Commonwealth Day

May I begin by greeting everyone in the languages of the realm of New Zealand - English, Maori, Cook Island Maori, Niuean, Tokelauan and New Zealand Sign Language.

Greetings, Kia Ora, Kia Orana, Fakalofa Lahi Atu, Taloha Ni and as it is the evening (Sign)

May I specifically greet you: Branch President Nick Webb; Bishop of Christchurch, Dr David Coles; Dean of Christchurch, the Very Rev Peter Beck; Hon Margaret Austin; Distinguished Guests otherwise; Ladies and Gentlemen.

Thank you for inviting my wife Susan and me to attend the Royal Commonwealth Society Canterbury Branch Commonwealth Day Dinner.

Having earlier read the Queen's Commonwealth Day message, with its focus on the environment and climate change, as one of the Society's Patrons, I would like to briefly add some thoughts of my own.

Ladies and Gentlemen, our world stands near the edge of a precipice.  The debate about climate change has moved from one about whether it is occurring, to one about what needs to be done to combat it.  As former United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan has said: "The question is not whether climate change is happening or not, but whether, in the face of this emergency, we ourselves can change fast enough."

The consensus among scientists, as indicated by the Nobel Prize winning Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, is that global warming is occurring and that the actions of humanity are the most likely cause. The Panel, to which many New Zealand scientists have participated, has also forecast that even if we could stabilise greenhouse gas concentrations right now, that warming and sea level rise would continue to occur for centuries.

This is a frightening prospect.  At the one extreme, some members of the Commonwealth of Nations, may literally cease to exist as their island nations slip beneath the waves.  While some areas might gain from warmer temperatures, for many other places, higher temperatures will turn productive land into deserts.  For the many developing nations of the Commonwealth and for less developed countries throughout the world, the Panel concluded that:  "the impacts of climate change will fall disproportionately upon developing countries and the poor persons within all countries, and thereby exacerbate inequities in health status and access to adequate food, clean water, and other resources."

It would be tempting for New Zealand, as a small nation so far removed from such areas of potential conflict, to do nothing.  Some would argue that given our contribution to global warming is relatively minimal compared to most other countries, that we should sit back and let other larger nations debate this issue.

While that has never really been an option—we can't divorce ourselves from the world we are a part of—I don't believe New Zealanders would ever see it as a feasible course of action either.

New Zealanders have never stood back from fighting for a just cause just because ours is a small and isolated nation.  New Zealand men and women have stood alongside others from throughout the Commonwealth to defend the democratic values we all hold dear.  Many paid the ultimate sacrifice and lie buried in graves throughout the world. Many continue to serve under the banner of the United Nations, attempting to bring stability and peace to some of the world's most troubled places.

And it is not only on the battlefield that New Zealand has been a leader. New Zealand's principled stand against nuclear testing for example—fought in protests, in international courts of law and on the sea—eventually won the day, despite annoying the world's nuclear powers.

However, the enormity of tackling climate change has left many people at a loss as what they can do to help.  But I believe that in the same way that the initial movement of a few pebbles can lead to an avalanche, that everyone has a role in defending our environment.

Combating climate change will start in homes and the community.  Being more careful and efficient about the energy we use and reducing, reusing and recycling the waste we create are all initiatives that each household and community can adopt.  If we can establish neighbourhood support groups to combat crime in our communities, why can't we establish similar groups to tackle these issues?

Combating climate change and improving our environment involves public debate about the options for addressing them.  There are no right or wrong answers but it is important for everyone to make their voice heard.  Democracy is more than just voting every three years—it involves making submissions to select committees and local and central government agencies and participating in community groups committed to change. 

If as New Zealanders we wanted an example of how an individual can make a positive change in our world, we have only to look to our own shores.  The late Sir Edmund Hillary—whose death we mourned earlier this year—was, by his own words, a man of modest abilities.  But what he said he lacked in intellect, he made up for in determination—whether it was scaling Mt Everest, reaching the South Pole or in his extensive humanitarian work.  As he himself said:  "You don't have to be a fantastic hero to do certain things to compete. You can be just an ordinary chap, sufficiently motivated to reach challenging goals."

Tackling climate change and protecting the world's environment will be two of the defining issues of our age.  What we do today, will not only decide what sort of world we and our children live in, but also the world our grandchildren and great-grandchildren will inherit long after we are gone. 

As individuals, as communities, as nation states and as members of international organisations like the Commonwealth, if we work with common cause, climate change and environmental degradation can be addressed. As South African, Archbishop Desmond Tutu once said:  "Do your little bit of good where you are; it's those little bits of good put together that overwhelm the world."

Before I close, I wish to pose a wero or challenge to the Royal Commonwealth Society's New Zealand branches. It is to take up the challenge Her Majesty has issued for, as she has said, it is time to "match words and good intentions with deeds."

And on that note, I will close in New Zealand's first language Maori, by offering greetings and wishing you good health and fortitude in your endeavours. No reira, tena koutou, tena koutou, kia ora, kia kaha, tena koutou katoa.