Early on Friday 6th November, 8 members of People and Planet Edinburgh set off on their bikes, heading north to join the masses who would gather the following day in St Andrews. 13 hours later, after several punctures, wrong turnings, much rain and a surprise ‘unveiling’ of a statue of Latin America’s most famous tango dancer… they arrived damp and tired but in high spirits, especially afte r a stunning final 20 miles whizzing along dark country roads, a huge full moon rising over a bank of clouds to shine on the sea as they neared their destination. 

The following morning, a bright wintry sky greeted several hundred people of all ages and backgrounds who had come together in a joint message to the G20 finance ministers that if we want to make the positive changes that are so needed in the world, we’re relying on them to make sure that they are putting jobs, justice and the climate as their first priorities.

The gathered crowd included 50 more students from Edinburgh University – a ‘coalition’ of campaigning societies had come together to give this message, uniting all those groups who are trying to make the world a better place. Making this joint trip felt like a powerful way to show that students care and that there is a huge amount of positive energy out there dedicated to making these changes. But some help from the ‘top’ would be nice.

After a crowded photo on the beach (complete with 20 ‘finance ministers’ sticking their heads in the sand...), everyone marched through the streets to the venue of the ‘Alternative Summit’ where a range of speakers and workshops were offered by various NGOs with the aim to inspire people to leave with a sense that, while we need to continue to hold our governments to account and push them to make the right decisions, there are many ways in which we can all individually make a difference. 

It was an upbeat day which I hope reached out to many; those who were there, those who read about it in the papers and, ideally, those sitting in a room in a posh hotel on the outskirts of St Andrews…  

And I hope all those it reached out to will see the need now to keep up the pressure to make sure that, come a few weeks away, the climate talks in Copenhagen will result in as strong and ambitious a deal as possible.