Hamish Laing: State of affairs

We are now into the last week of the climate talks and the clock is ticking fast. Although the nominal deadline for the talks is 6pm Friday this appears pretty unlikely at this stage and the goodwill and optimism shown by the parties doesn't exactly transfer into speedy progress. All parties still seem confident for an agreement, but how strong this agreement will be remains to be seen. 

Posted on December 9, 2015 .

Mattea Mrkusic: Opinion: Pacific Voices on Climate Displacement

We’re bleary-eyed, brandishing banners in the early morning light. Rae Bainteiti, a 25-year-old youth delegate from the Pacific island nation of Kiribati, jokes that this might be the first and last winter he’ll wear a puffer jacket in the Parisian cold. Stepping towards the press encircling our demonstration, he addresses the crowd in a suddenly serious tone.  “Our lives,” he says, “are not negotiable.” As true as that may be, in the plenary rooms beyond, ministers are putting brackets around his future.

Posted on December 8, 2015 and filed under UN Climate Talks 2015, Institute Updates.