So CSAG have sucessfully completed their week at COP17. A weary team made it back to Cape Town yesterday, exhausted but in good spirits after a productive week. Reflecting on the week we can be proud of our input. While not a lot was going on in the negotiations, CSAG were busy working around the edges, hosting numerous side events and constantly restocking the fliers at the stand. The ACDI stand generated a lot of activity, with news of the sun jar competition spreading rapidly around the venue. We even had a visit from a high-level minister…. we have his business card somewhere so shortly he will be added to the growing CSAG enews mailing list.
My reflections on COP? It surprised me how close I could be to the negotiations and yet had no idea what was going on! It is like being invited to a party and then only being allowed to mingle around the front door and never able to get close to the kegs of beer and plates of snacks they have in the kitchen. I left feeling a little cheated but none-the-less happy that I’d been there to comiserate about it with everyone else left in the front hall. That said, it was significantly better than COP15 when the door was never opened and I was left out in the snow.
But now back at my computer, I look forward to catching up on what happened and what will be happening this week….. Thanks COP17, it’s been real.