On Monday the Sixteenth Conference of the Parties began in Cancun, Mexico. At the start of the conference, the outlook for a meaningful international deal looks grim. With the US unwilling to make international commitments to reduce emissions, and Canada falling in line with the US position, analysts are predicting that Cancun will follow the dismal footsteps of Copenhagen. Progress is expected on REDD+, with Indonesia strongly supporting negotiations on international agreement towards payments for the ecosystem services of tropical forests. According to the UNFCCC, yesterday’s meeting of the Ad Hoc Working Group on Long-Term Cooperative Action for Annex I Parties under the Kyoto Protocol (AWG-LCA) shows signs of promise for the negotiations on adaptation finance and mitigation finance for developing countries. Meanwhile, newswires and blog reports from activists on the ground have reported renewed frustration with the UN process and its engagement with civil society.

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Last month, the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives published Climate Change— Who’s Carrying the Burden? The chilly climates of the global environmental dilemma (Ottawa: Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, 2010), edited by Professor L. Anders Sandberg and Tor Sandberg. This timely publication draws attention to the disparity between climate change and social justice concerns. Its contributors confound, confuse and extend what constitutes the meaning of climate change. Moreover, they juxtapose and make connections between climate change and the chilly climates that exclude and marginalize groups and individuals who live and imagine different ways of interacting that are more respectful of social and environmental relationships.

As the introduction succinctly notes, the devastating impacts of climate change are clear. But there are disturbing revelations about how global elites are tackling the issue. Al Gore—on one hand — promotes carbon emissions trading and green technologies as a solution, and—on the other—profits handsomely from his timely investments in those same initiatives.

Amid the excitement of the World Cup it is easy to forget that international sporting spectacles as large as the FIFA World Cup in South Africa have significant environmental impacts. The media has tended to focus our attention to controversies surrounding the World Cup such the banning of the vuvuzela, predicting final contenders, and more serious concerns such as the inequalities that plague South Africa. However, the media has been quick to turn a blind eye to the carbon footprint of the World Cup. How ‘climate-friendly’ is the World Cup? According to the United Nations Environmental Programme (UNEP), the FIFA World Cup in South Africa is undeniably ‘green’. Three days before the kick-off, UNEP issued a press release highlighting its major initiatives to reduce the carbon emissions of the World Cup. The initiative is a result of a partnership between the Global Environment Facility (GEF), UNEP, and the South African Department of Environmental Affairs (DEA).

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Last week, IRIS attended the Climate Wise Women (CW2) to listen to the experiences of three women from the Global South who are already living with the impacts of climate change. After the failure of COP15 to reach a binding accord, a group of women from the Global South, began a worldwide speaking tour. Their objective is share their stories and to spur climate action at the grassroots level. This well put together public speaking tour offers an alternative narrative on how climate change affects women and families.  Ulamila Kurai Wragg from the Cook Islands focused on how traditional knowledge, inheritance structures, and livelihoods are changing forever.  The community has found that traditional crops can no longer flourish, fish have migrated away from the shores near home, and local water reserves are now saline. Ulamila’s family has adapted by changing crops, by collecting rain water whenever possible, and by walking to fishing grounds on the other side of the Island.

This morning’s episode of CBC’s ‘The Current’ featured the sounds of birds singing in West London. A newsworthy event, since no one knows if the birds sing everyday. On most days, the songs are drowned out by the ever present droning of jet engines overhead. Local residents interviewed commented both on how nice the sounds of nature are, and how refreshing silence can be in the city. A radical idea: nature is part of the city and contributes to our well being. Elsewhere, the British Navy has sent ships to take stranded travelers home; others have taken trains home. And for those whose travel plans have been canceled, they are opting to go local by taking trips to the countryside.  A radical idea: we can relax close to home, and we can move across Europe by train, boat, and not plane.  Business is adapting as well, with the grounding of employees on their way to meetings, conferences, and presentations, business is replacing travel with video conferencing.  Another radical idea: business people do not have to fly for every meeting abroad.  Perhaps the Icelandic volcano was fortuitous for climate politics, because without any advocacy from environmentalists, people have found alternative ways for moving, consuming, and conducting business.