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Day 1 - "Let's get to work, let's get it DONE."
 The Danish Girls Choir performs for the COP15 opening ceremony
The COP got its official start today with a relatively simple opening ceremony. It started with a a short video featuring a young girl who goes to bed in a typical Western middle-class home, and wakes up in the middle of a climate change nightmare - her home is now in a desert, with flash floods and raging storms. The message, undoubtedly, was that we must act on climate change to save the planet for future generations. This was followed by a musical performance from the Danish Girls Choir, accompanied by a trumpet and harp. It was a light, airy piece, seemingly meant to both relax and inspire. Probably a good thing after the more jarring opening video.
Then came opening speeches from Danish PM Lars Løkke Rassmussen, Copenhagen Mayor Ritt Bjerregaard, IPCC Chair Dr. Rajendra Pachuri, UNFCCC Executive Secretary Yvo de Boer, the President of COP14 (who's name I didn't quite catch), and Connie Hedegaard, Danish Minister for COP15. She was also named President of COP15.
There was a notable sense of urgency in all of the speeches - the need for swift and comprehensive action was a consistent theme. The time for detailed negotiations is VERY short. Staff-level negotiators have 6 days to iron out major points to bring to ministerial-level delegates, who arrive early next week. The ministers then have two days to decide which options to present to their heads of state or government. This is not a lot of time considering the large number of issues that need to be sorted out.
There is also a sense that the political momentum is with us, and failure to reach an agreement at COP15 or soon thereafter will mean that action will be postponed for several years. I think Connie Hedegaard put it best when she said "Let's get to work, let's get it DONE."
 Dr. Pachauri, Yvo de Boer, PM Rasmussen, and Mayor Bjerregaard at the head table
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Posted By: Thomas Lee @ 12:20 AM |