Naomi Klein Throws Down in Copenhagen..COP15 President Says Failure is Not An Option

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This is Naomi Klein speaking at Klimaforum 2009… Note you will have to turn up the volume to hear her…

Last chance to save the world says Naomi Klein

Klimaforum is not about giving charity to the developing world its about taking responsibility and the industrialized countries cleaning up our own mess, Naomi Klein said speaking at the opening of Klimaforum09.

Speaking at Klimaforum’s opening ceremony in Copenhagen Naomi Klein expressed her doubt whether an ambitious deal would be made at the Bella Centre. “The Bella Center is the biggest case of disaster capitalism. The deal we really need is not even on the table,” she said.

The Canadian author emphasized the importance of civil society to come together to take action on the climate crisis. “There is a difference between a deal and success and Klimaforum09 needs to be the lie detector when the politicians come out with a deal,” she added.

Naomi also had critical words to say about Hopenhagen and its branding extravaganza. “The globe has Siemens logo on the bottom and the whole event is sponsored by Coke. That is a capitalization of hope but Klimaforum09 is where the real hope lies,” she said.

“Klimaforum is not about giving charity to the developing world its about taking responsibility and the industrialized countries cleaning up our own mess,” she concluded.

Klimaforum09 the peoples conference is open from Tuesday 8th till Friday 18th December. The programme features close to 200 workshops, 70 exhibitions and a comprehensive film, theatre and musical events.

The Danish organizers expect up to 10,000 daily visitors and guest speakers include Vandana Shiva, George Monbiot, Bill McKibben, Tim Jackson and Wangari Maathai.

“We would like to tell you that climate change is already seriously impacting us. It brings floods, droughts and the outbreak of pests that are all causing harvest failures,” said Henry Saragih, general coordinator of the global peseants movement Via Campesina, also speaking at the opening cermony.

Nnimmo Bassy, Head of Friends of Earth International, stressed the importance of people getting together to take action.

“At Klimaforum09 we find the real people taking real action. Poluters must be hold accountable and policy makers must start listening to the people,” he said.

For more information and coverage of Klimaforum go here:  http://www.klimaforum09.org/

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Below is a story from the UN Conference COP15.. This is where all the delegates and big time honchos from all the developed countries will be meeting. here a lot of politics will come into play and alot of deals will be cut.. We will try and drop news from both places… here’s the link to their official website http://en.cop15.dk/

Here’s where u can find live webcast of  COP 15

http://www2.cop15.meta-fusion.com/kongresse/cop15/templ/ovw.php?id_kongressmain=1&theme=cop15

Failure in Copenhagen is not an option

http://en.cop15.dk/news/view+news?newsid=2257

Connie Hedegaard

If the world fails to deliver a political agreement at the UN climate conference in December, it will be “the whole global democratic system not being able to deliver results in one of the defining challenges of our century”, says incoming COP15 president, Connie Hedegaard.

Will there be a global climate deal at the UN climate conference COP15 in Copenhagen in December? With the clock ticking and a host of major political issues yet to be solved, some people have voiced their doubt.

One hand that is not shaking, however, is the one belonging to Connie Hedegaard, Danish Minister for Climate and Energy. As incoming COP15 president, she faces the daunting task of swinging the baton in front of delegates from all over the globe, thereby making them play the same tune and hopefully, after a concerted effort, end with an accord.

And while thousands of negotiators are still struggling to narrow the score down to something playable, Hedegaard is adamant that Copenhagen will “seal the deal”.

“If the whole world comes to Copenhagen and leaves without making the needed political agreement, then I think it’s a failure that is not just about climate. Then it’s the whole global democratic system not being able to deliver results in one of the defining challenges of our century. And that is and should not be a possibility. It’s not an option,” Connie Hedegaard tells cop15.dk in an interview.

She calls Copenhagen a “window of opportunity” which should not be missed, arguing that it may take years to rebuild the momentum.

“If we don’t deliver in Copenhagen, then I cannot see when again you can build up a similar pressure on all the governments of this world to deliver. So I think we should be very, very cautious not to miss the opportunity,” says Hedegaard, adding that “it would be irresponsible not to use the momentum now”.

Connie Hedegaard is basing her optimism on the fact that nations, after months of political stalemate, began to come forward in September and show their positions. Japan, China, India and Indonesia are some of these “key players” who, according to Hedegaard, have brought new momentum to the climate negotiation process.

“In that sense,” she says, “Copenhagen has already delivered results. If we hadn’t had that deadline, these governments would not have come forward with their targets. They are doing so because they know the deadline is coming closer, and they must start to deliver.”

To effectively break the deadlock, however, two more requirements must be fulfilled. Politicians, including heads of state, need to become more actively involved. And developed countries need to come forward with specifics on finance.

“They cannot just continue to talk about finance. They must show – prove – to the developing world, we know that we are going to pay, or there will be no agreement. And the sooner the developed countries deliver on finance, the better.”

Hedegaard admits that the technicalities of the negotiation process are extremely complex, but that shouldn’t be an excuse for not striking a political, binding deal.

“We know what we ought to do on mitigation, on reductions, on adaptation, on technology and on finance. Well, yes, it’s difficult. But my bet is, it’s not going to get any easier by postponing decisions.”

In order to reach an agreement in December, “as little as possible” should remain to be solved when negotiators arrive in Copenhagen. The high-level section of COP15 is only three days, four at the most. Therefore the negotiation text must be rid of “square brackets” – at this point there are still 2,500 remaining  – and the political options must be made very clear before the politicians arrive on the stage, says Connie Hedegaard.

Her personal success criteria for Copenhagen?

“I think what matters is that we, when we depart from Copenhagen, with credibility can say we brought the world on the right track, on a track that makes it credible that we can stay below the two degrees average increase in temperature worldwide. That is basically the success criteria we must try to deliver on.”

During the actual conference, Connie Hedegaard sees her own role as that of one who will be trying to mediate, find solutions and look for possible compromises. And provide a push or a nudge where it’s needed.

“It’s not so that the COP president, the host country, can just tell China or the United States or India what they are going to do. They will decide for themselves. But of course we will argue as strong as we can, push as strong as we can and try to seek solutions as much as we can.”

All through the year, Connie Hedegaard has been working to grease the climate wheels by participating in bilateral talks and informal meetings, thereby making herself acquainted with the positions of as many players worldwide as possible. Her own Greenland Dialogue is one of several series of climate discussions running parallel to the main UN track.

It’s a round-the-clock job and the fervent dedication Hedegaard demonstrates as a minister and one of the world’s chief climate whips carries into her personal life as well.

“You can’t separate that. When you have a job like this, it’s a hundred percent. If you didn’t think that this is really, really important, then you couldn’t work as much, and I also think that your family wouldn’t let you work as much. I’m not only talking on my own behalf, but on behalf of the whole team behind me. People are doing this because they think it’s the most important issue in the world.”

José Manuel Barroso, re-elected President of the European Commission, has announced that he would appoint a climate commissioner under his new presidency. Connie Hedegaard, a 49-year-old conservative politician, mother of two and former journalist, has been mentioned as a possible candidate. Would she be interested, once COP15 is wrapped up?

“I’m really not thinking about what is going to happen after this. A lot of things will still have to be done, and Denmark will actually be president of the COP throughout 2010. These weeks and months are not suited for concentrating on anything else but how to land a deal in Copenhagen.”
 

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