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It’s a fantastic opportunity to witness global climate policy being made and to network with sustainability leaders.

So why was it that last year so many of our delegates came back disheartened and frustrated?

The Reality of COP

Robert Marchand was one of the delegates we sent to COP28. It was his first time attending the conference and he said that, “the scale of the event was phenomenal.” Around 100,000 people attended COP28 across the two weeks, and this for Robert was one of the biggest challenges, stating that the event was “so vast with so many different discussions, debates, side events and exhibitions that you were never sure where to look.”

“The problem was amplified by the language of COP. If you have been there before you have a big advantage over a first time attendee. The range of acronyms, and trying to work out which document was being discussed, all without anyone there to explain it, made it very challenging,” he said, referencing the complex and often impenetrable nature of the negotiations.

Marginalised voices being ignored

Like Robert, many of our delegates last year were concerned by the gap between the reality of what was negotiated and what was actually being reported. Robert himself claimed that many marginalised voices were not being heard as real decisions were made behind closed doors. He said that observers were “only allowed into rooms when the UNFCCC, or their chairpersons, were happy for us to be there.” He also said that no one apart from the negotiators were permitted to speak and this left him wondering “who’s voice counted and what could be done differently to allow greater engagement with a climate solution.”

Three lessons learnt from COP28

After his experience, Robert felt that there were a number of things that he wished he’d have known before attending:

The language of COP

“It would have been so useful to know what all the documents were referring to, as well as having a useful guide to explain acronyms and the language used. For example, the text in square brackets indicated where parties didn’t agree with the text.”

The value of taking time out

“I felt that I needed to be busy from dawn till dusk, that it was my duty to go to as many things as possible. But that probably resulted in me not being present in everything I attended and left me exhausted by the end of the week and somewhat overwhelmed by the magnitude of the problems many marginalised communities are facing.”

How to share my experience with others

“I wish I had identified better ways to share my day to day experience of COP, and what I learned from attending so it could help others who wish to make a positive impact on climate change.”

Preparing delegates for COP29

Robert was so driven by this final point that he successfully received funding from the Grantham Centre’s Go Fund initiative to create his own ‘Navigating the UNFCCC’ project. With this funding he has hosted a number of workshops and training sessions to ensure our COP29 delegates are fully prepared and ready to make a real impact at the event.

He said that the Go Fund initiative “offered a tangible avenue to try and make a difference for the next group of COP attendees.” Robert wants to “help future delegates understand the basics of the UNFCCC, the COP negotiations, the day to day reality of the conference as well as the potential impacts, positive and negative, of attending.”

The workshops covered everything from debunking COP jargon to tips around how to contribute to proceedings. It even had a session around the mental health impacts of COP and how to deal with eco-anxiety.

Robert said he hoped the workshops would “enable attendees to make the most of the time available to them at COP,” and that they would lead to the University of Sheffield’s delegates having a “meaningful presence” in Baku.

“I also hope it will help them identify opportunities to amplify what they have learned in Azerbaijan, so that more of the world can understand the realities of the negotiations at COP,” he said, citing the dynamics in the conference hall, what voices were in and outside the room, as well as the conversations not being had.

He hopes delegates will “take experiences back to their communities”, and that it will inspire those who took part to be part of the change we urgently need.

The benefits of holding COP29 training sessions

Kathryn Schoon, is one of our COP29 delegates who has been attending the training sessions. She said that she initially had no idea what to expect from COP29 and that she was “struggling to define my purpose there, or justify why I was going” but that these training sessions have “answered questions I didn’t even know I had, and I am feeling as prepared as I can be as I head to Baku”

She said that what she found most helpful was “understanding that it’s okay to feel overwhelmed and to take time away.” They have helped her to realise that it’s “just as important to take breaks and spend time reflecting on the conference as it is to constantly be involved in the action.”