Tuesday At The Ccf

Climate youth 2 youth

A joined Danish climate class from Gasværkvej School gets a visit from an African class. 

re a t a h w ... doing t he y

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■ The kitchen at the City Hall of Copenhagen is showing sympathy for the climate. »We dont serve rice, and we only use foods from the Nordic countries. We dont want anything transported from far away, because of the CO2-pollution,« Thomas Granddahl says. He is a chef in the kitchen and serves 80% of the food that the 165 Ambassadors are going to eat during the week. Jerry from Hong Kong is very satisfied with the menu. »I have been eating rice for 16 years, and actually I enjoy a break and something different, he says.« ■ 30 ambassadors walk around with their right hands on their heads, moving their fingers at a workshop. This means they are done with their assignment and the facilitator can move on with the program. With 44 countries represented it could be difficult for the students to communicate, but hand signs give everybody the possibility of understanding. Especially during the discussions, a little wave is often used to show agreement and understanding. ■ The Danish pop group ABC joins the action at the Childrens Climate Forum. Yesterday they played their song My World at the City Hall. »Its not ABCs song, its our song,« one of the four singers, Patricia, said. The song is going to be recorded with the delegates as a choir.

 Photo: Jens Astrup

Field trip and Danish Pastry The delegates from North- and Latin America had to survive a local bustrip and bycyclepaths on their way to Guldbergskolen on Nørrebro.

by alexander Adamsen, Victoria Kruse, Frederikke Ørstad, Mohamoud Abdi, Philippa Nielsen, Sofie Olsen og Anne Høyer

■ Entering the main hall of Copenhagen City Hall, you meet a buzzing sound from all the young delegates. They are preparing themselves for today’s programme. Some of them are going to Guldbergskolen on Nørrebro in Copenhagen. Finally we are ready to leave the City Hall. The big crowd walks determinedly towards the bus station. Everybody is excited about today’s events. The bus is extremely packed with both delegates and locals. It is hard to breathe. »I am stunned by the lack of room in here,« smiles Andria from Brazil to

another delegate. After a ten-minute bus trip, it is now time to get off. Sound of bike bells

With great curiosity, the delegates observe Nørrebro, the heart of Copenhagen. The sound of loud bike bells catches their interest. »You need to get of the bike path, please,« one of the schoolteachers from Guldbergskolen, shouts. The children slowly move to the side,

»

You need to get of the bike path.

Schoolteacher shouts

and it is obvious that they are not familiar with this kind of traffic. The schoolteacher once again takes the lead, and the children begin to walk after him. It looks like a long row of snails. They are amazed by the surroundings.

Some of the delegates observe a bunker nearby in a green grass area, and the schoolteacher begins to tell them stories from the Second World War. At last we arrive at the school, met by many smiling faces. The teachers have prepared some Danish pastry along with soft drinks. They enjoy the Danish delicacies and small talk with the other delegates and students. Four students take their places in front of the large screen. The presentation begins and they begin to tell about Danish culture and its attractions. While the youngsters talk about Tivoli, H.C. Andersen and the little mermaid an interpreter helps the Haitians understand what is said. After the Danish presentation delegates from the five countries - Haiti, Bolivia, Brazil, Canada and The United States - begin their slideshows. Later they are going to paint four pictures for the school walls. [email protected]

What do climate changes mean to you and your family?



Andria Farias, 15 years old, Brazil

Daniel Christensen, 16 years old, Denmark

Mohamed Axam Maumoon, 15 years old, The Maldives

»I live in the Amazon, and the rainforest cycle has been changing. There was a big flood in the city I live in, and many people had to leave their homes. Even though the government helped build new houses, people are afraid of going back. They are afraid it will happen again.«

»Due to the fact that we live in Denmark, we haven’t really been suffering from the climate changes yet. But I have visited a lot of places where the climate changes have had a huge influence on the lives of many people and have caused great damage. The young have every right to participate in the debate; after all it is our future.«

»The climate changes are ruining our industry. The sea life at the coral reef, which surrounds our islands and makes sure that we don’t get flooded, is dying because of the rise in temperature. That will ruin our fishing export. Then we won’t have enough resources to import the vegetables and meat that we can’t produce ourselves because the soil is too salty.«

Photos: Ricardo Pires

youth journalists cover children’s climate forum In the week prior to the COP15, 164 teenagers from 44 countries are participating in their own climate forum at Copenhagen City Hall, hoping to influence the decisions of the world leaders. But adults are prohibited. The Danish newspaper Urban has made an alliance with youth journalists from Oerestad Gymnasium to join the fight in giving the children a voice in the international climate debate. This wallpaper has been made possible through the partnerships of Urban, the City of Copenhagen, UNiCEF Denmark and Oerestad Gymnasium.