On February 3, the first sitting day of federal parliament in 2009, thousands of climate protesters will encircle Parliament House, peacefully demanding the government take real action on climate change to ensure a safe climate future.
The Rudd government is yet to implement serious policies that will drastically cut Australia's carbon emissions. Climate activists are calling on the government to generate a widespread shift to renewable energy use, rapidly expand public transport and end the logging of our old-growth forests.
With time rapidly running out, the government can no longer afford an approach that lets big business off the hook while soothing the public with symbolic gestures like signing the Kyoto Protocol.
In the lead-up to the rally, a two-day climate action summit in Canberra will bring together climate change activists from around Australia to create a strategic national climate campaign and form a national network.
There will be an open program that anyone can join, with workshops on issues relating to climate change and the opportunity to be trained in climate campaigning skills.
The majority of Australians want immediate, strong action on climate change, but how can we achieve it? Like other environmental campaigns, success comes through many different people, students, unionists, environmentalists and others, uniting and organising against the climate crisis.
It's not inevitable that runaway climate change will happen, not if we act now by keeping pressure on the government to make the transition to a sustainable society and work to remove any government that won't reply.
Events like the climate action summit and rally will help the climate movement link up and develop a more effective national campaign. They also encourage more people to get involved in climate campaigning, building a stronger and broader movement around the country.
Resistance will be helping to organise these events and we're encouraging everyone to come along.
The climate action summit will be held from January 31 until February 2. The rally at Parliament House, Canberra will start at 8am on February 3.
For more information, or to register for the summit, visit .