M’Chigeeng activist dismayed by weak deal reached in Copenhagen

by Lynzii Taibossigai
COPENHAGEN, Denmark-As I write, this is my last night here in Copenhagen. I’ve been here since December 4 for the United Nations Climate Change summit with the Canadian Youth Delegation (CYD), as you may have read in last week’s edition of the Expositor.

This was supposed to be a time in which the leaders of the world came together to agree on a new treaty to ensure global action on climate change, which would ensure survival for all. In regards to the status of negotiations, that did not happen. It didn’t even come close: some say we’ve taken a step backwards.

In 1992, the world came together at the Rio Earth Summit in Brazil, and gave birth to the Kyoto Protocol. Adopted in 1997 and implemented in 2005, the protocol was an agreement under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) aimed at combating global warming. The UNFCCC is an international environmental treaty with the goal of achieving “stabilization of greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere at a level that would prevent dangerous anthropogenic interference with the climate system.”

Over 187 countries have signed and ratified the protocol as of November 2009, including Canada. The sad thing is the leadership of our country has failed to respect our side of the deal and we’ve really hit a low point in time as Canadian citizens. Many of my friends within the CYD are embarrassed to be Canadian now, as am I. We jokingly talked about sewing US flags or badges onto our backpacks while here instead of Canadian ones! And now, I want neither.

President Obama spoke last night during the final hours of the conference and I was shocked, not at what he said but how he said it. I remember listening to his acceptance speech last November in Guyana with tears in my eyes. Last night, I felt nothing, because his words were just words-they weren’t from the heart, and that really scares me.

Today the conference is over; many of my friends have left for home, along with thousands of others who came for this global event. The outcome: to be continued. They have decided to put a hold on negotiations, possibly for six months, and reconvene in Bonn, Germany; and word is COP 16 (COP stands for Conference of the Parties) is already scheduled to be in Mexico a year from now. I still don’t know the ins and outs of the UNFCCC process, but from what I’ve seen here, it just isn’t working. It’s been over 17 years and they are talking about the same problem. There has to be another way, or at least room to include other ways of knowing and doing, such as the civil society-regular people like you and me. Our voices and lives matter too.

Friends who have attended these conferences before say there have been significant increases in the amount of young people and community activists in attendance. For example, last year there were just over 500 youth at COP 14 in Poznan, Poland. This year, the United States had over 500 youth here! And we totalled at around 1,500 worldwide! That says a lot. That says to me that the youth of the world care about their future. I care not only of my own, but of my nephews’, my future children’s and grandchildren’s. I’ve heard this saying over a dozen times in the last three months: “climate justice is the civil rights issue of our generation.” That’s how big this is. And the movement is growing. I now have over 35 allies across Canada and the United States; my CYD family and other Indigenous youth I’ve met from the US, we know we’re in this boat together, and we’re in it for the long haul.

After President Obama’s speech last night-which by the way interrupted our CYD debrief (in which I was leading a Sharing Circle-it’s been such an amazing experience being able to share my culture with my new friends!)-the whole building was abuzz. We needed to do something; we were not going to stand for this injustice. Mobilization took less than an hour, and I found myself back at the Bella Centre where the ever-important talks were still taking place. People were already gathered outside once I arrived with most of my CYD family and the police were everywhere. It was a peaceful demonstration of our frustration with the world leaders’ inability to actually lead. Banners were put up, candles were lit and there was a lot of yelling; my good friend Rhiya can hardly talk today. It felt good to go there, to demonstrate our unhappiness of this monumental failure of leadership, and that we aren’t giving up, we know that it’s not over!

I’ve had many conversations this last week as to what can we do to really make a difference. What will really influence change for the betterment of all of our futures? Is it the everyday things, like using a reusable water bottle, carrying a grocery bag with us everywhere we go, biking to work and school? Or is it developing renewable energy, such as wind and solar power? Or educating the next generation on the importance of living sustainably and being respectful to Shkakmig-kwe (Mother Earth)? Or does it include speaking to our chiefs and lobbying our members of parliament, and Prime Minister Harper, for a fair, ambitious and binding deal? And finally, what about organizing a non-violent direct action, such as a sit-in at various parliamentary offices across Canada?

It may be a balance of all of these things and possibly more that will influence positive change in people, governments and nations across the globe. And the best place to start is at home. Canada still has a chance to be a leader in climate justice; if we can now rally together and stand up for our rights, we will win. I believe.

We’ve all come to the conclusion that there is so much work to be done when we return home, but it’s also a week away from Christmas-a time I cherish most with my family and friends, all the people I love dearly. I plan to take in every moment with them, to relax and enjoy the food, laughter and gifts of the season, because in 2010 I will continue to stand up for Shkakmig-kwe, our Earth Mother.