Highlights from Thursday, December 10 - COP21 in Paris - Canadian Youth Delegation

Highlights from Thursday, December 10 - COP21 in Paris

• New Text Released!
• Atiya f*%king lays it down in the Canadian Stakeholder Meeting
• Loss & Damage Media Availability
• “Canada Is Back!” … winning Fossil Awards


New Text = Same as the Old Text, Except Weaker

New versions of the text continue to drop on the daily, and as bracketed options turn into finalized language, the level of ambition plummets. The new version of the text contains no specific emissions reduction goal, and mentions human rights in the operative text only in a general sense. Governments have committed to “pursue efforts to limit the temperature increase to 1.5 °C,” but this rings hollow as the agreement delays a goal of “reaching greenhouse gas emissions neutrality” to the “second half of the century.” Overall, there is a high level of rhetoric, but a low level of specific commitments to get there. That means that it is up to us, to our movements, to define what these hollow words mean.

Laying it down in the Canadian Stakeholder Meeting

This afternoon, when the CYD walked into the daily Canadian stakeholder’s meeting, we did so not knowing that it would be the last of COP21. CYD member Atiya stepped up to the plate and made it clear to the negotiators that as representatives of the youth movement - a generation inextricably tied to the climate crisis - we will keep fighting once back in Canada:

“These negotiations have been going on since I was a toddler. In that time, I have watched climate disaster after climate disaster. Just this year I have watched people in my hometown, where I was born, falling to the streets dead because of heat strokes in Pakistan. We watched wildfires burn through Canada [...]”

“We really think that the time to wait is over,” she continued. “We want to see ambition, we want to see it here in Paris. We are going to fight for justice in Paris, and we want you to know we’re going to continue to fight when we go home. We are going to be fighting in solidarity with indigenous peoples, in solidarity with those on the frontlines of the climate crisis.”

“Our expectations are high, but we know power comes from the people and we’re ready.”

Climate Justice Mobilizations Continue

Voices from the Global South and marginalized communities continued to lead mobilizations today at a rally in the civil society space. Their power continues to inspire us.


Canada wins our SECOND Fossil of the Day

Canada’s running with a dangerous crowd these days. They won a Fossil of the Day for the second day running because of their bad behaviour alongside the EU and the rest of the Umbrella Group.

While our first fossil was won for derailing conversations on Loss and Damage (L+D), Canada won its “Gold Medal” fossil on Thursday for our lack of leadership on pre-2020 ambition. We know Canada’s nowhere near on track to meet our 2020 emissions reductions targets. We also know that Canada and the world’s current pledged emission reductions through 2030 don’t get us anywhere close to 2C, let alone 1.5.

We need Canada to step up its game - we’ve waiting for 21 years of these negotiations for real action, and we absolutely can’t afford to stall for another 5 years.

 

In fact, we’ve been negotiating since these guys:


looked like this:

The Fight to Save Loss and Damage

Loss and Damage is a mechanism established at COP19 in Warsaw that would commit some parties to the UNFCCC to provide funds for the costs of losses and damages incurred from climate change such as natural disasters. The US and Canada have acted to weaken L+D in the Paris Outcome, which means diminishing support for those who are most vulnerable to climate change.

Canada has justified their position on L+D saying that it would create new liabilities to the Global South. Including L+D in the text will not do this and we believe Canada should not fabricate legal arguments to oppose including it when so many lives are on the line.

Today, the CYD sprung into action, pulling together a coalition of experts and allies who want L+D in the Paris Outcome. You can read about it here. We are continuing to push the government to support L+D in the negotiation's final crucial hours.
 

D12

Our team has been preparing for D12 “Redlines”, a day of mobilization in Paris and beyond, that is taking place tomorrow. If you’d like to learn more about the day of action, or want to look through some very helpful resources on preparing for civil disobedience and mass mobilizations, visit their website here.

Media Round-Up

• Planet S Mag: “The Tongue That Roared”

• National Observer: “Canada Wins ‘Fossil of the Day’ Award at COP21” 

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