Interview: The powerful idea of Letitions is driven by the passion and commitment of Geelong's Robert Patterson

Letitions are a variation of the commonly used and understood petitions but are immensely more powerful. Geelong's Robert Patterson is the man behind letition.org and this powerful process is endorsed by some powerful people, including the Australian Captial Territory Senator, David Pocock. Many in the Geelong community had embraced the idea of the letition as is illustrated in one of the city's newspapers. The letition.org website says: "Is it a system? Yes. Is it a tool? Yes. Is it available to all? Yes None of that’s novel – so why should you sign up?The Letition system is a movement. It embodies our united stand for the environment, amplifying our concerns in a chorus that cannot be ignored. A clarion call from the larger community. Letitions are the modern Open Letter: A collective call to action with the urgency of a personal message. Each Letition serves as a direct line to our elected representatives in Canberra, each one reflecting the collective will of the voters right from their local communities, their constituencies - the people they ultimately answer to.  Every month, they receive several Letitions delivering a unified message on different aspects of climate concerns, demanding attention and action.Every Letition is counted, and the results are published. The aggregated voices are not only heard by you, the community, they echo through the halls of Parliament, reaching every MP and their staff. This transparency fosters accountability and personal responsibility among our leaders.It was never going to be easy to win the battle with evermore fossil fuel developments, but we must keep building the momentum and pressure. Letitions are effective because they are local, specific to each politician and that politician’s voter base, but also wide-reaching – speaking to issues that impact across all constituencies. Every month, we must persist in sending one or two Letitions to their local Member and their Senators. We are one voice, powerful together. The movement is gaining momentum. As more and more people consistently send Letitions every month, the movement, and its voice and impact will grow even more.