{"id":1618,"date":"2023-12-12T14:46:17","date_gmt":"2023-12-12T14:46:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.swarthmore.edu\/cop\/?p=1618"},"modified":"2023-12-12T14:46:17","modified_gmt":"2023-12-12T14:46:17","slug":"there-is-no-climate-justice-without-human-rights-the-peoples-plenary","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.swarthmore.edu\/cop\/2023\/12\/12\/there-is-no-climate-justice-without-human-rights-the-peoples-plenary\/","title":{"rendered":"\u201cThere is no climate justice without human rights\u201d: The People\u2019s Plenary"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

By: Emmy Li’25 (she\/her)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Grandmother Mary Lyons, Anishinaabe-Ojibwe Elder, from the Indigenous Peoples Organization giving the opening speech at the People’s Plenary.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

For the second year in a row, the Swarthmore delegation attended the People\u2019s Plenary, a large gathering of civil society representatives making their voices and demands heard. Similar to COP27, this event was nowhere to be found on the UNFCCC COP28 Daily Programme schedule despite being an official UN sanctioned event. However, after learning of it in group chats, we officially marked it on our calendars and excitedly attended. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The People\u2019s Plenary, by far, did not disappoint. After spending nearly two weeks sitting in on stalled negotiations or witnessing the constant greenwashing around the venue, it was rejuvenating to hear the voices of those fighting climate change on the frontlines. Representatives from Indigenous Peoples, youth, women and gender constituencies, environmental NGOs, trade unions, and farmers all came together to give impassioned speeches calling for real climate solutions – ones that recognize Indigenous rights, labor rights, land rights, and human dignity. Hearing their voices gave me hope that we will find real solutions to combat climate change. That eventual fossil fuel phase out is possible despite parties blocking it from happening in negotiations currently. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

A noticeable theme across speeches at the People\u2019s Plenary this year was a calling for the immediate ceasefire in Palestine. During the opening speech, the co-chair started by stating that she is from Palestine. Immediately, the whole room erupted into cheers of support and solidarity that continued for more than a minute. The calls for solidarity with Palestinians continued throughout the People\u2019s Plenary, despite the regulations put in place by the UNFCCC Secretariat. I later learned from an organizer with the Climate Action Network (CAN) Australia that protests at COP28 are all strictly approved, controlled, and enforced. In regards to support for Palestine, protestors are not allowed to mention Palestine by name (despite the State of Palestine having a designated pavilion), cannot chant \u201cFrom the River to the Sea,\u201d and can only call for a \u201cCeasefire\u201d but NOT \u201cCeasefire Now\u201d. If protestors violate these restrictions, they risk having their badge taken away and being barred from attending COPs in the future. Despite these restrictions, those who spoke at the People\u2019s Plenary asserted their voices to echo the overall theme that \u201cthere is no climate justice without human rights.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Image from a protest earlier in the week. Notice how the sign can only display “Ceasefire” but cannot display “Ceasefire Now.”<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Given the various moving speeches, I would like to take the rest of this blog post and dedicate it to sharing the voice of the people. Representatives from all across the globe emphasized their extreme frustration with the existing UNFCCC system, a need for a just transition, and an overhaul of the existing capitalist, exploitative system that causes marginalized BIPOC communities to suffer the most at the hands of rich countries in the Global North.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

From the Co-Chairs of the People\u2019s Plenary:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n