Reflections From COP27 in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt
Ruth Hollands (USA)
NDC Equity Project Program Manager
Even weeks after COP27, I can’t stop thinking about all the incredible things Care About Climate was able to participate in. Although my personal experience as a youth delegate left a lot to be desired, I’m grateful that the global community is finally starting to see youth and children as crucial stakeholders in the climate space. Seeing purposeful intergenerational support across the board means we’re paving the way for future generations to become the climate leaders they deserve to be.
Although my activism ranges from themes in gender equality, youth and children representation, and NDCs, I’m elated to see that we are making progress in these areas, even if it’s one conference at a time. Fortunately the fight goes beyond COP27. With the incredible outcomes in Loss and Damages funding, we see the global community headed in the right direction in terms of accountability and action, and I look forward to pushing the boundaries that need to be pushed to make sure we build an equitable future for all.
Muskan Lodhi (India)
Social Media and Communications Manager
I went to the conference with the excitement and hope of witnessing important climate policies being made in real time, since it was the first time that I was attending a climate conference. Within the overwhelming spaces of the conference, I was disappointed to see a large number of pavilions which, in my opinion, served as distractions from the real work happening within the negotiation rooms (which were themselves physically distanced from civil society who were largely involved near the pavilions). Additionally, visiting in the second week and the lack of access to understand negotiations pre-conference was detrimental in getting the most out of it. Understanding the UNFCCC processes and the terminologies in negotiation rooms can be complicated, which makes participation of civil society one step further away.
The saving grace of the conference, for me, was the camaraderie I experienced with the youth involved in climate action. The excitement and passion to be a bigger part of the change was palpable. I could also witness a lack in representation of local climate action being brought into these spaces due to lack of accessibility and knowledge about bigger platforms which can co-benefit from experiences of people who are bringing change on a local level. If I had to name a few of my highlights, they’d be as follows:
People’s Plenary : It was the most moving and powerful event I had the privilege to attend in the 5 days I was at Sharm-el-Sheikh. Almost 500 people chanting in unison after moving speeches was a sight to behold.
Activism: Although it was difficult for activists to organize within the premises without permissions, there were several movements like the Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty which made their presence felt. Vegan Policy distributing 100 vegan meals everyday sent out a strong message towards veganism and the need and importance of a plant-based diet. The Children and Youth Pavilion was a hub of youth camaraderie and inclusivity among passionate climate changemakers. The establishment of Loss and Damage funding facility was definitely a plus, however the lack of increasing ambition to limit GHGs for achieving the 1.5 C goal was disheartening to say the least.
I left the conference with an understanding that I’ve much to learn and be prepared to contribute meaningfully in a conference as important as the Climate COP. I hope to see more support for young people to participate in important and get connected
Mujidah Ajibola (Nigeria)
COP Training Program Manager
COP27 has come and gone but my expectations for COP27 were largely unmet. As a citizen of a developing country, loss and damage and keeping 1.5 alive through fossil fuel phase out were top of mind for me as COP drew nearer.
I was so disappointed (but not surprised) that a lot of countries, developing and developed, failed to vote for the phasing out of fossil fuels, despite over 80 countries agreeing on the need to do so. It shows me how much capitalism has taken away a large part of morality in our society. What is more disheartening is that representatives of big oil companies were right in the negotiating rooms as negotiators! It's shocking that people whose cases are being decided also form part of the jury!!
What I found more disappointing was the failure of African countries to leverage the “home advantage” they had to advance the continent’s interest on the non-proliferation of fossil fuels. Africa has contributed less than every other continent to climate change, yet we face the worst impacts of the scourge. One would expect our leaders to use the opportunity of the “African COP” to clamp down on fossil fuels and mining companies on the continent, especially the loss and damage issues, but this did not happen at the expected scale. I am beginning to ask what is more important to African leaders: the safety and well-being of the people or the funds they would generate (and largely embezzle) from the fossil fuel companies?
The Sharm El-Sheikh Conference was not all doom and gloom though.
The Sharm el-Sheikh loss and damage funding facility was established after a lot of pressure from developing countries, indigenous communities, and young civil society players. While celebrating the acknowledgement of loss and damage support, l look forward to the structure, transparent implementation, and governance of the finance facility.
I learned about the importance of providing standard global indicators for both formal and non-formal climate change and communication programmes for achieving universal climate education.
I was honored to speak at the Young Science Voices for Climate Action event, where I emphasized the need to communicate complex scientific terms into simple ways for people to understand. People act when they are informed, nothing takes place in a vacuum. For example, it would be useful to break down IPCC, UNEP & other technical documents into snippets and short form content because of the diminishing attention span.
My biggest takeaway is that hard work and relationship building takes time, but pays off (if done well) in the end. I am optimistic that if we all can look past the irregularities and keep working in our spaces while mounting pressure on governments and big business, we would continue to make progress.
Gabriela Taveras (Dominican Republic)
NDC Equity Project Volunteer
Before joining CAC, I thought there was no place for me in the climate space.
Prior to attending COP, I thought there was no way for me to contribute meaningfully to overwhelming negotiation spaces.
In the weeks before, I thought I would be disappointed at yet another heavily exclusionary space, where climate justice continued to be eschewed.
However, COP27 surprised me in more ways than one. Not only was it my first COP, but upon seeing the first ever Children and Youth, as well as Indigenous Peoples, pavilions, I knew this year would be different, and I couldn’t be more thrilled to be part of it, even if it was in a small capacity. COP27 felt like a space where my current job and ongoing graduate certificate studies (on tropical forest conservation, restoration and sustainable use) came full circle.
Seeing groups that have historically been marginalized occupy more meaningful spaces in the world’s most important climate advocacy platform gave me hope. In the past year, we have seen the consequences of not engaging all stakeholders in comprehensive ways: worsening existing conflicts, driving resources to local elites, exacerbating land tenure claims, and jeopardizing landscape survival. To avoid, or at the very least mitigate the possibilities of, these scenarios, COP helped remind us of some important lessons: actively engage communities as agents of change, draw on different types of evidence and knowledge, and question dominant discourses. Furthermore, it's important to address preexisting social and historical contexts, and to acknowledge the diversity of realities and challenges within and between stakeholders.
The first step to achieving this step successfully is recognising the heterogeneity between and within the groups that will benefit from the project. Subsequently, we must see communities as repositories of knowledge and active contributors, rather than receptacles of assistance. Some of the social factors to take into account are race, gender and religion, for example, as they can overtly and inadvertently shape dynamics within households and in public.
Observing these dynamics at play, and having the opportunity to speak at my very first COP panel, titled: “Climate Policies and Intergenerational Equity: Amplifying meaningful child adolescent and youth engagement in NDCs,” made for a humbling experience, especially considering that this year’s COP ended with the highly anticipated, and oft-demanded, loss and damage mechanism, which is of the utmost importance for the world’s most vulnerable countries to the effects of climate change. While funding streams and institutionalization are pending, this is a remarkable step towards acknowledging how climate change affects countries, such as my home, the Dominican Republic, differently.