Oz Osborne about Pavlo Khazan

My name is Oz Osborne. I am a UK-based consultant and trainer and have spent most of my life working on environmental, community and other issues – at home and overseas.

I have known Pavlo for many years having first worked with him on a project to promote sustainability in Dnipropetrovsk. I agree with him that sustainability is more than just about green issues. It also means a fair and just society where generations to come can live peaceful and productive lives in harmony with each other and their environment.

If this is to be a reality, people today must take action and support those activists and politicians who are prepared to tackle issues such as climate change, lack of affordable food, and the pollution that affects many people’s lives around Dnipropetrovsk.

During my visits to different countries, I see that it is the poorest and most vulnerable communities that are suffering most because of damage caused to their environment and their lives – mostly due to economic forces and political interests that they have no control over.

Policy must go hand in hand with practice if we really are going to make the lasting changes that are necessary to ensure a good quality of life, both now and in the long term future.

People like Pavlo, who are prepared to do something about these issues, must be supported by the rest of us. He has long been involved, at home and abroad, on policy and action that promote the kind of society where the needs of all of people, not just of the few, are represented.

I wish him good luck in his campaign and hope that voters will recognise the opportunity to support someone whose primary consideration is for the long term welfare of people in an environment which we have a duty to protect. You must not miss this opportunity.