1 minute read
Okezue Bell ’23 Presents At United Nation’s COP27 Climate Conference
By Julia Fox
Advertisement
In November 2022, Egypt hosted the 27th Conference of the Parties of the UNFCCC (COP27) in Sharm El-Sheikh.
In attendance at COP27—among the heads of state and scientists, policy-makers and activists, ministers and global citizens—was Okezue Bell ’23. For Okezue, curiosity about the potential to innovate through cellular agriculture ignited a keen interest in sustainable food systems and the possibility of creating exacting change to combat the climate crisis.
“I was initially intrigued by the science,” he says. “But then I started writing articles about it, and as I delved further into research, I started to realize that my biggest contribution could probably be in getting other young people to want to adopt these solutions. Because as the market transitions over to young people, we’re the ones who will need to buy into these solutions for their impact to be realized.”
Okezue’s desire to educate other youth found him conducting virtual and in-person workshops with schools in our area and around the globe. In this way, he had the “really cool” experience of connecting with people in places like Uganda, Kenya, and Syria. “It was through that work that I was invited by several different organizations affiliated with the United Nations to come to COP27, be a speaker, but to also participate in the discourse at large.”
More than 2,000 speakers presented on 300+ topics, but most notable to Okezue were the conversations surrounding accountability and complacency. His conference presentation focused on what he considers to be the next step in climate justice: to advocate for the solutions that are already being built and to ensure those solutions are inclusive. Seeing the diverse representation at the conference from indigenous and people of color as well as people from underresourced areas underscored a core theme in Okezue’s message: “The climate agenda has to be one where everyone wins.”
Now home from Egypt and inspired by the progress made at the conference, Okezue hopes to share his expertise with his peers at Moravian Academy. He plans to partner with Green Team, educate students here on the solutions he has extensively researched, and bring more voices into the climate action conversation.
