Sciences Po Students to Protest COP26

The UN Climate Change Conference 2021 (COP26) is a summit intended to accelerate action towards the goals of the Paris Agreement and the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, and it is set to convene in Glasgow from October 31 through November 12. There, a mix of world leaders, government representatives, negotiators, businesses, civil society organizations, and private citizens will meet to set plans to limit global warming to 1.5oC (United Nations). Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, this year is the first in two that a conference of this nature will take place. Stakes are especially high due to the current onslaught of climate-related disasters such as flooding in Europe and Southeast Asia, drought in East Africa, and wildfires in the United States, Turkey, and Australia.

While the issue feels temporally relevant, there is a matter of urgency as well. As the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) states, if nations exceed 1.5oC or more, there will be dramatic increases in heatwaves, intense storms, flooding, and losses of agricultural lands. To avoid this, nations will need to cut emissions by 7.6% every year until 2030 (UNFCC). There are few nations currently on track to meet this goal. The EU is behind on its effort to meet it and has only cut emissions by 55 percent of 1990 levels, with estimates that at its current pace, it will miss the mark by nearly 21 years (Euronews).

To remediate this issue, COP26 hopes to provide the infrastructure for nations to come to agreements on emission cuts. This year is the first of which will involve the ‘ratchet’ mechanism, through which countries are supposed to readjust their climate goals, or Nationally Determined Contributions, according to the most recent advances in climate science. The conference also hopes to mobilise $100 billion in climate finance to aid developing nations, finalize the Paris Agreement Rulebook, and increase collaboration with businesses and civil society.

Though COP has ambitious goals, many remain skeptical about its efficacy to truly reduce emissions and seek climate justice. 1A student Bianca Carrera says that she plans to attend this year’s COP, but has low expectations for its resolutions. On the subject of the prior Madrid COP, Carrera recounts that when she entered the Green Zone, or the area open to the public, “there was not any real action there. Not any participative initiative; they asked the youth to make ourselves heard, but it was kind of upsetting. Besides, the companies that were there were gas companies, so it was kind of greenwashing.”

Carrera also intends to participate in public demonstrations organized by the Extinction Rebellion, an activist organization in Glasgow. The organization does not believe that the process of COP26 will make any substantial change, and plans to accuse leaders of crimes against humanity for what they call “legalized corruption and systemic failure.” On the importance of these demonstrations, Carerra says that she wants to make the youth voice heard. Though there have been an increasing number of young people and activists invited into the Blue Zone, where negotiations take place, “the suggestions that the activists have proposed have not really been taken into account. Even if we don’t have the power to make decisions, we have the power to influence how the COP is perceived...we know that they are not going to listen to us, so we take the initiative to disrupt their event.”

Other SciencesPo Students, such as 2A Johanna Grabert, emphasized the importance of protest in Menton. Grabert identifies two reasons for protest on our campus. She first put forth that “we cannot remain silent as a political campus and a campus with political privileges...we must address local institutions and force them to acknowledge their responsibilities and capacities to address the issue.” Grabert also asserted that Menton students have the ability to take part in a regional movement. “Acting in Menton is crucial because the causes and expressions of the crisis are generated locally. It’s also important to create and strengthen alliances. We want to use the COP26 as momentum to invigorate climate protest in the region which lacks any form of it,” she said.

Grabert, along with other members of Environnementon and student environmentalists, hopes to organize a demonstration in the coming month in response to COP26, and she is collaborating with regional groups including Extinction Rebellion Alpes-Maritimes, Youth for Climate Nice, and Fridays for Future groups in Italy. Hopefully, this demonstration will stimulate a debate on campus and contribute to a larger regional movement. In the long term, Grabert seeks to plan a large protest by March 24, the next global climate strike.

- Cameron Sterling