On COP15

As you are reading this, policymakers and activists from around the world are congregating at the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, UNFCCC, in Copenhagen, also called COP15, to lay the groundwork for a global treaty to succeed the Kyoto Protocol, Dec. 7-18. Though many countries have not met their targets for greenhouse gas, or GHG, emissions reductions, most notable was the failure of the United States to ratify the treaty back in 1997. This time around, with a new, more progressive administration, there is hope that the United States will indeed take on a leadership position in the global struggle against climate change.

However, with a climate bill stalled in the Senate and the world waiting for the U.S. to commit to aggressive GHG emission goals, a binding international treaty is unlikely. Perhaps President Obama can use his uncanny ability to forge alliances and create coalitions while speaking at COP15 in order to breach some of the divides between developing and industrialized nations, or between the highest emitters and those most vulnerable to climate impacts. Nevertheless, if such a deal is not forged this year, COP15 will catalyze a worldwide interest in climate and energy issues before the next UNFCCC a year from now.

In light of this momentous conference, hundreds of youth groups from around the world have mobilized to lobby their leaders for action. Because we are likely to experience some of its early impacts within our lifetime, we feel the threat of climate change most acutely and are committed to finding a solution. As members of this generation we have formed our own small delegation. Allow us to present ourselves. We are recipients of either a Transatlantic Renewable Energy Fellowship­—TREF—or a Robert Bosch Foundation Fellowship, and are accredited through the Agents of Change program organized by SustainUS, a nonprofit organization advancing sustainable development and youth empowerment in the United States.

One of our principal goals at the conference will be to attend many events in which innovative strategies for climate change mitigation and adaptation will be presented, and to make lasting connections with activists from around the world. This will include learning about schemes to combat deforestation, water scarcity, transportation emissions, and the spread of diseases.
As recent graduates, we understand that many college students will not be able to attend the conference because of finals, but there are other ways to be involved. That’s why another goal of ours is to provide digestible and up-to-date information on COP15 as it happens for the general public. We have already begun compiling a blog at http://renewableadvocates.wordpress.com, which chronicles events leading up to COP15 and thoughts and plans for the summit.

Some of you will remember Eric Holder’s address at our Commencement ceremony last May. He talked about how formative his years at Columbia were. But most notably, he exhorted us to view this “difficult time for our country” as an “opportunity” to “set your sights beyond the careers that seem to offer the greatest financial reward to ones that will reward your soul and enrich our world.” This conference will not be a quick fix to the climate threats we face. On the contrary, it will require years of advocacy, policymaking, deal brokering, and investment.

So I exhort you, fellow Columbians, if you are not already involved in environmental activities, to view this conference as an opportunity to become informed. Read about the negotiations, the proposed solutions, and the setbacks. And don’t stop there. Engage in local and national politics, and voice your concerns about the consequences of climate change for our generation.

The author is a Columbia University alumna. She is currently working for the regional planning agency of Greater Stuttgart, where she is studying regional climate change vulnerability. Members of her group include Peden Harris, Michael Machala, Bridget Wandelt, Emily McGlynn, and Alison Brown on the TREF fellowship, as well as Bosch past and present fellows Brooke Heaton and Brian Marrs.