Conference of Parties 15, Day 11

On the final day of negotiations, NGOs were once again excluded from the conference center. We spent the day at the Forum NGO space following the developments on the inside. We only had access to the open sessions and press conferences televised online and in the NGO space. Heads of State statements continued throughout the day, along with various press conferences. Our rapidly expanding email inboxes informed us of deliberations but our knowledge was limited to what was shared.

President Barrack Obama's brief appearance at COP caused quite a stir. In his address, he discussed the urgency at hand and the U.S. motivation to take action on climate change. The speech was clearly tailored for an American audience, as evidence by the idioms and buzzwords used. However, many of the points made were rejected by the developing world and decried as greenwashing.

Our intelligence on the inside informed us of closed door meetings between the President and the leaders of China, India, Brazil, and South Africa. Rumors of an agreement emerged mid-day but it was unclear what the nature of the agreement was. We were given an indication that the outcome would be weak when Venezuela and Bolivia hijacked the press conference room to share their concerns. Though the time was slotted for another coalition, Hugo Chavez made his grievances known before dramatically leaving the negotiations.

As early drafts of the Copenhagen Accord were leaked, it became clear that the outcome would be disappointing. Though the Accord evolved minutely over the course of the day and evening, nothing substantive was said. Countries were outraged that select nations conducted closed door meetings, completely ignoring protocol and transparency. The unfortunately reality was apparent--this would be the only progress made at COP15, the rest of the world could take it or leave it. In response, the international community "noted" the existence of the US-proposed Copenhagen Accord. With both working groups due to expire in 2009 (the deadline of all of their work...), the AWG-LCA and AWG-KP were extended for another year. Party delegations worked through the night to Saturday morning, scrambling to salvage all of their former work and progress.

Though the vague and weak outcome of Copenhagen was not incredibly surprising, it was still very disappointing. All those involved in the effort, both on the ground and abroad, were discouraged by this underhanded move. Two years of work and compromise was ignored in favor of a "politically convenient" alternative. Though certainly better than nothing, the Accord made no tangible commitments. The document favored weaker targets over the new scientific consensus for 1.5 degree limit to global temperature rise. Additionally, the Accord ignored the demands of small island developing states and least developed countries for a legally binding outcome. The general malaise throughout the city was obvious. Delegates could be easily distinguished--head hanging, muttering see you at COP16 in Mexico City.