COP22 - less than a month to go!

So what the heck is COP22, anyway? I'm headed back to Morocco in a few weeks to join research partner Dar Si Hmad in Marrakech for a giant climate change convention. Check out the blog post, copied below, about the UNFCCC to learn more about what's going on.


Today marks twenty-five days until the twenty-second session of the Conference of the Parties of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. In other words: in just under a month, Morocco will be kicking off the world's biggest meeting about climate change!

The UN Climate Change Convention is an international plan for action against climate change. The treaty was launched at the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro in 1992. 196 countries have signed the agreement and pledged their support. Each year, representatives of these countries meet at a Conference of the Parties to review progress and decide on next steps. These annual meetings have been held since 1995, when the first Conference of the Parties was held in Berlin. Last December, COP21 was held in Paris.

November 7-18, the city of Marrakech will host foreign heads of state, international diplomats, scientists, lawyers, researchers, journalists, and activists for COP22. In addition to the legal and policy meetings, environmental groups and activists will gather to share ideas and programs that help combat climate change and its impacts.

Dar Si Hmad for Development, Culture and Education is proud to be taking part of COP22 as a civil society partner. We will have a booth in the Green Zone and will be presenting our award-winning fog-harvesting project at a sponsored side event on November 7.

As part of our lead-up to Marrakech, Dar Si Hmad will be running a social media campaign focusing on the Sustainable Development Goals. The SDGs are a UN-led call to action for countries, corporations, groups, and individuals. The goals focus on ending poverty, protecting the planet, and creating peace and prosperity for everyone.

 

The goals are:

1. No Poverty - End poverty in all its forms everywhere
2. Zero Hunger - End hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition and promote sustainable agriculture
3. Good Health and Well-Being - Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages
4. Quality Education - Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all
5. Gender Equality - Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls
6. Clean Water and Sanitation - Ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all
7. Affordable and Clean Energy - Ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all
8. Decent Work and Economic Growth - Promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all
9. Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure - Build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialization and foster innovation
10. Reduced Inequalities - Reduce income inequality within and among countries
11. Sustainable Cities and Communities - Make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable
12. Responsible Consumption and Production - Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns
13. Climate Action - Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts by regulating emissions and promoting develoments in renewable energy
14. Life Below Water - Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development
15. Life on Land - Protect, restore and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably manage forests, combat desertification, and halt and reverse land degradation and halt biodiversity loss
16. Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions - Promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels
17. Partnerships for the Goals - Strengthen the means of implementation and revitalize the global partnership for sustainable development

While COP22 is generally focused on reducing greenhouse gas emissions, climate change affects all parts of life. Successfully working against negative environmental damage requires integrating action and tackling poverty, hunger, inequality, and injustice to ensure sustainability for humans and ecosystems.

The UNFCCC acknolwedges that certain areas are more vulnerable to climate change. This includes arid or semi-arid zones and developing countries with fragile mountainous ecosystems. Aït Baamrane, where Dar Si Hmad works, is one such place, subject to extreme weather events such as floods, droughts, desertification, and other negative environmental impacts. We are proud to be hosting COP22 in a country that knows the risks and problems of climate change, and we are proud to be actively working to ensure that our most vulnerable populations - rural communities, indigenous peoples, women, and children - do not face the costs of climate change alone. As we journey to Marrakech for COP22, we invite you to join us. Follow us on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook to learn more about the Sustainable Development Goals, COP22, and our work to combat climate change in Morocco and around the world.