G20

So the G20 has rolled into my city. Getting lunch at work now means passing 900 military personal and 6000 police that now roam the area. The sound of choppers in the air continually circling. I love Brisbane, I love the culture, the river, the green space the festivals. Most of all I love how easy and friendly our city is. This weekend Brisbane has turned into something I no longer recognise. I catch my breath while walking past police. Police on every corner, searching bags, searching people. Snipers on the roofs around town, metal fences everywhere. Regretting not packing my lunches this week. On a plus side my daughter did get a cinema to herself this weekend, due to the ghost town effect this G20 has had on the people of Brisbane.

Motorcades of the important leaders of the world flow back and forth. My city empty of community, but a hive of security operations in action. I understand logistically this is how these leaders have to travel. There is so much conflict and divisiveness, they need constant protection and are likely facing continuous threat. But why are they here? What is the G20 about? Why has 470 million dollars been spent on supporting this weekend, countless businesses shut down, and a city locked down for this? They say it’s about the growth of the world, economic strength. About building partnerships to strengthen our economic ties. That the 470 million is totally worth it for the economic growth we will achieve. While I’m not trained in any kind of economic background, all I hear is bigger bigger more more. Growth for the sake of growth. As I heard someone say last week, G20 is the ideology of the cancer cell. Just keep doing more of the same, building on growth for more growth. More money for the sake of more power and money.

I would be more open to the ‘inconvenience’ as they say of the G20 if world leaders were getting together to really talk about change. Not power games and posturing to see who can get the biggest deals. There is enough resources in the world. The problem is there isn’t enough distribution of resources in the world. Imagine if they came to together to talk peace, to talk sharing of resources and exchanges, to talk about growing our world into a healthier, better place, rather than a desperate need for more and more. A cup that can never be filled.

Are they really talking? Tony Abbott threatening to ‘shirt front’ Putin. Putin raising the stakes and pointing four war ships our way. Chinese and Japanese leaders shaking hands for the pictures, but turning away when the translators begin to speak as a direct power move to snub the words of the other leader. So Tony Abbott claimed he was going to deal with the MH17 issue. So did the agro, and all the male power displays of my dick is bigger than your dick achieve that? Are we any closer now to having access to the crash site and gaining peace for grieving families? I doubt it. Just a lot of TV coverage of power plays and no outcomes. I wonder too about grieving families watching the death of their loved ones being reduced to Putin/Abbott fight ring infographics and macho jokes about who is tougher.

Every time I hear our government say climate change is not our priority my skin crawls. This is not the message of other nations. I watched Obamas speech. I like how he talks, I like his social justice and human rights framework. I like how he firmly called out Australia on lack of climate change action and told students to rise up and demand action. But do we follow their lead? That seemed to be the impression. But how has America started cutting their greenhouse emissions? He didn’t mention that. They have done it by increasing nuclear capacity and widely expanding fracking. So are they really helping the environment, or are they ticking an emissions box and dealing with the other environmental consequences later? So yes, rise up, rise up everywhere, but perhaps it’s time we found our own solutions? Sustainable solutions that work for this country. Has anyone noticed we have a really bright sun here?

Protests for climate change actions happen in the city and on farmers properties. All calling this serious issue into action. I am quietly pleased that only 4 arrests occurred in my city, compared to 1100 at the last G20. I was afraid people were going to get hurt. But there was great communication between protest organisers, legal observers and police and I have seen a lot of coverage of the protests including the reasons why the protests occurred and the police commissioner talking about the rights of democratic freedom. I was amazed to see the deaths in custody rally covered live from start to finish and was able to watch all the speeches. So in this aspect our city has done well.

But despite the marches on climate change, Tony Abbott has been firmly pushing to have climate change off the agenda of the G20. The leaders have a desperate need for more and more and greed driven politics, yet we need a world to live in. We need community and connection to be a heart beat in this world. I am reminded of the social and political movement in Bolivia. When governments were campaigning on more economic growth an Indigenous party campaigned on living well. They brought in rights for Mother Earth and believed in the power of people. They won with a landslide. However to do this their communities believed in them, their communities wanted it. Right now, our communities believe in investing in military and economic power. So as much as I would like to see some priorities change in our leaders. In many ways they are simply speaking the majority view.

So again the words of the Elders of this land flow into my mind. If you want to change the world, change yourself. If you want to help the Earth Mother, play with your children, it’s the most powerful and political act to heal the Earth that you can do. That love feeds the Earth more deeply than you know.

So to the backdrop of military helicopters circling, I’m off to play in the sprinkler and chase butterflies with my four old.