Moby backs EU climate change effort

Building public support for European Union international climate change negotiations… As part of its Energy for a Changing World initiative, the EU is sponsoring, with help from MTV, a musical awareness drive from now until December. Helping kick off the “Play to Stop. Europe for Climate Campaign”, Moby took to the stage in Stockholm.

Other prominent artists will perform in Budapest and Copenhagen. Celebrity ambassadors in singing, sports, acting, dance and journalism are mediators in the campaign, spreading messages about a need to take action — in 11 target countries. Moby said: “For me climate change is the most pressing issue, because every other issue — of social justice, human rights, animal rights, economic uncertainty — all these issues are predicated upon the ability for human beings to go about living the way they have been living. And with climate change, if you are suddenly dealing with the middle part of the United States becoming a desert, and food prices becoming one hundred times what they are right now, if you are dealing with potentially a billion refugees, all other issues fall by the wayside. So in order for us to have the luxury to deal with other issues, we first have to deal with climate change, I believe.” This campaign is aimed at boosting awareness primarily in the 15-to-34 age range. The EU, as a leading proponent of responsible policy on climate and energy, especially wants support from this section of the population. The European Commission’s man in Stockholm, Pierre Schellekens, explains how it is instrumental: “The generation of young people we have before us is a key generation, in how we behave towards them, in their conduct, in the decisions they take in every day life. And if this generation takes good decisions, it can be a part of the solution, and therefore contribute towards reducing our greenhouse gas emissions.” In preparation for the United Nations Climate Conference in Copenhagen this December, the EU has pledged to reduce those emissions by 20 percent, to draw 20 percent of its energy from renewable sources and to improve its energy efficiency by 20 percent — hoping others will follow.More about: European Union, Global warming and climate change

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