climate change

We thought it unfair that among the Heads of State invited to the Queen's dinner in Copenhagen, that a representative of the whole planet wasn't invited. Earth needed a voice, it needed representation. So we sent two to crash the party...

Hours before the Copenhagen climate summit comes to a close, the future of our planet lies in the hands of world leaders that have just breezed into town. And somehow, instead of getting down to the nitty gritty, they were dining with the Queen.

With the Copenhagen talks going nowhere fast, a leaked document has caused some excitement here in the Greenpeace office and throughout the campaigning fraternity here in the Danish capital. Actually, that's probably an understatement, and Greenpeace ED Kumi is calling this "the single most important piece of paper in the world today".

In another repost from the Climate Rescue weblog - Jess sums up the political dynamics that are being played out in Copenhagen, and explains why a positive intervention from Barak Obama could still swing the balance in favour of a successful outcome, even at this late stage...

Last week, I posted a wrap up email of the first day of the negotiations that I received from a friend. I remember feeling completely overwhelmed at the idea of trying to summarize that first day and relieved to see someone had already done it in a way that was so easy to understand. I found myself in the same position yesterday when the same friend sent an email with his outline of where things stand at the negotiations. I didn't think it possible but this email gives a short account of the very complicated process so far.

As I write this, we are down to three days here at the Copenhagen climate talks. And I am afraid to say that there is little reason to be encouraged. Everybody has card to put on the table but no one is playing.

This blog by Mike Gaworecki was originally posted on the Climate Rescue weblog earlier today.

All week long, the Fresh Air Center has been a really valuable place for me and Jamie to come work, especially now that we're not allowed into the conference center. Run by Tcktcktck.org, the FAC is a space for NGO and independent bloggers to work and coordinate messages.

Dear Mr President,

Now is the time to give hope more than a voice. As you depart for the UN Climate Summit in Copenhagen, I feel compelled to express my hope and desire for the role you will play when you join the other heads of state in reaching an agreement to avert catastrophic climate change: the role you must play in keeping hope alive for many millions of people around the world. 

My Name is Kumi Naidoo, I am the International Executive Director of Greenpeace, I am also chair the Global Coalition for Climate Action (www.tcktcktck.org) and serve as a co-chair of the Global Call to Action Against Poverty (www.whiteband.org). But, most of all, like you, I am a global citizen. I am also a child of Africa.

Since early last week, rumours have been flying round the Copenhagen negotiations about what would happen as we got closer to the arrival of the heads of state. Then a couple of days ago it was confirmed: access the conference centre would become more and more restricted for non-governmental organisations such as Greenpeace, and today was the start of those restrictions. We only have a few ID badges to go around the team and we'll have fewer with each passing day.

With all the headlines about what the world will be like if we don't get a grip on climate change - how hot it will be by 2050, how high the sea levels will rise, that sort of thing - there's always an element of uncertainty. The top line figures you see in the press are usually only one of a range of figures calculated by climate modelling, producing a range of potential outcomes based on possible changes to our behaviour and the environment.

What's often neglected is a risk assessment: comparing the probability of a particular outcome against the effect it will have. Our perception of risk is very skewed - we'll panic about things like swine flu (which the chances of us dying from a very low) but we'll quite happily drive around in cars where the probability of dying in a road accident are comparatively higher.

As part of an estimated 100,000-strong demonstration, Greenpeace campaigners, activists and volunteers marched through Copenhagen on Saturday to the Bella Centre, site of the UN climate summit, demanding a fair, ambitious and legally binding agreement at the COP15 negotiations. This video by Michael Nagasaki captures some of the atmosphere of the event.

"You know," Joss said to me in the other day, "one of the most important meetings of this summit isn't happening in Copenhagen. It's happening in Brussels where the heads of state are getting together."

As one of the political campaigning whizz-kids here in the Greenpeace camp, he knows what he's talking about and rather than me paraphrasing on his behalf, watch Joss's short vlog above to see what he means.

Slightly removed from the organised chaos of the Bella Centre, the Climate Rescue Station is proving to be an oasis of calm and tranquility, a place of relaxation and reflection. Perfect, then, to host a new photographic exhibition to illustrate the impacts of climate change around the world.