Contents Introduction
1
WSC-SD and Climate change
2
Re:solutions
2
Beyond Copenhagen
3
Selected blog articles
6
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Selected blog articles and personal impressions To here and much further 21st December 2009 Christopher Baan The general disappointment among NGOs and scientists over the official outcome of COP15, has not only led to public disapproval of the UN system and the effort of world leaders. It has also led to a new wave of focus on solutions and innovations, on new sources of hope. The Dutch Minister for Environment even declared the UN system not the appropriate arena anymore, to discuss climate change measures. More and more initiatives are born out of the wish and urge to provide solutions based on entrepreneurial activities. Youth initiatives that forge entrepreneurship, such as GlobalFocus, Rework, the GHF Youth Forum, and the Youth Initiative Program, are evolving rapidly and attracting increasing amounts of young people. Besides that, scientists are trying to draw the #
contours of climate governance beyond 2012, acknowledging that the world has become fundamentally more complex and more multilayered, calling for new models of negotiation and new platforms to represent necessary voices. All these initiatives should give us the muchneeded hope, inspiration and tools to go forward and collaborate on projects that have a real impact. It’s clear that we can’t afford to wait for politics to fail – the young generation will have to take up the challenge and responsibility to collaboratively design a bright green future. We have to do it together, and fast. As William Gibson said: ‘The future is already here. It’s only unevenly distributed.’
Students Come Together at the University of Copenhagen Thursday, December 17, 2009
By Aaron Thom Sunday saw the conclusion of a two-day event led by Yale and the University of Copenhagen which brought together students from universities around the world to discuss ways to establish schools as sustainability hubs. Katherine Dykes, a Ph.D student in the Technology and Policy Program represented MIT’s Energy Club and Walk the Talk. The students used Saturday to discuss what programs and projects currently existed at their universities and how they could improve them.
University, Carnegie Mellon University, the University of Uppsala , the University College London, theUniversity of Copenhagen, the University of Gothenberg , ETH (The Swiss Federal Institute of Technology), and MIE University.
What topics did they discuss? One of the topics that were discussed was the role of universities in their local communities. The Brown University students noted that one of the most pressing issues regarding student involvement at their school is engaging students on campus, as student attention is largely focused off campus. This contrasts starkly with MIT’s situation, where students are actively engaged in research, education, and other activities on
Who was there? Universities in attendance included Tongji University, Yale University, Brown University, The University of British Columbia , The Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT), Hokkaido University, Bilkent
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campus (for the most part) but not as much off campus. Also, RMIT students discussed the importance of an institutional framework for ensuring accountability, along with facilitating knowledge transfer and collaboration across departments. Two common themes throughout the talks were the sustainability of food production and the concept of “opt-in/out.” Carnegie Mellon proposed creating a dining program designed specifically to be as sustainable as possible, with materials such as compostable cups and plates (which a Green Committee would be charged with ensuring were actually composted), and requiring students to “opt-out” in their dining plans should they not wish to participate. The University College of London proposed a student tax to fund energy-efficiency
retrofits that students would have by default and would have to actively opt out of. Multiple students proposed redesigning dining programs at their universities to encourage vegetarian options and increasing the availability of low-impact food. The Carnegie Mellon students made an interesting point about the important of pre-consumer waste along with post-consumer waste.
What’s next? Having met and interacted, the students at these universities aim to maintain the network they have formed, and provide one another with periodic updates throughout the coming year with their implementation of their proposed plans. These organizations will prepare for another meeting, which could occur at COP16 in Mexico.
This has been the largest connectivity in civil society in history. Environmentalism became Social Justice in Copenhagen (Naomi Klein)
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Education for a better climate Thursday, December 17, 2009
By Kat Potter
“…International environmental institutions can’t make states do what they don’t want to do, but citizens can. It is increasingly clear that treaties rely not only on states for implementation but on citizen activism and national environmental leadership. …If citizens do not demand strong environmental policy from their own government, no number of treaties and summits will save the earth.” – Prof. Stacy VanDeveer
eventually reach a critical mass of youth, Generation ‘S’ for sustainability, but will it be too late for much of the planet 10-15 years down the road by the time that generation has voting and life decision power? In our pursuit of outreach and education, we must reach to the youth so that the day I dream of will indeed come when environmental concern is the unnoticed norm, and also reach to the current adult public so that immediate actions can be taken to preserve the Earth for the future.
The above quote speaks to the importance of common citizens in the preservation of our planet. Specifically Prof. VanDeveer points to citizens driving policy and treaties, quite applicable to our current goals here at COP15– especially as the final days draw near and doubt continues as to whether an international agreement will be reached. Citizens are also vital in the preservation of our planet outside of the political region, namely in their everyday actions, habits, and responses to change.
Luckily, there are indeed new efforts to reach out, and put climate change education higher on the international agenda. UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization) and WMO (World Meteorological Organization) work together within the UN for climate knowledge, and have recently placed a focus on enhanced education and public awareness. Their support and programs are diverse in the techniques they use and populations they target, and I commend them for this creativity as it is needed for the diverse nature of the planet’s citizens. Some of these educational approaches include: integration of climate change education into already established educational programs and school curricula; enhancement of networking between educators to share good practices and experiences; support for teacher training; local field-based education through UNESCO’s networks both with youth and adult communities, sometimes utilizing UNESCO sites; sharing of climate change experiences, strategies, monitoring, impacts, etc. between communities; support to bridge the gap between IPCC assessment reports and services required to adapt to climate change; support to build capacities of journalists so they can serve as the knowledgeable connection to the public. What a wonderful list! UNESCO’s goals are far and good. I hope that they are able to materialize into outcomes, as often these political decrees seem to blur out of tangibility. UNESCO’s planned actions for the International Year of Biodiversity 2010 do indeed show real concrete steps in educating the
In both of these capacities, the vital step is to have these citizens of the earth be informed and educated. And in that lies a huge challenge, in how and by whom. I have always been heavily involved in outreach and educational efforts regarding science and climate change understanding; much of my interaction with the youth population both in and outside of the traditional school education system. This has brought me hope in generating new stewards of the land, classroom by classroom, student by student. I dream of that day– when frustrations from hearing ignorant rants (by citizens, by politicians, by uninformed adults) subside because the new generation of educated youth has entered the stage. However, I have to ask myself: is this enough? Is this fast enough for the rapidity at which the Earth needs action? Relative to our problems it seems too slow paced, both in terms of the number of youth being reached at a time, and also the fact that the youth must age before will have their capacity as sustainable citizens. Yes, we might
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public (including an IYB traveling exhibition!) suggesting we can hope for real action. (See http://portal.unesco.org/science/en/ev.phpURL_ID=7998&URL_DO=DO_TOPIC&URL_SEC TION=201.html for more info on what the IYB will entail).
and action on the level of an international UN organization, in addition to the numerous grassroots and local-level educational efforts of which I have been a part, because there is no doubt that any effective climate change policy framework must include an educational component. I hope that our politicians here at COP15 can agree to this at the very least, even if they are stuck on all else climate change related.
It is refreshing to see this public education agenda
Agriculture Policy – Beyond Mitigation and Adaption Sunday, December 13, 2009
By Rasmus Einarsson The heated debate on agriculture and food security has become one of the most central at COP15. The discussion must not only cover the relationship between climate change and agriculture methods, but also consider food security and the livelihoods of farmers, transportation and storage systems, and much more. Seeing the bigger picture? This was initially demonstrated at the side event co-hosted by the Danish ministry of agriculture, FAO and IFAD, where top level representatives made strong statements that food and agriculture systems must become more localized, stabilized, environmentally sound and less oil-dependent, while increasing yields and minimizing costs. Danish minister of agriculture, Eva Kjer Hansen, also suggested that the social and environmental multi-functionality of agriculture must be recognized as many of the world’s poor and 1 billion hungry are peasant farmers. Although never referred to during the debate, many of the above arguments are in agreement with conclusions from the heavy-weight 2008 IAASTD report “Agriculture at a Crossroads” 1, the result of a three-year process involving 900 participants and 110 countries.
opening national agricultural markets to international competition before basic institutions and infrastructure are in place can undermine the agricultural sector, with long-term negative effects for poverty, food security and the environment.” Still, Danish minister Hansen stated that she identifies increased free trade as a very important solution, without any further explanation. And US Secretary of Agriculture, Thomas Vilsack, was asked if he sees any opposition between the farm subsidies used in the USA and the needs of the world’s 1 billion hungry. Mr. Vilsack responded that the US is ready to review the support they give to farmers, under the condition that other countries act to open up their food markets more. Then he rapidly moved on to emphasize the importance of proper post-harvest storage, transportation and other handling for alleviation of world hunger.
However, many of the actual solutions proposed are debatable, such as the use of biochar, irrigation infrastructure investments, increased free trade, “seed technology”, etc. As stated in the IAASTD report, “[t]here is growing concern that
Klimaforum: People’s climate summit Many of the fundamental systemic changes requested by scientists and activists are obviously hard to realize, and it’s not hard to see the dilemmas faced by politicians. A more holistic debate is held at Klimaforum, where the economicpolitical reality of implementation is less imminent. For example, Vandana Shiva, Debbie Barker et alia argued against genetically modified crops as a climate and food security solution. But it was
1
Executive Summary of the Synthesis Report, International Assessment of Agricultural Knowledge, Science and Technology for Development. 2008. Available online: http://www.agassessment.org
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pointed out during this session that farmer-led seed development most likely will not drive economic growth the same way large seed companies can. I wonder, naturally: Who would benefit if the control over seeds was moved closer to farmers?
The IBI answered that economizing carbon sequestration is far too important and that biochar could be a very good part of the CDM. My impression is that the IBI has contradicting arguments: On one hand, moving slowly is said to be important, and the incentives for biochar are already there for farmers. On the other hand, inclusion of biochar in the CDM is an incentive for foreign investors, which are likely to use a more rational large-scale approach. There is a risk of increased land-grabbing and large-scale projects with lacking concern for social and environmental issues. In conclusion, both social-environmental effects and additionality details should be investigated before including biochar in the CDM.
Biochar and the CDM A final example is the debate over biochar for climate mitigation. The International Biochar Initiative (IBI) hosted a side-event at COP15 where the panel made two things clear: 1) the biochar debate must become more factual and sciencedriven, and 2) we need systems perspectives and not only look at details. I could not agree more. Panellist Johannes Lehmann (Cornell University) also presented a â&#x20AC;&#x153;Biochar 101â&#x20AC;? outlining the basic idea: charcoal addition to degraded soil increases soil fertility and water retention while sequestering carbon if the charcoal is made from biomass. The panellists also presented some small-scale, community-integrated projects where biochar is successfully produced with economic benefit for farmers.
Leaving COP15: What next? Some very important debate on agriculture and climate is going on at COP15. Regardless of what decisions are made for future mitigation and adaption in this sector, we will probably ask ourselves in a decade or two: Were we thoughtful enough? And were we forceful enough?
A biochar sceptic in the audience was happy to see the focus on small-scale, slow-moving projects with farmer participation, and asked if the IBI is even ready to take a clear stance against including biochar in the Clean Development Mechanism.
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COP15 and the disappointing political outcome inspire me to work more and harder with civil society, youth and entrepreneurs. What if we continue living and inventing the solutions for a ambitious and inspiring green future? The time of waiting on the politics is over. Letâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s work together with innovative sustainable enterprises, social entrepreneurs, civil society and youth. (Pieter Ploeg)
What if we do not show up at COP16, because we are to busy working on the solution, together with the business community? (Pieter Ploeg)
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The battle of minds Sunday, December 6, 2009
By Christopher Baan
picture of pros vs. cons will keep you in the illusion that both sides are potentially right. This, according to Gore, will have ‘disastrous consequences’ if real action is delayed. The ‘battle of minds’ is also reflected in the increasing information pollution, spread of confusing messages on the internet and the extraordinary growth of more and less scientific articles. Most worryingly, people with the highest responsibility to act upon climate change (e.g. policy-makers) are usually the ones most heavily dependent on expert knowledge.
New perspectives on responses to climate change No public issue or scientific discipline is as confusing and complex as climate change is currently. In the wake of potential catastrophes, we are trying to grapple with the alignment of widely opposing discourses, seemingly impossible to unite in a world ridden by confusion and uncertainty. The recent ‘Climate Gate’ has offered us a glimpse of the sad state of the debate around climate change. It is a debate increasingly backed by ‘confused climate sceptics’ on the one hand (according to sir Nicholas Stern) and emotional arguments referring to issues as survival of humanity, on the other.
Still, the main battle in climate change seems to be about the hearts and minds, about a profoundly flawed picture of our world and society. What does such a persisting debate about such a complex issue teach us about the ability of humanity to respond to highly uncertain and complex problems? Climate change is one of the most serious and urgent earth-system challenges, overarching tens of different discplines and impacting people around the world in all walks of life. But ultimately, climate change poses us for an even more fundamental challenge:
The ultimate issue might be survival, indeed, but the issues at stake are so daunting and complex, that it takes more than negotiations, to align both sides of a debate mostly fuelled by opposing worldviews. It’s too simple to argue as if the debate is only one of white, conservative Republicans squeezing the last dollars out of the drops of oil, versus undernourished Africans who are the ones most impacted by the consequences of climate change. It might be a White Man’s Burden, but one which is more fundamental and more persistent than anything we’ve had until now.
To change the way we see ourselves in the world, and to change the way humans respond to global challenges that cause a danger for their own survival as humankind.
According to many insiders, the debate is flawed, and more importantly, mainstream media still pictures both sides of the debate as if there was a real debate, with pros and cons, out of the principle of balanced representation. Al Gore recently stated in a BBC Interview that he is irritated by the way mainstream media picture the climate skeptics as a accountable counter-voice in the debate, while in science, the debate is settled for years already. And to continue showing this
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Climate change poses a serious challenge for our ability to respond collectively to global problems, and thus we need new forms of multilateral negotiation and collaboration. The stalemates in recent climate negotiations show that current climate regimes are flawed and need to be reinvented, rather than optimised.
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Climate scoreboard Climate scoreboard tracks Copenhagen progress in real time with embeddable widget. The Climate Scoreboard is a new, easily accessible tool for understanding and tracking the global climate change negotiations in real time. This new online resource â&#x20AC;&#x201D; an embeddable widget, a short video, and a set of graphs and a table â&#x20AC;&#x201D; reports, on a daily basis, the long-term climate implications of proposals to the United Nations negotiations in Copenhagen. The Scoreboard team will follow the negotiations in Copenhagen from day to day, and continue tracking progress in the months following the conference, addressing the question: if current proposals for emissions reductions were implemented how much future warming would be avoided? (Thanks to ClimateProgress)
Most people on the planet are poor, young and ambitious (Alex Steffen, Worldchanging.com)
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Many thanks to Side events co-organizers and affiliates
COP15 Working group
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Theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re not done yet. Neither are we. (TckTckTck)
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