Me, with my badge (finally), looking a bit disheveled from the day's travels
If anything has characterized the pace of climate negotiations this year, it has been "delays". That seems to have extended to my travel as well. I departed Washington, DC on the evening of Saturday, December 5, during the first major "snowstorm" of the year. (I grew up in Buffalo - DC doesn't get real snowstorms.) It turns out IAD only has four de-icing trucks, so it takes them a while to get to everyone. The KLM flight crew was quite good during the wait, giving regular updates on our place in line. At one point the purser turned on the in-flight video system and wished us a "pleasant waiting time", which I found somewhat amusing, but had to admit that it did help tone down the frustration. I wrote a few emails, updated my Facebook status ("Thomas is IAD-AMS-CPH") and called some friends before deciding I should take advantage of the opportunity to catch up on sleep.
We managed to make up some time in the air (or rather, we probably just used up the slack time in the schedule) and landed in Amsterdam about an hour late. Unfortunately, that was too late for my bag (which they made me gate check in DC) to make it on to my connection to Copenhagen. I'm still waiting for my clothes. The bag arrived at the airport, but it hasn't been delivered yet. Thank God I remembered to take my toothbrush out.
Copenhagen is buzzing about COP15. The airport is filled with ads and posters about climate change. Coke has even jumped on the bandwagon with flowery billboards that say "Hopenhaven" which I think captures the sentiment. People really want something to come out of this COP, and there is a palpable sense of "now or never" in terms of dealing with global climate change.
The conference organizers have done a great job with transportation - there is a special COP15 shuttle to take people from the airport to the Bella Center (where the conference is being held) and the hotels downtown. The hotels that are farther away (like mine) are all within 1 hour of the Bella Center by public transport. In addition, the organizers have provided all the participants with complimentary unlimited transit passes good for the duration of the conference. (The IEEE accountants will like the sound of that...) I'm a 30-minute ride on the S-train from downtown Copenhagen, and another 15-minute bus ride to the Bella Center.
Not everyone here is from a national delegation. There are also hordes of students and representatives from various NGOs who are tracking the negotiations and putting on "side events" to brief people on various issues, showcase their projects, etc. I'm told there are some 60,000 extra people in town. (Can't confirm this, though.) I've met several already and had good conversations. People seem optimistic, especially since President Obama has changed his schedule to appear here along with other heads of state, and India unveiled its greenhouse gas intensity targets (25% reduction in emissions per unit GDP by 2020, relative to 2005) which is something of an about-face from previous statements that they would not commit to targets. They also announced today that PM Singh will attend the conference. This completes targets and head-of-state participation from the "Big 4" - US, EU, China, and India - who will be key to getting a deal done. Also keep an eye on Russia, Brazil, Indonesia, South Africa, and other large developing countries (some have already released their targets.)
I also met a Deputy Minister from a developing country while waiting in line for my badge. (At some point I will have to write a post about waiting in line - a UN conference is a great place to see the diversity of cultural attitudes about queueing...) She was very friendly and we had a pleasant conversations, but did make it a point to give me a (friendly) earful about how this whole deal hinges on the US, and that the developing world can't afford another round of dashed hopes. In many ways this is true, since the United States' past reluctance to act has given others cover to delay action themselves. However, some developing nations are asking the developed world to cut emissions 40% by 2020, which is what some say is now needed to avoid the worst consequences of climate change. IMHO, the political reality in the US simply doesn't make that a possibility, at least at this moment. I see US legislation as a step in the right direction, but just one step in what will be a long journey.
It's coming upon midnight here in Copenhagen, so I had best get to bed. Tomorrow starts early with a meeting at 8am.
Posted By: Thomas Lee @ 10:42 PM |