La Formulaire à la DJC est finalment disponible en Français!

Rétrouver-la ici: www.projects.takingitglobal.org/cydpoznan/docs

So lately I've been reading a lot of stuff on Project Syndicate and today I came across a really interesting article about the Sichuan earthquake and how it was covered in the Chinese media.

http://www.project-syndicate.org/commentary/ni2

Project Syndicate is one of my favourite new resources. It compiles great feature articles from 375 newspapers around the world. Check it out! It is a must during my daily RSS reader coffee break.

Today is my first day in the TIG Toronto office and I'm floored. For months I've been noticing consistent apathy towards issues among my friends. I study conflict at university, and even in an academic environment that is supposed to attract passionate young people - I have trouble finding many.

In my first day alone, I have seen videos, read blogs, and seen projects that inspire me and assure me that there are engaged youth out there. Thank you all for that inspiration and I hope that I will get a chance to learn more about many of you and your specific projects.

Now back to work!

OUR FIRST PODCAST!

Hey everyone, we've launched our first podcast in the Bonn Dispatches series as well as some more posts (coming within the hour) on our sister Blog page: http://tigblog.org/group/cydbonn (also linked, at left).

The podcast is an interview with fellow young delegate Bard Lahn, from Friends of the Earth Norway (pictured). Check it out! More to come soon.

We're Alive!!

Yes, this is the unofficial "prequel" to the MOST AWESOME BLOG EVER.

As a quick test before we kick this into high gear we will share with you a photo of our sleep-deprived departure from Toronto airport. After a day of rest and prep in Frankfurt and a Climate Action Network strategy session yesterday we are now on the ground in Bonn at the negotiations. (I'm sitting in the AWG-KP plenary right now). Not sure what on earth I'm talking about? Perfect! We've been working on a lovely Glossary to help you decode and understand the Acronym Soup of international negotiaspeak (or ASN, if you will...). This glossary will be posted within moments in the Documents section of our Project page. Check it out! http://projects.takingitglobal.org/cydbonn/docs/


Something missing? Let us know!

More from us very soon. Welcome!!

Hi everyone,

I am writing from the out-moded 2nd floor lobby of the UN Headquarters in New York. Two of us are here as official 'observers' of the General Assembly's two-day debate on Climate Change and the UN.

So far, unfortunately, observing is all we've been able to do. It's been incredibly frustrating through the morning session as we watched a discussion about the importance of "partnerships" and of engaging different levels of governments, stakeholders and individual citizens. After opening speeches by Ban Ki-Moon (Sec-General of the UN) and Michael Bloomberg (Mayor of New York), statements by six panelists, and comments from over 20 delegations and invited audience-members, not ONCE have the words "youth" or "children" been mentioned.

I couldn't count how many times it was stressed by these eminent personalities how important it was to mobilise citizens or forge partnerships with business and civil society; it was practically every second word. But in this "open and frank" discussion, no-one thought to mention what even Ban Ki-Moon has called the most important stakeholder group in the climate change debate: youth and children.

Not once were we asked for our views or allowed to request the microphone. Yet we represent 40% of the world's population and stand to lose (or gain) absolutely everything from our response to climate change. We have the most energy and idealism of any generation in history, but we are being completely sidelined.

So from the 2nd-floor lobby (we weren't invited to the lunch), I am sad to report that despite all the promising signs and kind words in Bali, they still don't get it.

I hope I have better news this afternoon.