After returning from Copenhagen in December & re-reading some of my Oxfam blogs, I almost laughed at what seemed foolish optimism: “Some people ask why bother? Well, because I think campaigning works, and we can get a climate deal…. And because I think a deal can be a success …..”

As news filtered through of the ‘failure and disgrace’ of the ‘COP out’, I wondered. Why did I travel for longer than I was in the city, march over 10 miles in the freezing cold, and deprive myself of a lot of sleep for…..well, for nothing?! And did I regret it? Well, a few weeks of catching up on sleep, and a chance to reflect and I can honestly say the answer is No!

Travelling on the ‘Climate Express’ train filled with people from many countries & backgrounds was fantastic. This was coupled with being among the tens of thousands from around the world at the march on December 12^th. And that was the tip of the iceberg! Round the world millions were taking part in vigils; signing petitions & undertaking other actions. It showed there is a mass movement of people who feel passionately that this is a critical issue.

And although minimal, some things were agreed. The need to ensure global temperature rises are kept below 2 degrees C was acknowledged. Some money (by no means enough) was set aside to support poorer countries adapt to climate change.

But the headlines were right – little was achieved. No binding agreement; no framework for reduction and rhetoric covered disagreement. So what now? Well one thing is for certain – it’s not the end. Nothing was agreed. So there is chance for something! More talks will be held in Mexico this year – a chance to push for negotiations to get back on track and get words translated to action.

And maybe there is more good from Copenhagen than we think. Things we can’t measure. The development of an international youth movement. Galvanisation of a worldwide activist network. Someone once told me we campaign ‘Standing in the Long Now’ - planning for a present we may not experience, for a world we may have left before it arrives. But we should never stop believing in it – even if we can’t quite see what we can, and have achieved. And that’s the only way I think we can view the COP15 talks.

Tags: activism, climate change, COP15, Copenhagen, Oxfam South West

This entry was posted on Sunday, January 10th, 2010 at 4:24 pm and is filed under Oxfam South West, You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.