More Youth Involvement at COP16

This morning started off with another early meeting of the youth organizations. The meeting got off to a quicker start than the day before, as the issue of language had been solved and the translators were ready in the back of the room. The meeting began with announcements and went into discussions about presenting a report to the Secretariat of the UNFCCC. Announcements about the upcoming YOUNGO focal point elections were also given at the meeting. The meeting was going to be long (for the second day in a row), but students were began heading to the meeting for the contact group on Article 6 of the Convention. This article focuses on public awareness and youth involvement in the UNFCCC process which made it an important event for YOUNGO members to attend.

Contact Group on Article 6 of the Convention with party members and observers

There was a very good turnout at the contact meeting. Many of the non-negotiating attendees were members of youth organizations that showed up to remind those making the decisions why these negotiations were being held in the first place. To me, it felt as though little came out of this contact group meeting. Much of the time was spent discussing the wording of the document rather than content. However, the committee got through the document and included several pieces that were written by youth.

Young people are now included in the treaty document

Red Cross/Red Crescent panel

I added this photo to highlight some the technology being used at the COP16 meeting. This display is an eight-screen interactive Google Earth exhibit.

Moravian College students, professors, and alumni in Cancun

Voices for Climate Change.flv

The video that had Christiana Figueres, the Vice Chair of the IPCC, and a whole audience on their feet dancing.

Let's Go Green Music Video

This video was shown at one of the events focused on educating the public on December 2nd. The artist Angella Katatumba from Uganda was in the audience. In another session, a reggae educational video from Jamaica was shown. Ms. Figueres had everyone in attendance stand up and start dancing. I wish I could find a link to that song and video and I wish I had pictures of the entire group dancing!

Youth and Future Generations Day

Thursday at COP 16 was Youth and Future Generations Day and there were several sessions that highlighted the importance of not only educating youth around the world, but also involving them in attempts to find innovative solutions for the challenges associated with climate change.

One of several "actions" of the youth at COP16

I heard a number of youth presentations and was struck by how knowledgeable they were about the issues and the complex processes associated with the UNFCCC and international negotiations. They are well versed in the language of the Convention articles and fluent in the COP jargon.  These individuals are certainly meeting the education challenge of Article 6 of the Convention (although today, December 3rd, significant language that spoke to the role of youth in the process was struck from the draft language of the article).

The passion the youth display is not due solely to the fact that they are worried about their own future, but reflects their genuine concern for helping others around the planet. Some of the students had managed to secure means (logistical and financial) to bring youth representatives from poor countries of the global south to Cancun – individuals who never could have been able to attend otherwise. They talked of amazing things that they were doing—as individuals or through organizations—to educate others, to create a worldwide youth network, and to make a difference in their communities or countries in terms of environmental protection. Some were reaching out across international borders to provide educational resources to those who otherwise wouldn’t be able to learn about environmental issues.

Walter, a 12 year old from Belize, is a UNICEF representative who spoke of the importance of helping the people of his country better understand climate change and the risks that lie ahead. When the adult panelists noted of the power of the new media to help the youth in their efforts, a young woman from Boliva spoke of how they don’t have ready access to the internet and in the towns, it costs $1 per hour to use it which is a significant percentage of a family’s daily wages.

Consider this:

• Over 70% of children and youth of the world live in developing countries and most of these live in rural areas.
• Worldwide, 2.2 billion people are less than 18 years old – representing about ½ of the population of developing countries. 

Sadly, though, while there are youth from the U.S. in attendance (mostly college students), they are not the ones articulating their vision or showing leadership within YOUNGO (the youth constituency group).

At Moravian, we are doing a small part to engage students in the process through their attendance at the COP meetings, through our educational outreach (the blog, campus courses and presentations, etc.).  We hope that the students who have had the honor of attending COP meetings will be ambassadors for and leaders of change.  But this is far from enough to fight the forces working against change, especially in the U.S.


The intergenerational panel including the Vice Chair of the IPCC, the Executive Secretary,
and 2 YOUNGO reps (from Australia and Figi)



Some of the youth delegates celebrating after the high level session (the intergenerational panel)

 

Christiana Figueres being presented with a youth shirt



Day of Youth and Future Generations

Here is a post that I wrote yesterday that was originally written for my blog, The Baypoll Blog:

Today was the Day of Youth and Future Generations at COP16, a day dedicated to the youth that are involved in the UNFCCC process and the delegations of young people in Cancun. The day started with a meeting of the Youth Non-governmental Observers (YOUNGO). Although an hour and a half of the meeting was spent deciding what language the meeting should be in, several good discussions came out of the YOUNGO meeting. Members of the group gave policy reports from the UNFCCC negotiations that occurred the day before and these members of the YOUNGO policy working group gave responses to what had been decided in the negotiations. The group also discussed the various youth-related activities that would be taking place during the day.

Members of the United Kingdom Youth Climate Coalition

Although there were many young people in the room, I was shocked at how few were from the United States. I had hoped that there would be many youth from the US involved with UNFCCC, but unfortunately that did not happen. The only others from the United States were from the organization SustainUS. The majority of the people in the room were from Europe, primarily the United Kingdom, but other continents and countries were represented as well. While the United Kingdom Youth Climate Coalition only included members from their own county, the World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts had representatives from several countries.

In order to make the meetings fair to different delegations around the world, a survey was taken as to how many of the young people in the room were from global north versus global south countries. These are socio-economic classifications given to each country. The global north countries are developed countries including the United States and many countries in Europe. Unfortunately for the diversity aspect of the meeting, very few delegates were from countries in the global south.

After the meeting, I attended a side event on the ways youth organizations are reaching out to youth in the community to help fight climate change. The panel members focused primarily on encouraging people to vote in order to bring change through politicians—“change politicians, not climate”. Rather than spending time on educating people about the issue of climate change, the organizations that spoke were focused primarily on electing “green” representatives.

These groups are indeed able to make a difference through the politicians they elect to office, but their actions do nothing to educate people about the issue. The fact that they can get people to vote for the politician that agrees with clean energy does not ensure that the voter fully understands why voting for such a person is important nor does it ensure that the voters comprehend the severity of the impacts of climate change.

From here, I headed to the “Youth Market”, a demonstration organized by the various youth groups attending the conference as non-governmental observers. The youth involved had a mock “sale” of various natural resources and vulnerable places. The “action”, as it is called at the COP meetings, attracted the attention of many people in Cancunmesse including a good number of reporters. Although I was there to watch, I was somehow dragged into the “market” since I was a youth in the area. I ended up holding a sign that read “Home and Future”, signifying the fact that these two important aspects of life are being “sold” as a result of climate change.

This demonstration was a success in many ways. Although it did not have a specific “cause” (since many separate organizations were involved), it showed that the planet cannot wait much longer for an agreement before all of the Earth’s natural resources are “sold”. Perhaps the most important part of the action was to highlight the presence of the youth at COP16. The youth are often forgotten about since they cannot take part in the official negotiations, however, they serve an important part in education and outreach for the issue.

Time is on sale at the Youth Market; unfortunately, it appears that time is running out

This day, filled with youth panels, meetings, and actions, successfully brought the youth of UNFCCC to the front of the climate conference. Hopefully through future events, similar to those that happened today, the youth will gain higher status and members of the YOUNGO will be allowed into the climate negotiations.

I cannot post all of the photos here, so please visit flickr.com/coreyhusic to view more images from today and the rest of COP16 in Cancun.

Some images from Cancun

Executive Secretary Christiana Figueres prepares for an interview with the Associated Press on a very windy day in Cancun.

The Associated Press "headquarters" at the Moon Palace.  Can't figure out why they set up adjacent to where all the noisy shuttles drop delegates and Parties off on a regular basis!

And then there was the press coverage of a rally for "Freedom and Solidarity of Mexican Waste Pickers who claimed to be "Climate Fighters".  They were demanding respect for recyclers.

Some green efforts at the conference site

The lobby of the Moon Palace.  This is not where the Moravian College delegation is staying!

In between sessions is a time to network, review notes or draft blog entries.

Building a Foundation

While attending events at the Moon Palace, I had several chances to hear the Executive Secretary of the UNFCCC, Christiana Figueres. Although she talked to very different audiences throughout the day (ranging from the Associated Press to a large group of non-governmental observers and party members), Ms. Figueres had a few main points regarding the climate negotiations taking place. The first of these is that COP15 in Copenhagen was not a failure. Many say that COP15 was a “failure” due to the fact that nothing major came out of the meeting that was hoped to result in an agreement. Secretariat Figueres believes that Copenhagen was important as it brought international attention to the issue of climate change. Although no major agreements came out of the conference in 2009, the media attention brought the issue to the public, who may have ignored the issue of climate change.

Executive Secretary of the UNFCCC Christiana Figueres

The second major issue according to the Secretariat is the fact that a major, perfect agreement will not come out of COP16. No one can expect an agreement when three countries have decided that they will not agree to the second commitment period of the Kyoto Protocol. According to Ms. Figueres, we should not be aiming for an ultimate agreement this year, as “the perfect is the enemy of the good”. Secretariat Figueres also warned that we should aim for the "good" and not complain if Cancun indeed leads to an imperfect agreement. Cancun is merely building a foundation on which a fuller, better agreement can be built. If the world sees what comes out of COP16 in Cancun as a failure, we will get nowhere on our goal of creating a better planet. Although we cannot save the planet overnight (or even the course of the COP meeting), we can hope that a plan to save our planet will be reached within the next few years.

On Less Discussed Ecosystems in the Climate Negotiations

On Wednesday, I attended side events that focused on ecosystems that are not really focal points in the official negotiation sessions. Many of us are familiar with reports of the decline in sea ice, the melting of glaciers, and sections of ice shelves that are breaking off in Antarctica. Indeed, some of this evidence has led to the sense of urgency in trying to obtain international agreements for reducing greenhouse gas emissions and slow climate change. But no one knows how to save the Polar Regions or glaciers so they are not covered in the climate finance discussions (e.g. carbon offsets) or in conversations about adaptation. I also learned today that there is great potential for carbon capture and sequestration in coastal ecosystems, but these are not included in discussions about incentives for restoration and protection in the way that tropical rainforests are.

I attended the premier of the film The Polar Explorer produced by filmmaker Mark Terry of Neko Harbour Entertainment (http://www.polarexplorerfilm.com/). Last year, Terry’s film The Antarctic Challenge was the only one invited to be screened at COP15 in Copenhagen (http://www.theantarcticachallenge.com/). For the new film for COP16, he accompanied scientific expeditions to both poles to see first hand how polar research is being conducted and to learn what the data is telling scientists. The changes are dramatic in terms of the loss of ice in terms of extent (area covered) and volume (which includes ice depth). For example, Pine Island Glacier (a misnomer) in the Antarctic is retreating by 10 meters per day in some areas and the melt from this one glacier adds 46 gigatons of water into the ocean per year! In some regions, the changing temperatures are resulting in dramatic reductions of phytoplankton and in turn, krill and penguins, which are on higher rungs of the food ladder. In others, the loss of ice cover is exposing new ocean life and sea floor topography never before studied. The biological and human consequences of these changes at the poles are significant, Terry presents the challenges in a way that is both poignant, and at times, slightly humorous—as when he swims in a newly exposed section of ocean in the Antarctic and refers to it as the region’s newest sport. But the implications for flood protection and relocation of coastal communities are very serious indeed.

Later in the day, I attended a panel presentation on the role of coastal ecosystems in the global carbon cycle and climate change story. About one-half of the global primary production (photosynthetic conversion of carbon dioxide to organic carbon) occurs in the open ocean and this capture and subsequent sequestration of carbon represents a large percentage of the global carbon budget. However, this story is essentially absent in carbon-sequestration incentive proposals and there is relatively little discussion about the management of the ocean systems in climate negotiations.

Because open oceans represent dynamic systems that are difficult to study, scientists and conservation groups focus on coastal ecosystems including seagrasses, mangroves, salt marshes, and coastal wetlands. These are extremely important for fisheries, biodiversity, coastal protection during storms, cultural values, and tourism. They also account for very high rates of carbon sequestration – perhaps five to ten times higher than terrestrial levels and can maintain this capacity for decades. But these ecosystems are rapidly being damaged or lost all together. This has all sorts of consequences related to the ecosystem services mentioned above, but also releases carbon that has been stored for centuries or longer.

One example that was given was for the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta which has been drained over the last hundred years to provide about 300,000 acres of farmland. This has resulted in soil loss (about 1 inch per year), the release of about 3 billion tons of carbon, and the loss of sequestration potential. If the release was stopped and the region restored to its native condition (not likely) it is estimated that there would be a net gain of carbon sequestration of about 62 tons of carbon per hectare per year!

These types of determinations are only beginning to be done for major coastal ecosystems around the world and only recently, has attention been given to their conservation and restoration. Likewise, only preliminary analysis has been done to determine if the sale of carbon credits to protect coastal ecosystems would be worthwhile, but early analyses suggest that they may indeed be. There are the direct costs of protecting a physical area, but also the lost opportunities such as for shrimp farms/farmers and tourism (beachfront resort income). It was pointed out that all of us staying in Cancun hotels built on what was once mangroves.

Concerns were raised from the audience about carbon credits in general, the threats to these ecosystems with worsening ocean acidification and rising sea levels, and the lack of accounting for anaerobic conditions in some coastal ecosystems that release methane and nitrous oxides which are also greenhouse gases. But the take home messages included the need for more research; that these ecosystems provide many important functions that benefit humans and other species and as such, should be protected and better managed, and that they should be included in climate negotiations.

New App for following the UNFCCC negotiations on iPhone or iPad

On the UNFCCC website, the new iPhone and iPad app, the "Negotiator" has been announced. You can join us virtually with the latest news releases, videos, photos, documents, Facebook and Twitter postings. Check it out at http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/negotiator/id338997029?mt=8.

Greetings from Cancun

It is Wednesday and 4 of the Moravian College delegates to COP16 have arrived.  The atmosphere and tone of the event is much subdued compared to last year in Copenhagen.  There are far fewer people here, in part, because quotas were established for the non-governmental observers before everyone actually arrived.  The NGOs are limited to 11,000 and probably not that many individuals will actually show up.  I haven't heard numbers for the actual official Parties or members of the press that will be here.  The NGO events and exhibits are in a separate physical location from the negotiation sites -- about 15 to 20 minutes apart by a shuttle.  It is thus more difficult to cross paths with people.  Being week one, much of the work is being done behind the scenes and the majority of the international press won't arrive until the weekend.  Unlike last year, no one expects a significant agreement; rather, the hope is to leave with a binding agreeement that will set a strong foundation for future work--especially at COP17 in South Africa next year.  This meeting wasn't designed to be ones for heads of state like last year, but we learned today that about thirty have expressed plans to come next week.

The few protestors that we are seeing are being kept at the periphery of the meeting locations (i.e. outside the fences).  There federal police are very visible along the roadsides and around the official sites; most are carrying machine guns.  And there are U.N. security forces in blue shirts that seem to pop out of nowhere!  But in general, many of the groups that were heavily involved in activism in Copenhagen seemed to have changed their approach.

At the municipal government building plaza last night, there was an inter-denominational prayer ceremony for the planet (no separation of church and state here).  Everyone was dressed in white which led to a very serene atmosphere.  There was song, and dance, and prayer -- a peaceful call for the negotiators to "do what is right".  It was really quite an amazing event attended mostly by locals. 

We talked with folks today who had been polling people from Cancun who were apparently surprised to learn that there are people around the planet who don't believe that climate change is happening.  And what did we hear from the U.S. today?  Current ranking member Jim Sensenbrenner (R-Wisc) announced today that Republicans have decided to kill the House Select Committee on Energy Independence & Global Warming.  And the rest of the world is looking to our country for leadership in all of this?

But all of this backdrop aside, the events that I attended today were extremely interesting and worthwhile.  I am still trying to digest all that I learned and will post summaries about some key issues in the near future.  Prominent themes seem to include:

- linking climate change to food (in)security;
- mitigation of greenhouse gases is being billed as a path to better health and well-being;
- the empowerment of women in addressing climate change (which may be related to all the high ranking positions that have been filled by women including Christiana Figueres);
- "Blue Carbon" (more on that in a subsequent post); and
- returning to the three conventions that arose from the Rio Earth Summit (1992) and drawing links between them.  (Given that these include biological diversity, combatting desertification, and climate change, this is not surprising as the connections can easily be drawn.)

More soon,
dwh