birdgirl: UN COP21 Paris

Friday, 11 December 2015

2015 UN Climate Change Conference

Greenpeace Climate Change Campaign

What does that mean? To the vast majority of people on this planet, it is the human races worst failing yet. However in a poll from October 2015, only 70% of people in the USA believe that global warming has taken place over the last 40 years and has been caused by human activity. That means that 30% of Americans are climate change deniers. They would rather believe the minority corrupt scientists on the bank roll of oil companies, than those who are working independently for the good of mankind. What kind of world do we live in? It was interesting that 15% said that they were convinced by the Pope’s recent visit to the USA.

The 2015 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP21 or CMP 11) is taking place at the moment in Paris and is extremely important, as it is a real opportunity for action to be taken to curb rapid global warming. 195 nations are attending the conference on 30 November 2015, with 150 world leaders attending including Barack Obama and David Cameron.

The day before the conference 785,000 of the world’s people marched in 150 countries to tell their leaders that they wanted action to be taken. Paris was due to host the world’s largest march but this was banned under the security measure following the shootings. Not be deterred, Parisians laid out 200,000 shoes to show where they would have marched. I am sure if Paris had marched, we would have had a million marchers worldwide. I spoke at the rally in Bristol, UK about how teenagers can save the planet which was absolutely amazing. This is a poor recording of my address, as it was windy http://youtu.be/elKe2vsb3hg.

Bristol Climate Change March and Rally

The bottom line for reducing climate change is that if all countries carried out their commitments on this that they have already agreed, by 2020 (the deadline) the planet would still be warming 3 degrees. However, if we are to avoid catastrophic climate change, the maximum rise in temperature has to be 2 degrees, with 1.5 degrees being safe for low lying places. Places like Bangladesh, where I have family, will be submerged without a stop in climate change.

The aim of COP21 is for all 195 countries to come to a legally binding agreement for all action to be taken by 2020, which achieves the above. This would need greenhouse gas emissions to be reduced by 40-70% by 2050 (compared to previously being 2010) and reaching zero level in 2100.

Although today is the last day of the conference, a deal is anticipated tomorrow. The French Foreign Minister, Laurent Fabius, is chairing the conference and said that that a latest version of the agreement was going to be published tomorrow morning at 8.00 am GMT which he was “sure” would be approved and also said that “We are nearly there. I’m optimistic”. President Obama's commitment is clear, from his huge efforts to change India and China. I think that he is an incredible man and President.

In its last hours, oil and fossil fuel companies have been stepping up their attempts to stop any global deal to slow down climate change. It's really important that we continue to tell people about why climate change must be stopped, how this can be done and how they should stand up and speak out.

I am hoping that a deal will be agreed tomorrow that will really fight climate change. However, until a deal is done, I will not believe it. Tomorrow I leave for Antarctica and I hope to be able to write about what I find there in terms of the effect of climate change.

About the Writer

Young Birder Birdgirl Mya-Rose Craig on Scilly

Photograph taken by and copyright Chris Craig

Mya-Rose Craig is a 13 year old young birder, naturalist, conservationist, environmentalist, writer and speaker. She is based near Bristol and writes the successful Birdgirl Blog, with posts about birding and conservation from around the world. She loved seeing Mountain Gorillas in East Africa and is looking forward to watching Penguins in Antarctica in December 2015, which will be her 7th continent.

Mya-Rose is a Bristol European Green Capital 2015 Ambassador along with Kevin McCloud, Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall, Tony Juniper, Simon King, Miranda Krestovnikoff and Shaun the Sheep! See the full list of Bristol 2015 Ambassadors. She has also been listed with the singer songwriter George Ezra and actress Maisie Williams from Game of Thrones as one of Bristol's most influential young people. Please like her Birdgirl Facebook Page and follow her on Birdgirl Twitter

Sunday, 29 November 2015

Bristol Climate Change March 29/11/15 - addressing the rally

Greenpeace message

On Sunday 29 November 2015, 785,000 people around the world marched to tell their leaders that they wanted them to take action to stop climate change.

This was my speech addressing the rally, which was amazing having people cheering me through my speech:

http://youtu.be/elKe2vsb3hg

Message at Bristol Climate March 2015
Photograph taken by and copyright Chris Craig

In Bristol huge numbers turned out to march and listen to the rally on College Green, sending a clear message that Bristol European Green Capital 2015 cares.

George Ferguson, Bristol Mayor, marching
Photograph courtesy of Richard Baxter, Bristol Peoples Climate Marchers FB Page

Photograph courtesy of Josefa Sergei Dobraszczyzki Bristol Peoples Climate Marchers FB Page

Photograph courtesy of Owen Williams Bristol Peoples Climate Marchers FB Page

http://www.campaigncc.org/climatemarchlondon

I was extremely proud to be amongst those addressing the rally.

Speakers at Bristol Climate Rally 2015
Photograph taken by and copyright Chris Craig

College Green was packed with thousands of people when I stood up to speak. I had just been told that the rally was massively overrunning, so had to cut down what I was saying from 4 minutes to 1 minute. I was petrified enough as it was, without having to give a completely different speech!

My address to the rally seemed to go well, and I got a lovely thank you mention from George Ferguson, Bristol Mayor, who spoke next.

This is what I had planned to say in my 4 minutes:

How teenagers can help save our planet

"Hi, my name is Mya-Rose Craig, I’m 13 years old and I care passionately about our planet. I write a blog called birdgirl about wildlife, conservation and the environment and am a Bristol 2015 Ambassador. I am going to speak about how teenagers can help save our planet. I live south of Bristol and go birding to Chew Valley Lake, but there are lots of places in and around Bristol to get up close to nature.

I know that it’s tough being a teenager today; instead of having fun outside, young people spend their time inside on social media or playing games; it’s not cool to have any kind of “hobby” and liking nature is seen as “nerdy”;

I think it’s really important for teenagers to get connected with nature, so that they care about what is going on around them. You can’t care about saving the environment if you don’t know anything about what is happening to it. My generation are the future and if we want to have a planet, then it is my generation who can save it.

I think the starting point for change is our fantastic science and geography teachers to talk and discuss issues relating to the environment, like the Indonesian fires, caused by palm oil companies.

There are things you can do, like join Bristol Nature Network, who organise lots of conservation events. Also The Wildlife Trust is interested in connecting teenagers with nature with their campaigns “Every Child Wild”.

It is also important that young people get involved in environmental issues. I have found that the more I have learnt about the terrible things that are going on, damaging our world, the more I care and the more I want to change things.

There are lots of Bristol organisations teenagers can get involved with. Beyond GMO campaign against GMO crops; Bristol Friends of the Earth campaign against the pesticides killing our bees and run the Bristol Flexitarianism campaign – join them and become vegetarian 1-2 days a week, to reduce the impact of cattle ranches on deforestation and CO2 emissions; Bristol Greenpeace has also been campaigning against fracking locally; UK Youth Climate Coalition is a climate change movement that empowers young people to take climate change action. Through its international wing, they work with youth globally, specifically to get delegations to UN climate talks, such as to COP21 in Paris starting on 30 November 2015.

Young people need to help stop environmental damage and try to save our planet in whatever way they can. Every person counts and together my generation can save the world."

Message at Bristol Climate March 2015
Photograph taken by and copyright Chris Craig

Greenpeace Polar Bear message at Bristol Climate March 2015
Photograph taken by and copyright Chris Craig

This is the Facebook Page for the Bristol event

https://www.facebook.com/events/1720715738152151/

On Monday 30 November 2015, the UN Climate Change Conference in Paris (COP21 Paris) made up of 196 countries started to meet to discuss climate change

http://www.un.org/climatechange/blog/category/cop21-paris/

Photograph courtesy of UN COP 21 FB Page

Photograph from COP19 and courtesy of UN COP 21 FB Page

One of my teachers from school, Richard Baxter, is really involved in Bristol Greenpeace and it was lovely to see him. He was my big sisters tutor for five years and so he knows my family really well.