The COP, or ‘Conference of the Parties,’ is the main decision-making body of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), meeting annually to assess progress in dealing with climate change. This year, COP29 will be held in Baku, Azerbaijan.
In this episode, James and Daisy talk about the COPs. How did they begin? Is the process effective? What might we expect from this year’s conference?
SOME RECOMMENDATIONS:
- The Carbon War by Jeremy Leggett – this book is an eyewitness account of the climate talks, and the way the fossil-fuel vested-interests (the “carbon club”) tried to derail them.
- Landing the Paris Agreement by Todd Stern – from the U.S. lead negotiator on climate change, this book is an inside account of the seven-year negotiation that culminated in the Paris Climate Agreement in 2015
OTHER ADVOCATES, FACTS, AND RESOURCES:
James highlighted some inspiring individuals in this episode who have played key roles in the COP journey:
- Philippe Sands is a specialist in international law who James worked with in New York prior to the Rio Summit.
- Durwood Zaelke is an American environmental litigator, professor, author, and advocate, who founded the Institute for Governance & Sustainable Development (IGSD).
- Farhana Yamin is a British lawyer, public speaker and climate activist.
- Robert Van Lierop is a ni-Vanuatu-American lawyer, diplomat, political activist, filmmaker, writer and photojournalist.
- Brindusa Burrows was formerly Associate Director with the World Economic Forum and is now at the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies and is a visual artist.
- Morgan Bazilian is Professor of Public Policy at the Colorado School of Mines.
If you want to dig deeper, there is plenty of academic writing on the climate negotiations. We’d recommend the names below:
- Professor Dan Bodansky at Arizona State University
- Professor Scott Barratt at Columbia University
- Professor David Victor at the University of California San Diego
- Professor Lavania Rajamani at the University of Oxford
- Dr Joanna Depledge at the University of Cambridge
Thank you for listening! Please follow us on social media to join the conversation:
Huge thanks to Siobhán Foster, a vital member of the team offering design advice, critical review and organisation that we depend upon.
Stay tuned for more insightful discussions on navigating the transition away from fossil fuels to a sustainable future.
What is Fossil vs Future?
This is Fossil vs Future, a warm conversation between generations on climate change.
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Each podcast episode will be focusing on a different climate-related challenge, as godfather and goddaughter, James and Daisy, share their individual experiences and perspectives, with the hope of fostering understanding between generations.
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James is at the later stage of his working life dedicated to dealing with climate change, through law, finance, and social entrepreneurship, and Daisy is at an earlier stage of her career, equally focused on the climate and how to drive systemic change through her experience in the finance, business, and non-profit sectors.
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We want to use intergenerational dialogue as a tool to learn, inspire, and get stuff done!
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