Vivienne Westwood tells her truth: Climate Revolution

Posted on December 17, 2012 by climrevol

“WE MUST BEGIN TODAY, TOMORROW IS TOO LATE”

Climate Revolution has already begun. Dame Vivienne Westwood took a risk at the closing ceremony of the Paralympics. Driven by the urgency of the climate threat she broke the rules by sewing CLIMATE REVOLUTION into the lining of her costume. When the cameras turned to her – when over 1 billion people were watching from their living rooms – she unfurled her costume and CLIMATE REVOLUTION was projected across the world. We caught up with her to find out her hopes for the revolution.

When did climate change become a big concern for you?

I always thought we had an environmental problem but I hadn’t realised how urgent it was. James Lovelock writes that by the end of this century there will be one billion people left. That’s six billion dead by the end of the century. He calls it the cull.

In 2008 the New Economics Foundation announced their 100 Months campaign – the amount of time left to stabilize the level of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere before the risk of uncontrollable planet warming becomes unacceptably high. We are now more than half way through – with less than 49 months. We have a choice: Hell or a Future better than the human race has ever known.

How do you balance the demands of being a fashion designer with your work on Climate Revolution?

I have been carrying in my mind the idea of Climate Revolution. I wanted to tell you about my make-up for the inauguration of Climate Revolution photo for the Paralympics. I was supposed to be Boudicca, the Queen of the Ancient Britons, who fought the Romans and used a blue dye called “woad”.

It is really important to give what is happening a name: warpaint, revolution. Now that we have identified our cause as “Revolution”, we can combine our action in the fight to win.

We all have to work together and the very act of naming of the Climate Revolution gives us that focus.

What does a revolutionary act mean to you and how can we inspire others on the high street to follow?

To join the revolution you need a weapon. Information is the best weapon. Information and the recognition that we are all ordinary people, that we all share what it means to be British, what it means to be human.

The word ‘kind’ comes from the same root as ‘kin’ and it means to care for someone as much as you do for your family.

Finally do you have a new year’s resolution for 2013 that you would like to share?

I will take an active part in the revolution as it starts to build.