A WORK IN PROGRESS!

Before I got to Warsaw, I questioned like many others did; will the nineteenth session yield any progressive decision to reduce carbon emissions or it will be just a trip to Europe? Even before commencement of COP 19, many had expressed their reservations as to whether coal driven Poland was the right place to inspire climate solutions. Walking on the corridors offered even bigger disappointment; “this is not a COP; nothing major will come out of Warsaw!” was one of the strong messages I gathered from the delegates.

Picture this, decades of fossil driven economies and suddenly we seek a shift to green energy. Resistance to change can only be termed as a natural human reaction. Today, I will not bog you with technical details, figures and many other facts you probably would not be interested in; all I ask is a little bit of patience.

There seems to be a notion that international environmental law has achieved some kind of normative maturity and that what is now required is more obedience and better compliance, there is little suggestion that it needs rethinking and reforming especially in light of integrating a forward looking approach towards sustainable development in the broad sense. The international process is not without challenges. It’s marred with politics, tyranny, divergent competing interests, different levels of development, and the list is endless! With such a scenario you can now appreciate that the process becomes so complicated and is reduced to a game of trying to achieve a delicate balance. In a nutshell, it takes time, setbacks will always be there, some major, some minor, what matters is the lessons we choose to draw.

I choose to see progress. Though the international process needs to be accelerated as scientists have already expressed that time is not on our side, we cannot deny the progress that we have achieved so far. Kyoto may have achieved minimal success, but as we prepare the 2015 agreement, we cannot deny that the lessons we have drawn from it remain invaluable. In addition, parties are coming up with new mechanisms such as “Loss and Damage” to address new dynamics; a good indication that we are now thinking with foresight and exploring multiple possibilities.

Needless to say, so much focus has been placed on the process of international talks until we get carried away and forget that what we will get from Warsaw will be a text, even the much awaited Paris agreement, will just be a text! The real work lies in the implementation of these decisions back in our home countries. We have to push our policy implementers to actualize these talks! Even without a legal agreement, you can imagine how much progress would have already been recorded if every country prioritized environmental issues and sustainable development. The big question is whether we are we ready to change, in dramatic and prolonged ways, in order to offer a workable future to subsequent generations and diverse forms of life. If we are, new technologies and new habits offer some promise. But only if we move quickly and decisively, and with a maturity we have rarely shown as a society or a species. It is our coming of age moment, and there are no certainties or guarantees, only a window of possibility, closing fast but still ajar enough to let in some hope. All I am saying is that international negotiations are a work in progress, let us not loose heart! That is why, I still think Warsaw will deliver something significant!