Numerous prominent Australians -- including authors, activists, athletes, scientists, and public health professionals -- have joined together to sign an open letter urging French President Hollande and World Leaders to put coal exports on the agenda at the 2015 Paris COP21 climate summit, and to help the world's governments negotiate a global moratorium on new coal mines.

View the full page letter here, or scroll down to see the names of signatories below.

Join the growing call for a global moratorium on new coal mines
> add your name to the petition

Hundreds of millions of people around the world lack access to electricity and even more lack access clean energy sources. Energy poverty is a major health issue and an impediment to economic development. 

But while the coal industry claims that coal is the answer, their arguments just don't stack up.

In case you missed it. 

Our top-five takeaways for this week: funds worth $3.7 trillion pledge to dump coal; Australians want services not more coal subsidies; have we reached peak coal price?, people vs polluters in the Philippines and who's going to pay to fix a giant toxic hole in the ground?

The Australian coal boom is so big it's hard to fathom. The output from Adani's Carmichael mine, just one mine, would be enough to build a road of coal around the world -- 5 times and more than half again. It would give every Aussie household a double garage full of coal. It would cut a scar the size of most capital cities. It would blow 0.5% of the world's carbon budget.

That's just one of more than 60 major projects hoping to dump even more coal onto world markets...

The movement for a global moratorium on new coal mines has found the backing of Pacific Island leaders.