Launch of the Global Citizens’ Assembly for People and Planet
By Jordan Raine
Iswe Foundation and partners launched the first iteration of a new permanent global citizens’ assembly at the UN Summit of the Future in September 2024.
With the Brazilian government’s support, The Global Citizens’ Assembly for People and Planet will dock with COP30 in Belém. At the same time, it will empower communities to lead local action and call on leaders for change. It will also galvanise non-state actors - including civil society organisations, local governments, faith groups, and more - to make progress, independent of multilateral negotiations.
This is the second in an ongoing series of updates covering the run-up to Belèm and beyond. To keep updated, sign up to the mailing list for the Coalition for a Global Citizens’ Assembly. Journalists wishing to cover the Assembly can also email aish.machani@iswe.org.
This second post covers the launch of the Global Citizens’ Assembly for People and Planet, which was hosted by Iswe Foundation, Climate Emergency Collaboration Group, and the New York Society for Ethical Culture, and supported by the government of Brazil, Avaaz, and the Wellcome Trust. Speakers included Ana Toni (Vice Minister for Climate Change, Brazil) and Laurence Tubiana (CEO, European Climate Foundation, & key architect of the Paris Agreement) who recently made the case for an assembly that would “bring citizens together from every country, not just to chart a collective path forward, but to reimagine our politics”.
On Monday 23 September 2024, leading thinkers and doers from all walks of life gathered during the UN Summit of the Future for the launch of the Global Citizens’ Assembly for People and Planet. This update shares their insights on why they’re supporting the Global Citizens’ Assembly for People and Planet. You can also watch the full event by clicking the button below.
Diego Casaes (Program Director, Climate Emergency Collaboration Group) introduced the event with a reminder that the hard work of climate progress requires enormous citizen support and pressure to make sure people are heard, and that policies are therefore shielded from changing political conditions. He saw the Assembly as key in both bridging multilateral negotiations with these voices, and in entrenching Brazil’s strong legacy of public participation.
Valeria Colunga (Executive Strategy Officer, Southern Voice) reflected that the difficulty governments had reaching agreements at the Summit of the Future - even on issues that have already been settled in previous fora - shows the pressing need for the citizen voice. But amid worsening geopolitical tensions, people are being squeezed out of negotiations. With Brazil’s commitment to make the Assembly a part of COP30, she was hopeful that we can begin a new chapter that puts citizens at the heart of governance.
Ana Toni (Vice Minister for Climate Change, Brazil) wanted the Assembly to hear what common goal citizens want for COP30, stressing a need to not only defend existing agreements, but also help accelerate implementation. She also highlighted the need to mobilise government leaders at all levels in support COP30 and people’s desires for climate action, as without them, implementation will not happen.
Rich Wilson (CEO, Iswe Foundation) highlighted that self-determination has a long history across cultures, and that the Assembly is simply using new technologies to make this possible at the global scale. There is already a burgeoning movement of assemblies across the world, and the Assembly will connect these activities into a coherent map. He gave a short overview of how the Assembly will work, which we recommend you watch below. Future updates will also cover the Assembly in more detail.
Ralph Regenvanu (Special Envoy for Climate Change and Environment, Vanuatu) emphasised people’s shared frustration at the slow pace of climate action, which is threatening Vanuatuans’ ways of life. He called for all countries to join the Coalition for the Assembly, and for Brazil to put the Assembly at the centre of COP30.
Eamon Ryan (Minister for the Climate, Environment, and Communications, Ireland) shared a statement commending plans for the Assembly, and inviting Iswe and partners to call on Ireland’s experience running national citizens’ assemblies at any time, to help make this one a success for people everywhere.
Tolullah Oni (Clinical Professor, University of Cambridge) talked about how the Assembly’s success depends on it producing people-centred policy that improves health and wellbeing for the most marginalised majority. She was excited about the network of community assemblies, because it allows for local needs and data need to drive global action, and for global commitments need to be localised.
Note - Read the paper we recently published with the Wellcome Trust to explore ideas on integrating health into a global citizens’ assembly in more depth.
Attendees then watched a video of Chom Chaiyabut, who shared how his participation in the 2021 Global Assembly broadened his perspectives, gave him family across the world, and led to positive change in his community. You can hear his story below.
Next, in a panel discussion, participants were asked why their organisation is supporting the Assembly.
Abdullah Mokssit (Secretary, IPCC) said that the Assembly can help ensure climate research is actually acted on, and that its inclusive and permanent approach is vital for stable implementation of policy.
Rachael Orr (CEO, Climate Outreach) said that the Assembly is an important opportunity to make the climate crisis relevant to people’s everyday lives, and can help decide the trade-offs that citizen are willing to make if they’re included in the conversation.
Hannah Balieiro (Director, Instituto Mapinguari) welcomed the Assembly standing alongside civil society organisations in connecting the grassroots to COP in a way negotiators can understand, and bringing diversity and human rights to the fore.
Laurence Tubiana (CEO, European Climate Foundation, & key architect of the Paris Agreement) was the final speaker, reminding the room that in the context of misinformation and political power, citizens have to take the lead. She believes that the Assembly can shape fair climate solutions that the government cannot ignore. She invited everyone to join, and together make COP30 a turning point for justice, inclusion, and action.
Aish Machani (Advocacy Co-Lead, Iswe Foundation) concluded the event by calling on the support of everybody to maximise the Assembly’s impact - and that call extends to you too. If you’re an organisation or institution, you can help make the Assembly a success by joining the Coalition for a Global Citizens’ Assembly.
Together, we’ll:
At the post-event reception, Sandrine Dixson-Declève (Co-President, Club of Rome) reminded the room that new data from Earth4All and others show that people across the globe feel the crises we’re facing, they just want those who’ve contributed most to pay most for the solutions. They don’t trust their governments, but they do want to be part of governance. The only way to make that voice come alive is to assemble people - and so she challenged everyone to help ensure that the Assembly becomes an influential part of a new, functioning democracy.
We’d like to thank everyone who came and made the event such a success. From conversations during networking, we sensed both a shared disillusionment with the vague commitments of the Summit of the Future, and real promise that the Assembly was a genuine antidote - tangible, practical, and with the potential for profound impact. What happens now is up to all of us.