MYD Training Series VI: Understanding the Language of Climate Change Policy

A long due post after procrastinating. 

Yoke Ling from Third World Network (TWN) was invited to share her insights on climate change policy. Apparently, all the action on climate change started back in the 1980s when it wasn't much about science but more about people's feeling. Back then there was a lot of unsustainable consumption, that's why there was political will to fight climate change.
*The Development part of the UN is more on cooperation and not punishment.

Humans of COP: Nagisa Yoshioka

Q: Please tell me about yourself.

A: I am Nagisa, the former representative of Climate Youth Japan. In 2012, I attended in COP18 and it was my first time to be involved with world youth climate activities. Trough the experience of COP, I found that we have the great potential and plenty of chances to take action for our future. On the other hand, I also felt that the presence of Japanese youths was a little weaker compared to others, which is why I decided to be a part of climate activism. Now, I’m studying international studies at the University of Tokyo as a master student and working on some climate-related research projects such as climate-induced migration in Pacific islands and climate risk insurance in Southeast Asia. Due to climate change, the frequency and intensity of natural disaster are supposed to be increasing, which leads to serious impacts on vulnerable communities in developing regions. Keeping my eyes not only on the global context of climate change but also on people who are affected by climate change is my motto.

Political significance of the COP Presidency

COP has always been the buzzword of the international climate negotiation, especially during November, when COPs are usually held. Knowing that COP is the platform where all parties come together to discuss and negotiate matters pertaining to the UNFCCC, it is easy for us to gruel on the content of the debate and oversee the importance of the backbone of COP – the organizational side of it.

Second year from the Paris Agreement, What Now?

Paris Agreement was celebrated with joy by the international community when it was tabled back on 12 December 2015. Although it was a significant achievement by the opposing blocs (putting it generally, the developing and developed countries), it is a document outlining the main objectives of the fight against climate change. However, there is more work to be done. Details of the modalities need to be ironed out as soon as possible in order to pave the way forward towards the realization of the Paris Agreement. That is why COP 23 will be a technical COP, where the parties will (continue to) plan out what they want and what they don’t want in the “rulebook”.

G77 and China: What are they?

Day two of our Bonn trip commenced with us taking the wrong tram and needing to go around looking for directions (again). Instead of heading to COY, Lhavanya and I went for the G77 and China Pre-COP Coordination Meetings. This is my first experience in a negotiation bloc’s formal meeting and I was super excited about it. We were able to sit close to our national negotiators during the sessions and was fortunate to receive some guidance from them during the sessions.

Expose "Greenwashing" through Climate Action

Lhavanya and I started off the day with a roundtable session at the World Conference Center. It was pretty intense and we definitely had a lot to say about it (hint: stay tuned for more!) But we didn't stay until the session ended because we were going off to another event happening in the city - the Climate March.

D1 at COY: of the Global North and South Divide

After a downhill walk from Vinxel to Oberkassel, Lhavanya and I headed to IGS (the Red School) for COY. We had a little problem getting around because we were still confused by the transportation system in Bonn. But in the end, we still managed to get to the IGS safely. We got our tags and bought a meal chip for lunch as well as a transportation ticket for the period of COY. I have been mentioning quite a bit about COY, so now we will get into the details of it. 

MYD Training Series III: Understanding the Malaysian Constitution Part 2

Moving on from the development plans, Adrian continued the training with:

Relations between the Federation and the States

Now to further understand the intricacies of the backend of the Paris Agreement, we will need to understand the relations between the federation and the states. Although Malaysia has signed the Paris Agreement (at a federal level), it doesn't mean that it has the power to do so (implementing at a state level). 

MYD Training Series III: Understanding the Malaysian Constitution Part 1

It was an early morning. I woke up, grab some breakfast from FamilyMart and drove over to Adrian's house where the training is held.

Development Plans

International Level

We started the session with an introduction to the ideas of development plans. A development plan is a vital part of any form of government. We could observe development plans at all levels. There are the Millenium Development Goals (MDGs) (2000 - 2015) and Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) (2015 - 2030) at an international level. These goals are set regardless of the status of the country, giving every country a standard they could choose to follow.

MYD Training Series II: Crowdfunding

Note: Training Series I happened during the MYD Retreat.

It was a little past nine and I was late. I rushed towards Taman Rimba Kiara for the Parks for People event organized by Transition TTDI. It was drizzling.

When I reached the parks, the stage was surrounded by the crowd for Zumba. The NGOs that attended the event was stationed at their respective booth, fighting for their cause. I headed over to Powershift Malaysia's booth and found out that the event was delayed because of the rain. The MYD members who are here for the training roam around, signing the petition to protect Taman Rimba Kiara. 

After the rain (kinda) stopped, we walked over to the small pavilion beside the pond. Annie and Tienot, our speaker for the day, were already there. Both of them were from Paris, and they are currently on a research trip around the Asia-Pacific region. They were here to share some insights about crowdfunding with us. After they shared their insights, we did a group activity - planning a crowdfunding pitch. I am going to summarize what I've learned during the session here.

Crowdfunding ≠ Donation

This key learning was a shift in paradigm for me because I used to assume that crowdfunding is getting people to donate to you with an exchange of product/service. However, they clarified that donation = giving without asking for a return while crowdfunding does. The better meaning of crowdfunding would be participation in a project. 

What does that mean?

It means that when someone crowdfunded for you, you are actually giving them the power to participate in projects they believe in like making a potato salad or environmental projects (especially in the current US political climate). Crowdfunding is not about the money, but about the experience.

Annie and Tienot mentioned that crowdfunding follows the theory of communication circles. Your project should be fully supported by your family and close friends (which are your first circle). With their support (be it monetary or social sharing), your project could continue to spread towards friends of friends (second circle). Then, hopefully, continue on to the rest of the world (third circle).

How to start?

1. Obviously, you would need to have a project with you.

2. Ask around to know how people feel about the project, ask for feedbacks, ask them when/how they would be willing to support, what would they like to fund particularly for this campaign, etc. Since the people who crowdfunded for you wants to be a part of the project, their inputs are vital for the development of the projects

3. Setting your crowdfunding goals - know how much you need for what. It would be better if you could develop level based goals. 

4. Share your stories in a peer-to-peer mode. You need to remember you are talking to people, not companies.

Most importantly, act locally and think globally.

After the session concluded with the mandatory "C" sign photoshoot, we had lunch and continue one with the PIE meeting with the other Powershift Malaysia programs. The Peer Integration Exchange session was arranged in a fish bowl sitting.

PIE started with updates from each track and continued on with detailed discussion. The fish bowl sitting was really very useful in streamlining the meeting and allowing more people to participate without compromising the quality of the meeting.

We finished up around 2.30 pm and cleaned up. A fruitful day indeed!

p.s. MYD events welcome everyone to join! Check out the Powershift Malaysia Facebook page for more awesome events!

Broga Hill Expedition Video

Broga Hill seems to be a place I would always see on my timeline. It could have simply won the "Best team bonding location for clubs" award. Almost all of the clubs in our school went to Broga Hill. A Broga Hill expedition was also included in our residential activities.

Power Shift Malaysia: MYD Retreat

After a four-hour ETS, 40-minutes KTM, and a half-and-hour UBER ride, I finally reached University of Nottingham Malaysia Campus (UNMC) - the campsite of the Malaysia Youth Delegation (MYD) retreat on Saturday morning (15/4/2017).