1st COP - (but not my last...)

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Posted By Jim Settele

SO this is what all the hoopla is about... By about 3pm on the 1st day of COP I needed a break - when I was told that a COP can be overwhelming - I had no idea!  With our first meeting at the RINGOs, then a dash to the Opening Session led by the Secretary General and the President of Poland - to side events in hard to find rooms and a quick rush to join an event in the Great Britain Pavilion (complete with tea and wine) - it has been non-stop and immensely rewarding.

My general interest in attending this immense gathering of the Climate Change faithful is in making a connection between the University of Maine and the UNFCCC - with the hope to obtain university observer status for future COPs.  At UMAINE we have amazing climate change science but we need to make a better connection on the policy side - and being part of the dialogue at COP is one way to increase or university's policy engagement.

My specific interest is climate change security - there is not significant discussion specifically around security - though a dedicated panel on this subject is next week after my departure (Anna has agreed to attend and take notes).

To be surrounded by people with like minds on the impact of climate change is refreshing, everything from side events at the IPCC pavilion on the IPCC 1.5 degree report to panels on the impact of human mobility (climate change refugees) - it is easy to become saturated with information (or even oversaturated).

Two phrases that we've heard often during the week are "Just Transition" (see Anna's blog) and the political will to do what needs to be done to keep our global mean temperature at (or below) 1.5 degrees C (see Will's blog).

One thing I can now confirm is that the University of Maine needs to be a part of future COPs!  And I hope to help make that happen!
Off to the next panel... cheers!

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