Leaves caution behind

The 350 event on Signal Hill was a brilliant and most encouraging morning. Originally planned for the top of Table Mountain, mist forced us to relocate to the “rump of the lion”, and all of the roughly 250 people who’d gathered at the lower cableway walked for an hour or so to get to the parking on Signal Hill. The mist persisted – and so did the people. We rehearsed at 10am, but it still did not clear. The parking lot began to fill up, and we moved to a nearby grassy hillside – but still the mist did not clear. So people began to chant, “We want sun! We want sun! We want sun!” And by some synchronicity, the planet finally cooperated, the last wisps of vapour blew away, and a small helicopter rose at last from the Waterfront to swoop around and photograph us. After nearly two hours of waiting, I don’t believe a soul had given up and left early. Human beings really can be as amazing and wonderful as we can be selfish and shortsighted.

All photos but the aerial shot are mine. From the 350.org page on Flickr: “Climate Action Partnership volunteers form up on Signal Hill in Cape Town to make up the number 350, signifying 350 parts per million (PPM) CO2 in the atmosphere, 350 PPM being the maximum safe limit of CO2 concentration. WE ARE CURRENTLY AT 390 PPM!”