APGN message on the Future of the Global Greens

Delivered by Keli Yen at the 3rd Global Greens Congress panel discussing the Future of the Global Greens Resolution.

We’re in this room today because of our deeply held individual values; and as members of the Global Greess, we collaborate to realise a shared vision which is beautifully expressed in the GGs Charter.

The Greens inspire me because we hold ourselves to a higher standard of excellence:

• As individuals: we are ever refining our accountability for the ripple effect we each create as inhabitants of the earth.
• As Greens: we hold ourselves to the discipline of leading by example.  And perceive leadership to be inherently in the hands of each individual’s right to shape his/her own destiny – and so we redefine leadership through the discipline of participatory democracy.
• The Greens are different from others because we start from a foundation recognising that we are profoundly in this world together – and so we continually push the boundaries of concepts & habits in how we do governance, how we run businesses, and how we live together as a society – all inherently political questions.

I speak to you on behalf of the Asia Pacific Greens Network – what we call the APGN.  The Asia Pacific’s:

• Territory covers 1/3 of the globe.
• Population is the biggest & fastest growing, currently contributing more than 1/2 the world’s population.
• Pollution growth is also the greatest: contributing 60-70% of greenhouse emissions over the next 20-30 years.
• Resource extraction is a thriving business, and China is the economic engine of the world.

It is a concern then, that the APGN is the weakest link in the Global Green’s family in terms of having the lowest:

• number of Full Members in a Federation – at only 13;
• number of Green Members of Parliament;
• no staff, no office;
• bank account with only 1/3 of Euro in it!

A system is only as strong as it’s weakest link.  For the world’s sake, we all have a stake in Asia.  To achieve the goals of the Charter, we must use our global resources strategically & prioritize key intervention points.

I believe we, the GGs, are at a point where we are seeing a growing intersection between our various groups, necessitating collaboration.  In the spirit of the values we stand for, let’s think creatively about what greater collaboration looks like.

Challenges ahead of us include:

• Barriers to access to the Global Greens: such as language barriers, access to internet – which is critical to  connecting our community’s diaspora, and marginalization of regions not currently part of the GGs such as the Middle East – and countries such as Myanmar.
• We need a global strategy offering support mechanisms dedicated to emerging Greens.  Imagine, what would that look like? …
• Imagine mentorship relationships between experienced Greens with nascent Greens.  Think of the mentors who have shaped you & the huge impact and gifts they brought to your life.

Regarding the Resolution addressing the “Future Functioning & Structure of the Global Greens”, The APGN proposes:

1. To explicitly reference the outcomes from the GG census, that:

• 100% of our members feel GGs should continue to exist;
• The Greens are the only major political family that does not yet have a formal international office;
• When asked what should be the primary function of the GGs, the most popular response was Capacity Building for Emerging parties.

2. The APGN proposes increasing the level of ambition to our Aims & Objectives:

• To strengthen our means to sharing resources to increase the number of elected Greens particularly in emerging democracies.
• To broaden the range of groups that the GG’s supports: young greens, indigenous peoples, networks of elected parliamentarians & local government reps, and other collaborations affiliated with the Greens.
• The Asia Pacific proposes: recognising the GG’s contributions to developing the Green identity, which has enabled the success of Greens into office, and to support that continued work, we think that GPs & elected parliamentarians should follow the example of the NZ & Australian parliamentarians who currently tithe 1% of their income to the GGs.
• Asia Pacific proposes having more frequent Congresses, not every 5 yrs, but 3-5.  Depending on financial capability, Congresses need not be huge events – but regular enough to achieve optimal collaboration.
• And, we support having a professional & permanent Secretariat dedicated to getting Greens into office around the world!

In this Congress we are building the institutions designed for the wellbeing of the whole system.

It is vital that we rigorously hold ourselves to the highest standards at all times – so that we are always proud to stand for being Green.  Lets listen and learn from one another, with empathy, most especially towards our adversaries, because realizing the values & political actions of our charter involves all of us to align our heads, our hearts and our hands.

03/28/2012 – 12:00