Helen Szoke, head of Oxfam Australia, has provided Mamamia with a journal of what happened during the Paris climate talks. Day by day, she reveals how the negotiations moved from a point of stagnancy to one of meaningful, substantial change.
Sunday December 6
Arriving in Paris for the final week of the UN climate changes talks, there was an incredible sense of history in the making. Despite a week of long days and sleepless nights, the Oxfam delegation was in full flight, energised as the finish line to the long awaited possibility of a Paris Agreement was finally within sight.
Paris is crisp and beautiful; but the military presence in the city is evident and a sobering reminder of tragedy that struck only two weeks ago.
Monday December 7
The sheer size and complexity of the talks is incredible; 55,000 people mill around the Le Bourget convention centre, never missing an opportunity to influence and persuade. There is everything needed to house a small city, from internet cafes to high-tech press centres to coffees carts to fuel around-the-clock negotiations.
There are early signs that there will be an agreement, but what will be the ambition and scale? Will this actually make a difference for future generations?
I met with Mr Xie Zhenhua, the China Climate Envoy, who is one of the most sought after negotiators, and of the position that developing countries should not have to pay for the excesses of the developed countries.
President Tong of Kiribati made a heartfelt plea this evening, reminding us all of the dangers these tiny atolls face. “Our identity is our land and without our land we are nothing,” he said.
Tuesday December 8
There is much at stake for our partners –those communities in countries that are most affected by climate change and the least responsible – and that’s why we’re here, to make sure they have a voice.