Bolivia’s president, Evo Morales, called for the summit soon after the United Nations’ Climate Summit in Copenhagen last December, when it became clear that a binding treaty with decisive action was not forthcoming.
Many believe that the major carbon polluters of the world prevented a strong agreement and that the voices of both civil society and nations of the global south were sidelined or silenced.
They determined that a process outside the United Nations framework was needed.
Billed as an ‘alternate climate conference,’ the WPCCC has brought together delegates from more than 50 world governments, including the presidents of Ecuador, Paraguay, Nicaragua, and Venezuela; government officials from Europe, Asia, and Africa; and members of indigenous communities, grassroots environmental organizations, and concerned citizens with a mission to focus on practical solutions for communities affected by climate change.
According to Joshua Kahn Russell, grassroots action manager at Rainforest Action Network, the Cochabamba conference “represent[s] communities most directly affected by climate change. They will be outlining a people’s platform, looking at the practical things they can implement now. Cochabamba is going to be historic.”
Nearly 200 self-organized events were registered by different networks on every aspect of climate change policy. You can see the program here.
For the big picture, keep your eye on the following:
OneClimate has been streaming live as well as hosting an interactive exchange.
Global Justice Ecology Project’s Climate Connections Blog
JusticenEcology’s Posterous (Diana Pei Wu and Kari Fulton, et al)
Evelyn Rangel-Medina of Ella Baker Center
Check the Weather (Kari Fulton)
Grassroots Global Justice Alliance
World People’s Conference on Climate Change
Carwil James’ Blog, Carwil Without Borders
@boliviaun, @oneclimate, @climatejustice1, @ggjalliance, @evy_medicina, @wpccc, @dianapeiwu, @cmpcc, @cmpcc_bo
Hashtags to follow: #cochabamba, #wpccc, #cmpcc, #climatejustice, #climate
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