Climate crisis Sheffield: Protest held at Devonshire Green and Sheffield City Hall as COP26 takes place

Protests and rallies were held across the UK last weekend as part of the Global Day of Action for Climate Justice – and campaigners were out in force at Devonshire Green, Sheffield.
By Alex Wilkinson
Published 9th Nov 2021, 12:35 BST
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The protests and rallies for climate justice were organised by the COP26 Coalition and took place across the country.

The Sheffield/ South Yorkshire COP26 Coalition (SCCUG) was formed in January 2020 in preparation for COP26.

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Over the last year, campaigners have been working hard to get Sheffield and South Yorkshire people involved in the grassroots campaign for climate justice. The coalition is made up of several Sheffield based climate groups, trade unionists, grassroots campaigns, faith groups and many more.

Anjali Gupta, Tyler Simmonite and Shanaz Patel, from Greystones, at the Sheffield COP 26 demonstrationAnjali Gupta, Tyler Simmonite and Shanaz Patel, from Greystones, at the Sheffield COP 26 demonstration
Anjali Gupta, Tyler Simmonite and Shanaz Patel, from Greystones, at the Sheffield COP 26 demonstration
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Since its formation in 2020, the SCCUG has held several summit meetings, ran several themed information stalls outside Town Hall, petitioned for the urgent need for more public transport, and have called for 10,000 new green jobs in South Yorkshire.

Lucinda Wakefield, one of the coordinators of the coalition, says Governments need to take far more action on the climate and nature emergencies.

“Governments from across the world, including the UK, are tinkering at the edges, pushing solutions which at best just do not cut it, and at worst actively put all of our lives on the line. Against this backdrop we now also have the latest damning IPCC Report, and with the World’s Poorest Nations ravaged by the effects of climate breakdown and prepared to concede no longer, we must make this COP move to a system of Justice.

Greener Greenhill members at the Sheffield COP 26 demonstrationGreener Greenhill members at the Sheffield COP 26 demonstration
Greener Greenhill members at the Sheffield COP 26 demonstration
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"We have seen lots of rhetoric from our Governments, big businesses and local authorities but little, if no action. What we need now is all hands on deck to make sure we see urgent and meaningful action on climate on every level - from our local authorities to intergovernmental processes.”

Campaigners were protesting about a number of issues on Saturday that they believe are contributing to the climate and nature emergency.

They raised concerns about the lack of climate jobs created in South Yorkshire, despite a petition for 10,000 climate jobs being presented to the Sheffield City Council 10 years ago.

The overall aim of the protest was to fight for Global Climate Justice, with many protesters also travelling up to Glasgow, where COP26 is being hosted.

For more information about the SCCUG, visit: https://cop26coalition.org/

Related topics:SheffieldCOP26South Yorkshire