Eyes wide shut in climate negotiations

With civil society observers removed from the negotiations, the UN’s veil of transparency has been thrown out of the window.

Civil society observers have been removed from the negotiations because certain countries like Japan are too afraid of being watched. Instead of allowing these passionate onlookers to enrich the discussions with a wealth of experience from solutions taking place on the ground, their doors have been locked.

This is particularly dangerous for those most vulnerable countries to climate change. Observers represent and support the groups that are most severely impacted, and especially those countries that cannot afford to send large negotiating teams here in Bonn. With the workload this week, it is easy to see why these countries feel threatened, not on the outside, but even within the UN climate negotiations.

The hashtag #KeepUsInTheRoom has been launched in social media to send a strong signal that the climate negotiations are not about small narrow issues, but about the future we all deserve to shape.

(Video with English and Greek subtitles)

Originally published on adoptanegotiator.org