Naomi Klein and Avi Lewis, the pair behind the new climate change documentary “This Changes Everything,” on Monday told “Democracy Now!” about the Leap Manifesto, a plan to transition away from fossil fuels to a 100 percent clean economy by the middle of the century.

“A lot of the polling in Canada is showing that people don’t want just gradual, incremental change,” said Klein, whose book “This Changes Everything: Capitalism vs. the Climate,” provided the basis for the new film.

“They’re ready for more dramatic change,” she said. “And this is why we’re seeing more support for the Leap Manifesto. Stephen Harper is an incredibly unpopular prime minister, and because of that, there are a lot of people who are going to be voting strategically for whoever they believe has the best chance of beating Harper, because there’s a lot of concern about splitting the vote.”

“And that’s the other thing that we’re doing with the Leap Manifesto,” Klein continued. “If people are voting for a party that doesn’t reflect their full aspirations, particularly on climate change because not one of these three major parties has made climate change an election issue, the Leap Manifesto gives them an opportunity to say, ‘OK, this is where I’m casting my ballot, but this is what I actually believe in.’ And our hope is that we’ll end up with a government that is not the Harper government, maybe it will be a coalition government, and it will be looking for, OK, what mix of policy platforms from the Liberals, the NDP and the Greens are we going to embrace and make our platform, and that the Leap Manifesto can really have an influence on that process.”

Below, Klein and Lewis discuss their film.

— Adapted from “Democracy Now!” by Alexander Reed Kelly.

 Wait, before you go…

If you're reading this, you probably already know that non-profit, independent journalism is under threat worldwide. Independent news sites are overshadowed by larger heavily funded mainstream media that inundate us with hype and noise that barely scratch the surface.  We believe that our readers deserve to know the full story. Truthdig writers bravely dig beneath the headlines to give you thought-provoking, investigative reporting and analysis that tells you what’s really happening and who’s rolling up their sleeves to do something about it.

Like you, we believe a well-informed public that doesn’t have blind faith in the status quo can help change the world. Your contribution of as little as $5 monthly or $35 annually will make you a groundbreaking member and lays the foundation of our work.

Support Truthdig
In this Article:
#avi lewis#divestment#fossil fuels#naomi klein#stephen harper#this changes everything#video