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Tag: COP15

COP15 president Connie Hedegaard resignes

COP15 president Connie Hedegaard resigned this morning. Danish Prime Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen will replace her as head of the Conference.

Hedegaard has maintained herself that nothing dramatic is behind her resignation and that she will continue her work as a negotiator in the COP15 as a special representative of Mr. Lokke Rasmussen. Over 100 heads of States will arrive to Copenhagen for the last three days of negotiations and it is only natural that the Danish Prime Minister takes over the presidency of the Conference at this point, she said.

As the stakes are getting higher only three days being left of the Conference, the political pressure is increasing. Developing countries are not satisfied with the draft layed down by the inductrialized countries and it seems increasingly difficult to get industrialized countries to agree upon Kyoto-like procedure, where developed countries bear the main responsibility of the emission reduction.

December 16, 2009
Civil Society in COP15

So far the major issues around the Copenhagen COP15 have concentrated on the participation of world leaders to one of the biggest gathering in the field of environmental law and politics.

The aim is to reach an agreement on post-Kyoto CO2 emission reduction. Many leading scientists maintain that the world’s CO2 rate has reached dangerous levels and that if nothing is done to reduce the emissions the world will face unprecedented consequences. Legally binding agreement for the world’s leading polluters is inevitably necessary, but it is debatable whether the political will of states is enough to create any change.

In addition to the politicians, Copenhagen has attracted a vast amount of representatives from different fields of civil society. In recent years, many global movements have been created around the action against climate change and many of them have now gathered to Copenhagen. On wednesday a small group of activists from 350 movement demonstrated outside the conference hall demanding fair and legally binding climate deal. Further, members from other global movements, such as Tck and many others are gathering to People’s Climate Summit, an NGO Summit, to draft what they call “A People’s Declaration”.

Despite the huge pressure to seal the deal in Copenhagen, some doubts have been expressed on whether the solutions that are on the table are the best ones and whether they actually solve any of the problems. Just last week one of the leading climate change scientists James Hansen from Nasa’s Goddard Insitute, expressed his doubts on the existing emission trade system comparing it to selling indulgences. He claimed that under the Kyoto mechanisms rich countries buy cheap emission credits from developing countries contributing that way to the existing economic unbalance in the world and some of the worst poverty scenarios. Further, it has been maintained that the Kyoto mechanisms do not actually address the real problem, the CO2 emission, but are one more scam for large corporations to gain money.

Here below you can watch Annie Leonard’s provocative and eye-opening short film on cap and trade, the main mechanism in use to combat CO2 pollution.

[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pA6FSy6EKrM]

December 10, 2009
COP15 Arctic Venue

Arctic Council – During the COP15, December 7- December 18, an Arctic Venue will be held at The North Atlantic Quay in Copenhagen.

In the Venue, Arctic cooperation and the latest Arctic research will be introduced as well as the Arctic reality as it appears today to the Arctic residents presented in various exhibitions, booths, posters, lectures and debates. The Quay itself will be wrapped up as an iceberg, an installation designed by Greenlandic artist Inuk Silis Høegh.

The Venue is open daily during the COP15 between 12.00-18.00.

(image: Arctic Council)

December 4, 2009
COP15 Children’s Climate Forum

en.cop15.dk – As important as it is that the world leaders join together to find solutions to world’s most severe problems, it is also important that the generations that will carry out most of the work in future that contains in the decisions made today get to have a say and share experiences globally.

Children’s Climate Forum, a collaboration between UNICEF, the City of Copenhagen and 22 Danish school classes, brings 165 children from 44 countires to Copenhagen to share their experiences on climate change and the problems their countries are facing due to the global warming. During the Climate Forum the children debate climate solutions, concluding the experience in a resolution that will be handed to Connie Hedegaard, the COP15 President.

December 4, 2009
COP15 Participants from Arctic Countries

Already 65 world leaders have confirmed their attendance to the COP15 in Copenhagen in two weeks. What is, however, still unclear is whether the heads of states of the world’s top three carbon polluters – USA, China and India – will attend.

The Arctic countries are well represented in the climate change conference, since in addition of being hosted by Denmark, the conference will attract JIm Prentice, the Minister of the Environment and Michael Martin, Chief Negotiator and Ambassador for Cliamte Change from Canada and Jóhanna Sigurðardóttir, Prime Minister and Svandís Svavarsdóttir, the Miniter of the Environment from Iceland. In addittion, Finland will send both the Prime Minister Matti Vanhanen and the President Tarja Halonen in association with Paula Lehtomaki, the Minister of the Environment and Jan Vapaavuori, the Minister for Housing and Nordic Cooperation.

Sweden and Norway are yet to announce their delegation, but they are as well expected to send a high-profle delegation.

December 4, 2009
Arctic Venue at Copenhagen Climate Conference

Arctic Council – During the COP15, December 7- December 18, an Arctic Venue will be held at The North Atlantic Quay in Copenhagen.

In the Venue, Arctic cooperation and the latest Arctic research will be introduced as well as the Arctic reality as it appears today to the Arctic residents presented in various exhibitions, booths, posters, lectures and debates. The Quay itself will be wrapped up as an iceberg, an installation designed by Greenlandic artist Inuk Silis Høegh.

The Venue is open daily during the COP15 between 12.00-18.00.

December 2, 2009
Arctic COP15 Participants

Already 65 world leaders have confirmed their attendance to the COP15 in Copenhagen in two weeks. What is, however, still unclear is whether the heads of states of the world’s top three carbon polluters – USA, China and India – will attend.

The Arctic countries are well represented in the climate change conference, since in addition of being hosted by Denmark, the conference will attract JIm Prentice, the Minister of the Environment and Michael Martin, Chief Negotiator and Ambassador for Cliamte Change from Canada and Jóhanna Sigurðardóttir, Prime Minister and Svandís Svavarsdóttir, the Miniter of the Environment from Iceland. In addittion, Finland will send both the Prime Minister Matti Vanhanen and the President Tarja Halonen in association with Paula Lehtomaki, the Minister of the Environment and Jan Vapaavuori, the Minister for Housing and Nordic Cooperation.

Sweden and Norway are yet to announce their delegation, but they are as well expected to send a high-profle delegation.

November 27, 2009
President Obama in COP15

en.cop15.dk – The official homepage of the COP15 announces that the President of the USA Mr. Barack Obama will visit the Conference briefly on December 9, on his way to Oslo to receive the Nobel Peace Prize.

The announcement has been taken with conflicting feelings, some environmental organizations claimin President Obama undermining this way the very important agenda of the Conference. Others say, on the other hand, that his visit, though brief, demonstrates a shift in US climate policy and gives hope that a new binding solution for future emission reduction can be reached in Copenhagen.

November 27, 2009