A replica of the Rosetta Stone, intended to be a symbol of the need for climate action ahead of the COP27 conference taking place in Egypt, has been unveiled next to the Schuman roundabout in Brussels.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThis stone symbolises our anger and our hope,\u201d said St\u00e9phane Vanden Eede, representative for the organisation Pakman, which is behind the installation, which was sculpted by V\u00e9ronique Choppinet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cHope that after 50 lost years, we as citizens and politicians will take the necessary steps to fight climate change. We are no longer heading for a wall, we are just standing in front of it. It will take time and generations to rebuild the idyllic land that we have all allowed to be destroyed.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Pakman is a collective that sprung out of the publishing of a 2022 white paper titled \u201cWanted: The IPCC Sixth Assessment Report,\u201d which denounced the climate denial entangling both civil society and political bodies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Its name is a nod to the video game character \u201cwhich gobbles up everything in its path\u201d, and the collective describes itself as being made up of citizens from every walk of life \u201ccoming together to denounce climate denial and push every level of power to take, swiftly and democratically, the urgent decisions which are required by the situation\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The four sides of the Rosetta Stone are decorated with statements in four languages: French, Dutch, German and English.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
As COP27 takes place from 6 to 20 November in Egypt, a 150m\u00b2 tent on Place Schuman will simultaneously host citizens’ assemblies and \u2018climate nights\u2019, during which debate and information sharing can occur regarding themes such as democracy, energy and agriculture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n