Tracking the EU: Mr. Groote on Climate Change Challenges
Posted on 15. Sep, 2009 by Ole Seidenberg in E.U., Germany
The most obvious objective of our “Adopt a Negotiator” Project is the tracking and questioning of our negotiators in Copenhagen and before, but: As you know, there are actually a lot more politicians out there that are meant to represent our will on diverse levels of international politics.
One of those levels is the European Parliament - and it’s actually much more important for Climate Change politics than one might guess in the first place. Even Nicole Wilke, our German lead negotiator, is actually bound to what the EU has decided often long before the actual UNFCCC meetings. Since Germany is part of the EU, she is in the end representing the EU position - which makes it sometimes hard for me to track her from a “strictly German” perspective.
However, I had some good luck using Social Media/Web 2.0 during the last couple of weeks: I have just asked Matthias Groote, a German EU representative, via Facebook: “Dear Mr. Groote, would you be ready to answer some questions regarding Climate Change and the negotiations on the way to Copenhagen?”… and indeed: Just a week later, I was surprised by a nice email-reply from Christina, who is actually an old fellow from school! She is now working for Mr. Groote and was ready to film the interview with him, asking the questions I had sent to her via E-Mail. So have a look up there.. As you can see, Mr. Groote is well aware of the many hurdles the EU and all the other nations still need to pass, but: He also encourages all of us to use what we’ve got: Social Media, a strong will, our voice!
Yet, you might still wonder: “What can I do to put some pressure on politicians? How and where can I ask my questions?” - Well, there are two simple answers:
1) Don’t miss the Global WAKE UP Call on September 21st: There is a ton of events on that day to remind politicians of their duty, also in Germany! You can find a list of events here: http://www.avaaz.org/en/sept21_hosts/
Oxfam Klimahelden
2) Check out the Oxfam Climate Heros on www.oxfamklimahelden.de (for Germans) and put pressure on Sigmar Gabriel, our German Environmental Minister! You can also register to be one of the Climate Heroes that will be involved in 10 creative Climate Actions in the run-up to Copenhagen!
And last, but not least: Stay tuned, follow this blog, spread the word - and in spite of all those massive challenges that lie before us: Don’t get depressed, there’s still a lot we can do! 