A photo of Green Party campaigners in Bristol

“Working across nations to curb emissions, reduce pollution and build a sustainable future is vital, unilateralism will get us nowhere.”

These are the words I said at a European Movement event in July, as they launched their report on Energy and Environmental Cooperation. It is the reason I’m running to be the International Coordinator. Whether we’re talking about the climate crisis, an end to violence against women and girls or increasing global instability, sitting alone in a corner will not work.

This Year marks 30 years since COP 1 in Berlin, the first UN climate change congress. COP is one of the best examples of the benefits of working across borders. Is it perfect? No, far from it, but it has brought about landmark international agreements on the climate, such as the Kyoto Protocol and the Paris Agreement.

But we face a new threat, the consensus has been broken. On the climate, on democracy and on human decency. On the climate, we’re in an age where we no longer agree that lowering emissions is vital, with Trump in the US and Farage here at home, never before has there been such a pushback against net-zero. With 1.5 degrees of heating slipping from our grasp, we need to fight harder than ever for our planet.

But we also see that the consensus that democracy is sacred is being chipped away, bit by bit. We see across the planet that the fascism (and make no mistake, it is fascism) is growing . The fight against it isn’t just a fight for decency, for many of us, it is a fight for our very survival. As parties like Reform grow, only the Green Party can fight against it and win.

If elected, I want to work with our global partners to train activists across borders. Each party has found ways to combat this growth in fascism. We can and must learn from one another if we are to win this fight, we cannot afford to lose.

We also need to reset our relationship with the European Green Party. The new rules mean that GPEW and other non-EU green parties will not have the same influence or rights as those inside the EU. That means we need to work harder than ever to influence decisions, which requires us to work openly with our partners across the continent. Yes, that will mean having frank and honest conversations, but it also means being open and going in without preconceived notions of where our continental colleagues stand. If elected I will work tirelessly with our friends across Europe on policy and to get us into fighting shape.

Finally, we are in a world where green values, values like democracy, self-determination and peace are needed now more than ever. From the communities being decimated by indiscriminate attacks in the Middle East and Sudan to those fighting imperialism in Ukraine, greens can lend a voice to those under siege and build a stable and safe future for us all. We need to stand strong and show solidarity with those fighting imperialism, and those simply fighting to survive.

We have to fight, across all communities and on all issues if we are to win, but unless we work across borders, we’ve already lost. We need an International Coordinator that can work with Greens from across the world on all issues, that can have respectful disagreements but have frank conversations where necessary. That person is me.

If you elect me, I will democratise our international work, including open selection of delegates, demand transparency on GPEx and make sure we are ready for the fight against fascism at home and globally.

Thomas Atkin-Withers is a candidate for the Green Party’s international coordinator

Image credit: Matthew Phillip Long – Creative Commons