Arctic Solutions at the COP of Action

As global leaders come together in Morocco this week the 22nd UN Climate Summit, Arctic researchers are sharing their climate change solutions with the world.

Amidst the shadow of the U.S. Presidential Election, the 22nd Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change began last week. More commonly known as COP22, the conference has brought country delegations from around the world to Marrakesh, Morocco in an effort to move humanity forward in curbing global warming to less than 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels.

COP22 has big shoes to fill

Last year’s iteration of the Conference was historic. With much fanfare and a high production value, over 20,000 people converged on Paris, France to advocate, to negotiate, and to ultimately adopt an ambitious agreement to combat climate change. The Paris Agreement built on two decades of work within the UN Framework for Climate Change. It set countries on a path to hold the increase in the global average temperature to well below 2 degrees Celsius and to pursue efforts to limit the temperature increase to 1.5 degrees, recognizing that this would significantly reduce the risks and impacts of climate change. It envisions a world where resources are made available to increase resiliency and augment adaptation efforts on the front lines of climate change. And it created the foundations for a consistent flow of finances to help developing and least developed countries lower greenhouse gas emissions while simultaneously grow their economies.

The COP of Action

Though Paris was monumental in size, COP22 may be even more important.

On November 4, 2016, 30 days after the 100th signatory ratified the text, the threshold for entry into force was achieved – 55 percent of global emitters authorized the Paris Agreement at home to move the world forward. This means that the Conference in Morocco this week is the first meeting of the Parties since the Agreement has come to take on legal force and effect.

And with the passage into force, COP22 holds the immense opportunity to turn the promise of Paris into action. Accordingly, it has been deemed by its Moroccan hosts the “COP of Action.”

Last year’s meeting was a high-level negotiation that established broad strategies for mitigating greenhouse gas emissions and adapting to the consequences historic emissions have generated. This week’s focus is on establishing a practical plan for climate action by answering how to actually limit temperatures to “well below” two degrees; how governments of developed countries will concretely help those on the front lines of a rapidly changing environment; and what breakthrough innovations are needed to transform the global economy to be resilient, equitable, and carbon neutral?

The Nordic Arctic Solution

On Saturday November 12, the Nordic Pavilion at the UN Climate Summit sought to answer those questions through examples found in the Arctic. Sponsored by NordForsk, Arctic Day shared with a global audience not only the science behind monitoring climate change in the circumpolar north, but what Nordic Arctic communities are doing to limit their greenhouse gas emissions and adapt to new challenges.

"The thing that makes Nordic solutions unique is that they have this holistic view of solutions. It’s not just about tech," says Heidi Orava, the Communications Advisor for the Nordic Council. High North News met Ms. Orava while she at the Nordic Pavilion where she was welcoming those passing by into their Arctic event. "You have to involve people in planning. You need to make citizen invested in energy efficiency, make them empowered to take action. So it’s not only about the tech – it’s the mindset and how organizations take up the cause to involve citizens to be sustainable.”"

Some of those comprehensive solutions present at COP22’s Arctic Day included fostering a sustainable bio-economy in Sweden, presented by NordRegio’s Anna Berlina,  renewable energy in Iceland described by University of Iceland’s Drynhildur Daviosdottir, and what types of interdisciplinary approaches can solve global societal challenges by University of Oslo’s Nils Christian.

Bringing People Together

Ultimately, the Conference of the Parties is about more than the official negotiated next to limit global warming. It is about bringing people together over shared passion for saving planet earth and communities on every continent.

"The idea of the Nordic pavilion is to bring people together," says Ms. Orava. "It’s through meetings that solutions are created. And I really think that we have accomplished that with what we have done here in week one. What we try to bring forth here is the Nordic solutions to the global climate crisis. We don’t have all the solutions, but we have some solutions. And maybe, together, all these solutions will make the difference we need."