Green Party welcome to Copenhagen.
I am humbled that SF- Green Left finds itself in such good company, well knowing that I- and all of us, stand on the shoulders of pioneers that early on realized that over the past 170 years, humanity has set our planet on a dangerous path.
With all the technology we have developed…
With all the research we have brought forth…
With all that liberal democracy has brought in terms of relative wealth, equality, and peace…
… its is clear that in the process we disregarded a simple yet crucial fact of life:
That at the end of the day, we are not greater than nature, and we cannot continue emptying our planet’s resources, and letting societal progress destroy ecological balances and our biodiversity…
… Destroy our entire basis of life.
35 years ago this year, Gro Harlem Brundtland published Our Shared Future, a report which brought the term sustainability to everydayconversations.
In the same period, sustainability has come under extreme pressure.
Our planet is telling us to stop.
One month ago, the world population reached 8 billion.
8 billion.
The world population was only 3 billion when my parents were born […]
The combination of more and more people…
With a justified wish of safety, progress, and freedom…
But threatened.
Threatened by poverty. By climate changes that change their living conditions. Threatened by food shortages and war. By corruption. By political and religious oppression…
Too many people in too many parts of the world cannot find hope.
And the world needs hope. Humans need hope.
For me it is clear that the fight against climate change is bound to the fight for global social justice. Bound to be the fight for freedom, equality, and sisterhood.
It is clear, that it is not possible to fight climate change without a more just distribution of this world’s many goods…
[…]
Just a few short weeks ago at the COP in Egypt, parties agreed in the last minute to a model of compensation to the world’s poorest countries.
An important but inadequate step.
We need to ensure that the fund is large enough, that it is implemented, and that it does not cut other funds earmarked to the same poor countries.
In this fight, the European Green Party plays an important role.
In this fight, we play an important role.
In this fight, true social and global responsibility play a decisive role.
I look forward to our time together over the coming days, where together we set the course for the coming years.
Thank you. And once again, welcome to Copenhagen.