From Cancun to the Green Economy:

Labor Weighs Priorities

La Via Campesina March in Cancun Redroadcancun via flickr

Dec 10, 2010 - Despite the stern official statements delegates have aired at the Cancun climate conference this week, the real fight against planetary meltdown is proceeding at the pace of a drifting polar ice cap. Too slow for millions of workers struggling with global economic crisis and pinning their hopes on the future low-carbon economy.

So union representatives from around the world arrived in Cancun to ensure that no matter how ineffective the talks, labor wouldn't be left out of the discussion.

There was initially some confusion among trade union delegates when a draft planning text seemed to omit critical references to the principles of "just transition" to a green-energy economy. But officials appear to be open to incorporating labor representatives in the dialogues of the Ad-hoc Working group on Long-Term Cooperative Action.

A workshop coordinated by a coalition of labor groups earlier this year raised concerns and lessons learned on green economics. According to the follow-up report, some labor-oriented ideas that have filtered into the Working Group's dialogue include: {continued}