'20 minutes at 20:00' on Saturday, November 11, urges Midhurst mum

In Sussex there are already gatherings happening in Chichester (the Cross), Horsham (Carfax), Midhurst (bus station), Petworth (market square) and Fernhurst (Vann Road by the shops), with others in neighbouring Surrey happening in Haslemere (Lion Green) and in Hampshire in Petersfield (The Square). New ones are being continually added as word spreads.

People are gathering at the above locations to stand with their community for 20 minutes and observe a one–minute silence at the end. Those wishing to attend should go to the meeting points just before 8pm, with a candle.

The events are the brainchild of Bev Exall, a 57-year old mother of two from Midhurst, who will be joining the candlelit gathering in Midhurst on November 11. She says: “Our changing climate is killing us, with more than a 1/4 of a million UK deaths linked to our changing climate since 1988. There were an estimated record number of 4,507 deaths associated with heat in England last year alone, with extreme weather events 4x more likely now than in 1970, including flooding, storms and wildfires.

“Millions have given, and continue to give, their lives in service of our country, in past and current wars. On this year's remembrance weekend, as we face a very real and different type of threat to our country in this century - our changing climate - we want to ensure that their sacrifices are not wasted by our politicians and corporations valuing profit over life.

“I’m calling on everyone who cares about the impact of our changing climate to stand in solidarity for 20 minutes at 8pm on Saturday 11th November to show your support for affected families and communities, and to send a clear message to politicians and others in power that we need urgent change to stop more lives and livelihoods being lost due to climate-related weather events.”