What’s this?
‘Petitio Pacis’ is a bike ride calling on the London embassies of 26 nations, asking them all to support Azerbaijan’s call for a worldwide truce for the duration of the COP29 Climate Change conference.
Why?
Nov.11 1918, after 30 million casualties, the guns fell silent.
“The war to end all wars”? Hardly. Over 70 million died in WW2. Millions more in Korea, Vietnam, Cambodia, Myanmar, Rwanda, Bosnia, Ukraine, Palestine…. the list is endless. What an appalling waste of talents, energies and ambitions.
Nov.11 2024 Representatives of the world’s nations will convene in Baku, Azerbaijan. COP CC 29 will try to inch the world forward in the efforts to respond to the damage we are doing to our planet.
If we’re obsessed with conflict, how can we cooperate to adapt to the challenge of climate change, cooperate to minimise our future impact? The evidence of 25+ years since the first COP CC summit is far from encouraging. Conflicts between nations grasping for greater control of earth’s limited resources. Conflicts dressed up as differences over ideologies and faiths. Conflicts complicated by the vanity and ambitions of our leaders for personal power.
Better, surely, to switch our efforts to tackling the challenges facing all nations. Those distant hopes of Nov.11 1918 have yet to come to pass. Appropriate then, that Hikmet Hajiyev, adviser to the Azerbaijan president Ilham Aliyev, is calling for a worldwide truce during the conference. Symbolically, as they strive for a peaceful resolution of their bloody conflict over Nagorno Karabakh, christian Armenia has supported muslim Azerbaijan’s chairmanship of COP CC 29. An object lesson to all.
The nations of the 26 embassies listed represent:
- Over half of the 8 billion people in the world.
- 14 nations suffering major armed conflicts (nearly all less-developed).
- The top 7 arms suppliers (all wealthy, developed powerful nations).
- Some of the nations beset by the worst effects of climate change.
A Petition for Peace
The aim is to deliver this message to 26 embassies:-
Armistice day, November 11th 2024, sees the start of the 29th UN Climate Change Conference of the Parties -COP 29. This year the conference is chaired by Azerbaijan.
The leaders of this country have called for a world-wide truce over the period of the conference… but why not longer? While the world’s attention is focussed on conflicts over territory or ideology, how can we possibly make progress on other pressing problems such as global health (more pandemics?), food security (more mass migration?) and climate change (more flooding, forest fires)?
Azerbaijan and Armenia are leading by example, seeking a peaceful resolution to their decades-long struggles. This petition calls on all nations to take note, to join them and to focus instead on the greater issues that face us all together. There’s so much to be done for the sake of all generations to come.
All we are saying/ Is give peace a chance.
Naive? Futile? For sure. But until the voices of reason make themselves heard we can’t expect our leaders to change course. For the vast majority of us our voice is the only weapon we have.
The embassies:
The route:
USA-Azerbaijan routing is on Google maps here (or try scanning this QR code):
7.4miles/50mins cycling, 50mins of stops at the embassies below:
Country – Embassy address – Miles/Minutes
- USA 33 Nine Elms Lane, SW11 7US
- Germany 23 Belgrave Square, SW1X 8PZ 2.7mles/23mins
- Syria 8 Belgrave Square, SW1X 8PH 3.0/30mins
- France 58 Knightsbridge, SW1X 7JT 3.3/37mins
- Iran 16 Princes Gate, SW7 1PT 4.5/50mins
- Venezuela 1 Cromwell Rd, SW7 2HW 5.0/59mins
- Yemen 57 Cromwell Rd, SW7 2ED 5.3/66mins
- Bangladesh 28 Queen’s Gate, SW7 5JA 5.7/74mins
- Israel 2 Palace Green, W8 4QB 6.3/83mins
- Azerbaijan 66 Holland Park, W11 3SJ 7.4/100mins
Azerbaijan-Japan routing is here (or scan the QR below)
5.8 miles/40mins cycling, 45 mins stops
- Ukraine 60 Holland Park, W11 3SJ 7.5miles/111mins
- Russia 6 Kensington Pal. Gdns W8 4QP 7.7/117mins
- Lebanon 15 Palace Gdn Mews W8 4RB 7.8/123mins
- Somalia,259 Old Marylebone Rd NW1 5RA 10.0/143mins
- China 49 Portland Pl, W1B 1JL 11.1/156mins
- S.Sudan 22 Portman Cl, W1H 6BS 11.8/165mins
- Italy 14 Three Kings’ Yd, W1K 4EH 12.5/175mins
- Myanmar 19a Charles St, W1J 5DX 13.2/185mins
- Japan 101 Piccadilly W1J 7JT 13.8miles/195mins
Japan-UK routing is here, or scan the QR below:
4.1 miles/32 mins cycling, 35 mins stops
- Sudan 3 Cleveland Row SW1A 1DD 14.4miles/204mins
- Armenia 31A S.James’s Sq. SW1Y 4JR 15.0/214mins
- Brazil 14 Cockspur St SW1Y 5BL 15.4/223mins
- Canada Canada Hs,Pall Mall E SW1Y 5BJ 15.4/228mins
- S.Africa 15 Whitehall, SW1A 2DD 15.6/234mins
- India India House, Aldwych WC2B 4NA 16.2/243mins
- UK Palace of Westminster SW1P 3JY 17.3miles/257mins
Total: 17.3 miles, 4-5 hours.
When?
I aim to start my own ride at the US Embassy at 10:30 on Saturday Nov.2nd.
Add your voice ?
Like to add your voice to the call? Visit all or any of the above or any other embassies, any time. Take a picture outside, either a selfie, the bike you are riding or shoes you are walking in. Email it to to petersbed@aol.com Send a copy of any message you leave . Any submissions received will be posted below – anonymously if you wish.
While on the subject…..
This is a petition, not a fundraiser. However, if you fancy doing a trip like this why not use it to raise funds for the charity of your choice? Make a +ve difference!
If you like, take a look at this crowdfunder:
https://www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/peter-bedingfield
Thanks! Peter Bedingfield
Some pics from Nov 2nd 2024
