IT looked like an Olympic torch but was powered by a lemon and it also featured a solar panel.
But the GetUp Climate Torch Relay is no less important.
Created by the designers of the Sydney Olympic Torch, the Climate Torch is an iconic symbol of our national determination to avert dangerous climate change, according to GetUP.
The torch itself features solar-power, a wind-turbine, people power, and the lemon battery.
The GetUp Climate Torch Relay is touring right across Australia and was in Wauchope last week. Along the route local communities are hosting legs of the relay, which calls on our leaders to halve Australia’s greenhouse pollution by 2020.
“We don’t need to be Olympic athletes to bear the climate torch, but we do need to
encourage our governments to make an Olympic effort to drastically reduce our greenhouse gas pollution”, said local organiser, Cathy Eggert.
Ms Eggert said the torch is a challenge to our representatives at all levels – from local councilors to the Prime Minister – to halve Australia’s greenhouse emissions in a decade.
Executive Director of GetUp, Brett Solomon, said politicians and public servants would ‘ignore that challenge at their electoral peril’.
The torch was designed to embody four solutions to climate change.
“The torch uses wind and solar power, a ‘people power’ hand crank, and also draws power from a lemon-battery, representing the innovation and creativity we need to support to find new energy solutions,” said BlueSky Creative head designer, Mark Armstrong.
“The four energy sources power an onboard microprocessor and LCD display, showing the message halve Australia’s greenhouse pollution by 2020.”
About GetUp: GetUp.org.au is an independent movement to build a progressive Australia. GetUp brings together like-minded people who want to bring participation back into our democracy. GetUp has over 280,000 members nationwide.