Tom Youngman

Occupied Times: “A Diplomatic Occupation: Reclaiming the Debate at the UN Climate Talks”

The Occupied Times is the newspaper of and for Occupy London, an incredible, independent publication that perfectly demonstrates the creative and collaborative energy behind the Occupy movement. For their latest issue (see #10, PDF), I wrote an article about my experiences at the UN Climate Talks in Durban, South Africa and how we used the principles and methods of the Occupy movement to push for change in a diplomatic setting.

The following is the opening of the full article which you can read here.

On 9 December 2011 we came, we saw, and although we didn’t conquer the United Nations, for two hours it felt as if we had.

Towards the end of last year I travelled to the United Nations climate talks in South Africa. I had received funding from people in my local community and went to push the negotiations forward, not to obstruct them. I am 18, and I joined hundreds of young people of a similar age at these negotiations, all of us looking for a political solution to climate change to match the technical and social ones that already exist.

Young people attending the 17th Conference of the Parties (COP17) climate talks ran an open, inclusive, consensus-based process, meeting every morning and working to actively facilitate new participation. Teams of experienced activists spent hours one-on-one with those entering, unprepared into the perplexing world of international climate politics, building in them the confidence and skills needed to enable full participation.

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Keep reading here for the exciting stuff!

Communicating the Challenge is the Challenge: Looking Back on the UN climate talks in Durban

Three weeks ago, I made this video. I was exhausted, husky and, if I’m honest, disheartened. I’d just spent two weeks at the United Nations climate talks in Durban, South Africa. They were the best weeks of my life, but that it’s taken me until now to write something about it says it all.

I applied to be on the UK Youth Climate Coalition’s delegation to the UN (pictured, right) in April. When I heard the news of my selection, that in seven months time I would be at the UN, attempting to make change on a truly daunting scale, I was staying with an exchange family in rural Spain. My immediate challenge was explaining what this meant in my second language to people with little knowledge or interest in climate change. Although they were sympathetic, I’m not sure my host family really understood what I meant - but they did let me use their computer for my first delegation Skype calls.

Returning from Durban, I’ve found myself clasping helplessly at words out of my reach when asked the question “how was South Africa?” to the extent I did when trying to explain my excitement in Spanish back in April. If I’m honest, I’ve found it hard to reconnect with my friends back home. It’s not about the people, it’s about the purpose. I’d spent two weeks with a clear aim, working with groups of peers with a shared goal and more than enough enthusiasm to make up for our lack of agency or resources. I planned my days at 8:30am and often didn’t finish work until 2:00am. It was ridiculous, but it was glorious.

I think the bizarre experiences are what convey the wonder of it best. I met the Bolivian Minister for the Environment at 3:00am, me wearing no socks and shoes, and chatted to him in Spanish. I played a rather fun game called ‘Ninja’ with a very senior British diplomat. I attempted to get on the 10 o’clock news by offering a man tinsel. I shouted the loudest I’ve ever shouted (video, rally inside conference centre pictured, left - can you spot me?) - and was echoed by hundreds of others - inside the conference centre.

But after all that, the conference did not deliver a solution. In the video I recorded three weeks ago today, I was downtrodden. That was justified. The way the decisions were made was fast, closed and undemocratic. Documents were released and agreed faster than we could get to the Documents Counter to collect them, let alone read them. This was not the open, consensus process the UNFCCC (the part of the UN that deals with climate change) likes to claim it is. This was old-fashioned, closed-door diplomacy. If that was an effective way of delivering a solution, I’d be happy, but it isn’t. It left decisions till the eleventh (if only it was that early….) hour and gave poorer nations no input whatsoever. Let’s be frank, what we have on the table now is shit. But it could be worse, we could have nothing. One day, some flowers could use this shit to grow.

I’ll take most not from the conference, but from the people I’ve met. I’ve met people of character far beyond the leaders attending the talks. Young people have spent months preparing off their own back, and most, like me, have funded themselves, running events and raffles and seeking support from their families, friends and communities. No politician did that to attend this conference. No politician can speak with the conviction of any of the young people that went to COP17.

So where am I now? I have emerged from what I can only define as a great struggle for me, and I’ve emerged stronger. It is now 2012. As I start a new year, it is not about finding a new challenge, but about finding away to continue the old one, and use the skills, connections and experience I have built. For me, this year is about action at home, using knowledge from outside in the context I know best. It’s about using that to inspire others to do the same in their communities.

So what do I think you should take from this? I don’t know. Open yourself up to all challenges. Discover what you’re passionate about and pursue it further than anyone ever imagined it could be pursued. Ultimately, don’t let me patronise you. This is my story, for now. I look forward to reading yours.

I went to Durban with the UK Youth Climate Change Coalition (UKYCC) - see our delegation’s blog here. I was kindly supported by many friends, family members, local businesses and by my local community - you can see a full list here. To see photos of the trip, visit my own Flickr page or the UKYCC flickr page.

Thank you

As many of you will know, I’ll be heading out to the United Nations climate change negotiations in Durban next month to press negotiators for a fair, ambitious treaty that represents the interests of young people. I’m attending as part of a delegation with the UK Youth Climate Coalition, and you can find out more on our website.

Many people and organisations have been very generous in supporting me financially. I’d like to take the opportunity to thank them and have created this page on which they are recognised.

If you would like to donate to myself, the delegation as a whole, or our partner delegation from Kenya, your support would be greatly appreciated. You can donate here.

Cat Stace: What the FCCC are CDMs?

Great blog post by Cat Stace, a fellow UKYCC delegate to COP17, jargon-busting the term ‘Clean Development Mechanisms’.

So now back to topic – today’s acronym is CDM, the Clean Development Mechanism. CDM is a part of the Kyoto Protocol and allows countries who have signed up to reduce their own emissions to instead pay for emissions-reducing projects in other countries. This allows richer, developed countries in the global North to reduce emissions by helping poorer developing nations to reduce their emissions.

Her analogy later on is especially fun!

Critics might say that it is similar to someone avoiding going on a diet by feeding someone else celery whilst carrying on eating the Krispy Kremes. They’re helping out other people with the low-calorie options but not shifting their own pounds.

Check out the full article here.

UKYCC Crosspost: Delegation Training Day #1

Just published an article on the UKYCC website, co-authored with Fatima Ibrahim, about the first Training Day for the UKYCC delegation to COP17.

No matter how many Skype calls take place, they just can’t compare to a real-life encounter. This weekend the UKYCC’s delegation to COP17 (the UN climate change negotiations in Durban this December) took part in their first training day in central London. This marks the start of a very exciting journey: getting to know each other, getting to know UN policy and getting ready to make our mark on international politics.

Click here to read the full article.