Activist hopes the climate sceptics are right

A strong presence of activists outside the UN talks venue in the Bella Centre will and should influence the negotiations going on inside. This is according to seasoned climate activist Carina Dunkerley, who is turning up to do her bit.

»I firmly believe in environmental protests and direct action were key to these decisions. As the content of the treaty is still very much up for grabs in Copenhagen,« she says.

Carina plans to take part in protests on 12 December, to attend the alternative KlimaForum events, she says.

Climate-spangled banner

Carina is co-founder of The London Orchard Project, an organisation to increase the planting of fruit trees in urban spaces.

»This is my own response to the two most pressing issues of our time: climate change and food security,« she says.

Dunkerley is, together with four friends, leaving for Copenhagen in a train full of activists from different countries. Carina and her friends are intending to travel in fancy dress, as five pirates.

»Many other people I have met at protests in the UK, including at the Camp for Climate Action will also be going, so I hope to meet them there, as well as to meet other activists from all around Europe«, she says.

Protesting helps

Carina has been involved in climate change action and protests in the UK for the past 3 years, and has seen how effective social action has been in changing policy in the UK, she explains.

Two climate disaster examples from Britain prove her argument, she claims.

The building of a new coal fire power station at Kingsnorth, and the building of a third runway at Heathrow. The plans for the coal fire power station have now been shelved, and it is also looking unlikely that the third runway will ever get built.

»I firmly believe that environmental protests and direct action were key to these decisions. As the content of the treaty is still very much up for grabs in Copenhagen, I believe a strong presence of activists outside the UN talks venue will influence the negotiations going on inside,« she says.

No climate conspiracy

Recently, email correspondence at a top British university was leaked, raising questions about climate change scientists credibility.

»I was totally shocked. With an issue as complex as climate change, where I have no understanding of the science, I trust climate change. I trust the conclusions of the IPCC. So I was shocked to discover that some scientists may have presented data in a misleading way. However, the isolated actions of a few scientists, and e-mails taken out of context do not change the conclusions reached by the overwhelming majority of scientists working on climate change,« she says.

»I hope that the climate change sceptics are right. But I simply cannot believe there is a global climate change conspiracy going on,« she says.

Let it grow

In the meantime, she will be standing outside the talks, influencing things as they go on inside.

»I am hoping that my banner will be seen by as many delegates to the UN conference as possible, so intend to spend a lot of time outside the venue,« she says.

uni-avis@adm.ku.dk