CYDaily from COP22 -- Report back from Day 1

Details: Published on Wednesday, 09 November 2016 13:45; Written by editor

PAOV--

November 7th -- Day 1 of COP22

Le français ci-bas

Just days after the Paris Agreement entered into effect, and about a month before Justin Trudeau is expected to approve the Kinder Morgan pipeline, 17 young folks from across Canada have arrived at the COP 22 climate change negotiations in Marrakech, Morocco.

We’re here to hold the Liberal government to their promises—and to push for a justice-based transition to a fossil free economy, for a path forward that respects indigenous rights and prioritizes the needs of the most vulnerable.

The United Nations is dubbing this year’s negotiations the “action COP” and so much is on the table: a near-last chance for a chance at a 1.5C world, how the Paris Agreement will be strengthened to take us off a disaster course, how rich and powerful countries will chip in to do their fair share, and more. We’ll be keeping you posted with daily updates, starting with our jam packed day one --

The Sun Does Not Ignore a Village Just Because it is Small

The above is an African proverb used by a speaker today in Opening Plenary to remind those present that those nations most vulnerable to climate change must not be forgotten during these negotiations.

When COP opened today in the main plenary hall, it was with with an air of reserved optimism. While many who spoke referenced the successful Paris Agreement, much of the conversation generated discussed the strides which must still be taken to ensure a 1.5C world. The fact that this COP is an African COP was referenced multiple times, and stressed by all speakers. Statements varied from those who saw this as the African commitment to climate action, while others used the opportunity to highlight the fact that “The wealthiest countries live as if there were three planets, the poorest, as if there were none”.

Small solar powered LED lamps, constructed to resemble Ethiopian flowers were left on each seat in the hall and were intended to highlight the solutions and the potential held in the next two weeks of negotiations. The fact that some members of the CYD were a little turned off by the inflatable smiling planet logo which accompanied the lights, might just be a testament to our particular brand of millennial cynicism.

They Are No Chiefs of Mine

We also sat in on the first Canadian Stakeholder Briefing of COP22 -- a time when the Canadian negotiating team sits down with other delegates from Canada, provides vague updates and takes questions. CYDelegate Sadie-Phoenix Lavoie’s asked a question about how Canada's commitment to long-term decarbonization will emphasize inclusion, equity and in particular, Indigenous Rights. Below is an excerpt from her blog post about her first experience in the Canadian Stakeholders Briefing room:

"Clearly this is a solid indication that something isn’t right here in terms of Indigenous rights, in particular when referring to UNDRIP. I could be jumping the gun, but if Indigenous rights were such a priority for this government, they would have taken more pride in bringing up anything Indigenous rights-related as much as they are “carbon pricing.” But, who am I kidding, clearly these stakeholder meetings aren’t transparent for Indigenous folks within Canada"

Read the rest of Sadie’s account here.

The CYD on the Small Screen

With much fanfare and great pomp we, the Canadian Youth Delegation, launched our fundraising video on Monday. If you’ve yet to see it (or share it on your social media accounts!) please do so. Not only will it help us with our fundraising efforts, but you might learn a thing or two about what we get up to at COP, and why we think the work we do is important. Our readers should note that the video itself was developed, designed, and crafted by CYDelegate Lousie Lyman alongside a team of incredible volunteers from the Halifax area.

Digging Into the Details -- or Digging up Loopholes?

At today’s Canadian briefing, chief negotiator Louise Metivier shared Canada’s priorities for COP 22, concluding with: hammering out the details of Article 6 of the Paris Agreement. Sounds boring? Could be super important. Article 6 could make it possible for Canada to fall short of our Harper-era 30% emissions reduction target, paying for somebody else to (in theory...) make up the difference.

We know Canada will have to hit zero emissions eventually, but international market mechanisms could create sneaky avenues to postpone action (or try to approve Kinder Morgan within our Paris Agreement targets?!). Will Justin Trudeau continue to procrastinate on deep carbon emissions reduction and pass the hard work down the line for our generation to deal with? Is his government hoping to continue to dodge Canada’s global responsibility by paying poorer communities to make the cuts for us? We hope this is not the intention, but you can bet the CYD will be closely following this closely over the next two weeks of negotiation.

Media round-up:

Jennifer Deol’s op-ed in Rabble: “Marrakech marks a turning point: it’s time for Canada to commit to climate leadership.”
Christa on the homepage of U of T Scarborough: “We’re inheriting all the problems, and we’re often dismissed as not caring enough, knowing enough or being realistic enough. I’m excited to use my voice as a young person at this conference, and join the chorus calling for climate justice.”
Claris in Ricochet: “In other words, building this pipeline would mean a failure on Canada’s part to honour the historic Paris Agreement, which was recently ratified and officially comes into force.”
Sam in Metro: “They’ll say that and at the same time plan to build transnational pipelines that will last 60 years. We can’t do both,” Harrison said, stressing his point about what he considers false promises.

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FR.

November 7th -- Premier journée de COP22

Rien qu’une semaine après que l'accord de Paris est entré en vigueur, et un mois avant que le premier ministre Justin Trudeau rendra sa décision sur l’expansion du pipeline Kinder Morgan, 17 jeunes de partout au Canada sont arrivés à la COP 22 à Marrakech, Maroc.

Nous sommes ici pour tenir le gouvernement libéral à ces promesses-- pour demander une transition énergétique fondé sur les principes de justice, qui respecte les droits des autochtones et qui répond aux besoins des populations les plus vulnérables.

La COP 22 représente une des dernières chances pour mettre à l’action la limite sur les gazes à effet de serres et pour les pays riches de prendre la mesure de leurs responsabilités historiques face au réchauffement climatique. A cet effet nous vous A cet effet nous vous enverrons des mises à jour quotidiennes, commencent aujourd’hui --

Le soleil n'ignore pas un village juste parce qu'il est petit

Cela est un proverbe africain utilisé par un orateur aujourd'hui lors de la session plénière d'ouverture -- un petit rappel qu’il faut centrer ces négociations sur les pays les plus vulnérables aux changements climatiques

Lorsque la COP a ouvert aujourd'hui, ce fut avec un air d'optimisme réservé. Alors que plusieurs ont faites référence au succès de l’accord de Paris, la grande partie de la conversation était centrée sur le travail qui reste pour assurer un monde de 1.5C. Le fait que cette COP soit en afrique a été stresser à plusieurs reprises, une occasion pour mettre en évidence le fait que «les pays les plus riches vivent comme s'il y avait trois planètes, les plus pauvres, comme s'il n'y en avait déjà plus".

Ce ne sont pas mes chefs

Un extrait du récent blog de la déléguée Sadie-Phoenix Lavoie à propos de sa première expérience dans la salle de briefing canadiens à la COP 22:

Il est clair que cela est une indication que quelque chose ne va pas en termes de des droits des autochtones, notamment en ce qui concerne la Déclaration des Nations unies sur les droits des peuples autochtones. Si les droits des autochtones étaient une telle priorité pour ce gouvernement, ils auraient pris plus de fierté à mettre en oeuvre une vision pour les droits des peuples autochtones autant que sur le prix du charbon. Mais, de qui je me trompe, clairement ces réunions ne sont pas faites pour être transparent pour les peuples autochtones au Canada.

Lire le reste du compte de Sadie ici.

La DJC sur le petit écran

Nous vous invitons à soutenir la DJC et de partager cette vidéo avec vos réseaux. Dans un espace exclusif et souvent inaccessible comme celui de l’ONU, nous travaillons dur pour amplifier les voix des jeunes et des sous-représentées, et de se battre pour un avenir vivable pour tous. On tient à remercier notre talentueuse déléguée Louise Lyman et ces bénévoles pour ce beau travail.

Les détails des négo en profondeur

Au briefing de Canada, la négociateur en chef Louise Métivier a partagé les priorités du Canada pour la COP 22: finaliser les détails de l'article 6 de l'Accord de Paris. Cela pourrait être super important. L’article 6 va déterminer si le Canada réalise l’objectif de réduction de GES de 30% ou non. Les mécanismes du marché de carbone international pourrait permettre au Canada de retarder l'action, ou d’essayer de construire le pipeline Kinder Morgan tout en promettant d’atteindre les objectifs de l'Accord de Paris. Il reste a voir si le gouvernement du Canada se mettront en avant dans ces négociations.

La DJC Media round-up:

Canadian Youth Delegation
www.ourclimate.ca
fb: Canadian Youth Delegation
t: @CYD-DJC | #COP22CAN
insta: our climate

The Canadian Youth Climate Coalition · Halifax, NS B3K 2B6, Canada
You can also keep up with Canadian Youth Delegation on Twitter or Facebook.