COP-15, Day 9
Today was the first day of the secondary badge system. The NGO Observer community has been cut to about 20% of its total size. To get into the Bella Center, it is now necessary to have 2 badges–the normal one and a second one that can be exchanged within a particular accredited group but not outside of it. (This is because each group is allocated a specific number of observers and once that number is reached that group can have no more people even though the person trying to enter might have both badges) The UN keeps track of the individual group numbers because it scans each Observer’s badge when he or she enters and leaves the Bella Center.
On the morning of Day 9 I was through the gate a bit later than usual as I had to get my secondary badge from my focal point at BSCE before going in. As a result, it was the first time I had experienced the kind of lines I had been hearing about. For about 20 minutes, I was in the equivalent of a mosh pit until I got far enough to get separated from the main line into NGO’s, Parties Press, etc. After that point, everything became routine again and I passed quickly through into the Bella Center. However, I can hardly complain about a 20 minute wait. Over the course of the day and evening I spoke to several people that had spent hours in the cold waiting in mosh pit lines without toilets, food or water. Many of these I spoke to were senior executives in their respective companies. Many had arrived to observe the final week of the COP and found themselves spending the day (or days) in registration lines instead. Somehow, everyone remained safe and anyone who actually made it inside the Bella Center was grateful for one more day of access.
As usual, my day started with the BCSE and BINGO morning briefings. Highlights of the day included attending a roundtable meeting in the EU Pavilion on “Product Carbon Footprinting–Enabling climate-conscious consumption: International approaches towards a common standard”; a Sustainability Communities event at the U.S. Center; an IEP (a coalition of the world’s major electric utility trade organizations) Side Event presenting a “A Roadmap for a Carbon-Neutral Roadmap by 2050″; and the U.S. Governors and Canadian Premiers Side Event, “Beyond Cap & Trade: Sub-National Leadership–Sooner, Stronger”. I also attended two evening receptions. The first one was hosted by CDP and Accenture. The second was hosted by the Governors and Premiers in collaboration with NGO groups such as The Climate Group and The Climate Registry.
Because I was attending the Product Carbon Footprinting roundtable, I missed Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack’s presentation at the U.S. Center. Secretary Vilsack’s presentation was titled “Clean Energy Investments: creating opportunities for rural economies.” You can read the text at the U.S. Center website at http://cop15.state.gov/pressroom/133586.htm
EPA also held a Side Event presentation in the U.S. Center on Sustainable Communities to describe how a new Partnership for Sustainable Communities between the U.S. EPA, the U.S. DOT and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to help coordinate funding in support of sustainable communities. I couldn’t find a link to the presentation materials, but I suspect they will be made available on the U.S. Center website eventually.
The International Electricity Partnership (iEP) Side Event was interesting in that all of the world’s major utility trade organizations (EEI, ESAA, Eurelectric, the Canadian Electricity Association, and FEPC) each presented their roadmaps for a low-carbon electricity sector by 2050. While some organizations used “carbon-neutral” and others used “low-carbon”, the fact that all 5 organizations were sharing a Side Event presenting very similar visions was interesting. IEP has produced a joint report to document their activities. You can read more about the project in EEI’s press release http://www.eei.org/newsroom/pressreleases/Releases/Pages/091215.aspx and access the IEP report itself at www.eurelectric.org.
U.S. Governors and Canadian Premiers Side Event, “Beyond Cap & Trade: Sub-National Leadership–Sooner, Stronger” featured a panel discussion with several U.S. Governors and Canadian Premiers. It was Sub-National day at the Bella Center and so the Governors and Premiers were there to educate participants about the role of sub-national leadership–what states and provinces can accomplish for themselves. Special tickets were required and I was fortunate to have obtained one.
Since I am sharing a secondary badge with another BCSE member, I will not have access to the Bella Center for Day 10. There are a number of Side Events scheduled for the Crowne Plaza Copenhagen next door over the next 3 days–including the one I will be speaking at on Thursday. After seeing 10 days of Copenhagen in the dark, it will be nice to actually see out of the windows of the bus when I go to the Crowne Plaza. There are several Side Events at the Crown Plaza and most large public sessions from the Bella Center are also simulcast there–so observers without access to the Bella Center can still watch the proceedings as if they were there.
