Was Copenhagen a Game Changer?

I have read a lot about Copenhagen being a major disppointment overall; however some interesting things did come out of the summit (Brazil's commitment). As two people who attended, do you think that this type of summit is effective and a viable means to reach our end goal, or is it capitalism wrapped in green paper?

Futhermore, as ADR professionals, how could we better utilize these types of opportunites to reach our goal? I am worried that we are shooting for the stars when the problem is at our feet. I really liked that you pointed out that we need to focus on the people. I have felt for a long time that in order to create real change, you have to begin in the village. Clearly, the attempt to impact policy (as you said, treaties and global commitments have failed) on a governmental scale has been ineffective. I am also worried that we are applying capitalist principles to people who are just trying to survive.

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Permalink Reply by WILLELLA K. SCOGGIN on August 5, 2010 at 10:45pm

I agree with you that we should begin in the village. I would like to know more about Dr. Cloke comments on training mediators to work in small groups to get the message out. I clearly understand what you are saying that we are applying capitalist principle to people who are just trying to survive but if we talked with these individuals and learned their interests (interest-based), don't you think that we can chip away at the boulder that we are trying to manage.

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Permalink Reply by Morgan Rogers on August 5, 2010 at 11:47pm

I think the problem lies in the issue of equality between parties. You question whether we are trying to apply capitalist principle to who people who are just trying to survive. I have the same concern, how do we know what the true interests, needs and motivations of these people are if they have no representation? These are the majority of people affected by climate change, they are the largest population in the world, they live in 3rd world environments that focus on survival not quality of life or the future of life. These are the people that need to be heard, and more importantly we need to give them the ability to facilitate change by improving their lives. Hopefully through educating them and giving them a voice in this discussion we stand to learn their needs and interests, in doing this we could work to shape our efforts around their real world experiences. In doing this I believe it is possible to actually affect climate change, by helping to educate and improve the lives of the under represented and impoverished millions around the world we stand to improve the affect these populations have on the climate.

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Permalink Reply by Kim Hubble on August 6, 2010 at 2:50pm

Sarah,

I'm interested to learn where you've read about the overall disappointment in Copenhagen, could you share some sources? I'm interested in this because sometimes while people directly involved in an event think it was the "best event ever" public opinion is the opposite so I'd like to find out more about this opinion you've noticed.

Thanks!

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Permalink Reply by sarah wonders on August 7, 2010 at 8:10pm

Hey Kim!

Well, I am about to give away my political sensibilites (if they aren't already obvious), but here are my sources. :-)

http://www.treehugger.com/files/2009/12/copenhagen-fail.php
http://www.one.org/blog/2009/12/16/npr-reports-on-african-leaders-i...
http://www.one.org/blog/category/copenhagen/?aux=25
http://blogs.nationalgeographic.com/blogs/thegreenguide/christine-d...

clearly treehugger is a biased site, but I enjoy this blog because it covers a broad spectrum of environmental issues. let me know what you think, even if it is not in this forum.

Kim Hubble said:

Sarah,

I'm interested to learn where you've read about the overall disappointment in Copenhagen, could you share some sources? I'm interested in this because sometimes while people directly involved in an event think it was the "best event ever" public opinion is the opposite so I'd like to find out more about this opinion you've noticed.

Thanks!

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Permalink Reply by sarah wonders on August 7, 2010 at 8:12pm

sorry, these are only a few of my sources. i also read a lot of articles in the economist, cnn.com, and msnbc.com, etc.

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Permalink Reply by Timothy Siemer on August 8, 2010 at 9:03pm

I agree with the what Morgan is saying when she speaks of one of the major issues in this debate is equality between parties. Most of us relate fairly well with people from the rest of the 1st World concerning the issues surrounding climate change. Most of us can have at least a somewhat intelligent conversation on climate change no matter what our beliefs on the issues entail. On the other had how do you explain and educate the majority of the 3rd world on a topic such as climate change. No matter what your thoughts on the war in Afghanistan are; I want to talk about it because the problems we have there relate to the differences between 1st and 3rd world. I think that we can all agree that the US/NATO is involved in what one would consider nation building in Afghanistan. The current strategy is to build Afghanistan into a nation that can support/control itself. If it possessed a functioning government that effectively executed the will of its people then we believe that it would no longer be a haven for criminals and terrorists (or that is the hope). The problem with this plan is that the people of Afghanistan have no concept of a working national government. No concept of what a democracy means. In the same manner these people have no concept of climate change on the grand scale that scientists and 1st world citizens see climate change. How can you affect change for a person who just wants to make sure that their children have food and don't get hacked up by a neighboring warlord. The US is pumping billions of $$ into Afghanistan protecting the people, building schools, hospitals and utilities. It is proving to be a very slow process. In this same manner it would take this sort of effort and investment to teach the third world how to handle climate change. I believe this process would be just as slow regarding climate change. I'm doubting that the 1st world is ready for this sort of commitment and who is to say that the average 3rd world citizen will care, because when it comes down to it you must remember that it is about their interests not ours.