The Copenhagen climate conference taught me we will have to adapt to the effects of climate change. If this had not been clear in my mind beforehand, the stories I heard from global young people awoke me to reality. I heard about droughts in Kenya and floods in Bangladesh. Youth from my local area shared stories of environmental illnesses and inequities. In addition, Pershing, the head United States negotiator at the conference, explained to us in a hearing that while we do not know the exact amount of funding that will be needed for climate change adaptation in the coming decades, the numbers will be high and the need is urgent. Change has begun. I know that I cannot sit idly by as climate change accelerates.

What's next?

As I continue to reflect on my intense team experience of the negotiations, I ask myself how I can help a changing world transition into a healthier place where we will continue to face climate change. The most important lesson I learned in Copenhagen was how critical it is for me to work within my own community to create solutions to climate change. The Midwest will be a critically important region as we work for national climate legislation, and I have political power as a voter and organizer in a swing state. This legislation could help our Midwest states thrive as we shift to a new clean energy economy.

This fall, riding my bike around Minnesota with Reed, I saw many examples of climate solutions. This trip inspired me to find ways to engage my community through gardening, alternative transportation, and other measures for adapting to a changing world. The Midwest contains vast stretches of agricultural land and a large portion of the earth’s fresh water. We have many opportunities to lead the globe through local initiatives.

Through the Copenhagen conference, I also realized that my work to study past adaptations to climate change and vulnerable ecosystems has real value for us today. I fell in love with archaeology in high school and decided to focus on ancient food production in college. More sustainable, healthier agricultural systems are possible, and past farming techniques can provide examples for how to innovate and move forward without fossil fuels. Every area of study, and every student, can help us face the future as responsible citizens of the globe through local action. What will you do?

As COP15 comes to a close, actions at the conference center intensify. Many of you are probably wondering why this is happening or what it is achieving. I thought I could answer this in a very personal way based on my experiences at the conference. While at the conference, I have had conversations with people directly affected by climate change. Specifically, I met a boy from Bangladesh who told me about all the suffering he and his family have faced since a typhoon ruined his town. A boy from the Maldives, Mohamed Maumoon, explained to me that if his negotiators signed a bad deal, they would be signing a “suicide pact”. Clearly, emotions run high about the outcome of these negotiations, and many lives are on the line (Global Humanitarian Forum estimates that at present 300,000 people per year die as a result of climate change). Personally, I feel like I am on a roller coaster in which I waver between hope that we can make positive change and concern that there will never be a strong enough treaty to avoid further destruction.

The stakes are high. And in a youth briefing early this week, Pachauri, Chair of the IPCC, shared that he was losing his faith that nation-states could move quickly enough to solve this problem. I know many people who want desperately to stop climate change. We have various ideas about how solutions will be reached and how to channel our willingness for change. In the end, we want a just and ecologically sound world. Many of us believe the way to achieve that is by building a movement of people who can come together not just to ask for change from state officials but to create the solutions ourselves. While I will not participate in civil disobedience at this conference, I know that those who do seek climate justice.

Yesterday's march was thrilling. An estimated 100,000 people participated in the demonstration, and as someone who was there, my brain could not comprehend the scale of this massive call for climate action. While my camera is not shooting very defined pictures, I wanted to share what I have as we continue to write the story of what happened yesterday and what it means for the global climate movement.

The march consisted of 30 blocs with hundreds of people each. Expedition Copenhagen marched in bloc 5, which included youth constituents to the negotiations, 350.org, and the Tcktcktck campaign. Leading the march was the bloc of indigenous peoples. Our delegate Aurora participated in this bloc. Please see this video, from the UpTake, about why it was so important that indigenous peoples led this march.

At the end of the march there was a candle light vigil. A vigil was also held inside the Bella Center with Archbishop Desmond Tutu from 4-4:45 p.m., before the conclusion to the march.

I feel so lucky to have been able to take part in this day of action and feel energized to make the most I can of this next and final week of negotiations. Stay tuned.

Here is an article posted originally on It's Getting Hot in Here by Josh Lynch:

More than 30 youth from Australia, Mexico, India, Sweden, the US, Germany, and around the world staged a “die-in” today outside the main plenary at COP15 with the message – “The World Wants a Real Deal” and “Real Deal Saves Lives”.

A real deal was in jeopardy today as speculation emerged that the EU and Japan may steal billions of dollars from humanitarian aid budgets in order to offer it in a global climate deal. With more than 100 heads of state coming to Copenhagen next week it is hard to believe they would leave without some sort of agreement. The question now is – will they settle on a real deal or empty promises?

A real deal in Copenhagen means three things: Real Science. A Global Peak in Emissions by 2015. To save lives and avoid critical climate tipping points, global greenhouse gas emissions must peak by 2015, and atmospheric concentrations must rapidly decline to stable, safe level at 350ppm CO2e.

Real Money. $200 billion/year by 2020.
Developed countries need to provide at least US$200 billion in public financing per year by 2020, in addition to existing aid commitments, for developing country adaptation and mitigation actions.

Real Teeth. A Legally-Binding Treaty.
Leaders must agree at Copenhagen to sign a legally binding, enforceable treaty as soon as possible.

With climate change already causing 300,000 deaths every year, scientists and citizens worldwide have made it clear that anything short of a real deal in Copenhagen is unacceptable. More than 1500 climate vigils are already being planned for this Saturday, 12/12 all over the world to take the message that “The World Wants a Real Deal” beyond Copenhagen.

As we lay on the ground representing victims from flood, famine, and disease with eyes shut, we felt the pulse of cameras from more than 18 different news outlets. Shortly after the action the Guardian posted word on their front page – in a live blog from Copenhagen (See 3:10pm). The action has only just begun!

• View more Copenhagen action photos.
• Follow more actions throughout COP – @COPActions on Twitter.

All across the news this week we have been hearing about the many private jets flying into the U.N. climate negotiations. It seems unfortunate that this event, meant to solve climate change, will generate such a large carbon footprint. We too in Expedition Copenhagen will be flying overseas for this conference, and we acknowledge our contribution to these emissions. While we regret that we will be producing large amounts of carbon through our travel, we feel strongly that it is worth the difference we will be able to make through our participation in these historic negotiations.

We have chosen to offset our carbon through NativeEnergy, which is working to develop the Greensburg Wind Farm in Greensburg, Kansas. On May 4, 2007, a tornado leveled Greensburg, destroying 95% of the homes in the area. In the aftermath, residents committed to rebuilding as “the greenest town in America.” We are happy to support their endeavor.

In order to calculate the emissions for Expedition Copenhagen, we added up the carbon generated through all delegate and staff travel to our two trainings and the negotiations in Copenhagen via a carbon calculator available online. Once the total carbon emissions had been estimated, we used NativeEnergy's system to determine the quantity of offsets to purchase. These offsets will be used towards the development of wind energy, as described above. While we recognize that offset calculation is not a perfect science and cannot precisely make up for our emissions, we are glad to support renewable energy development in the Midwest and push our region to lead in the climate solutions we need and want.

School: University of Michigan Ann Arbor (alumna)
Areas of Study: Anthropology, Classical Archaeology, and Cello Performance

Maia grew up in Minnesota and attended school in Michigan and considers herself Midwestern through and through. In the summers of 2007 and 2008, Maia performed thesis research in Mayan archaeology in Belize. Her experiences studying anthropology at home and in Central America helped shape her understanding of the volatile relationships between human societies and the environment in the past and today. This work inspired her search for solutions to climate change and environmental degradation that would also answer the social justice problems we face today. She is especially excited about the potential for the Midwest to transition to an economy that takes advantage of the agricultural, manufacturing, water, and wind resources we share in the Midwest. She has been a member of the National Council of the Student Environmental Action Coalition and helped to host statewide conferences and retreats through the Michigan Student Sustainability Coalition. She has been a strong leader on campus, bringing social justice and environmental groups together around shared goals.

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