Cop26: A Reflection

The train ride back from Glasgow to Edinburgh was a time for reflection for me. The first few days I was there, I knew I would be heading back to Glasgow to observe the protests and watch the future generations call for action. However, there, at COP26, where change was supposed to be happening, it wasn’t. What if the government isn’t the right vehicle to create action and drive change? What if business needs to be the catalyst and start to demand and deliver effort to reach the 1.5-degree goal? Maybe companies shouldn’t wait for policy change but should join the growing cacophony of (often young) voices demanding government action.

We wanted to post a series of reflections at the end of each day.  But usually, our days ended with a “wee dram” and collapsing into bed.  So now we, through a series of short blogs, what we’re calling microblogs, want to unpack our experiences and takeaways from COP. We hope we can communicate the electric atmosphere we experienced. We hope we can ignite in you the same fire lit in us. Seeing a young girl, no more than 6, march in the cold, literally calling for “Climate Justice! Climate Justice!” Will move anyone.  And indeed, it starts with one. Change begins at a personal level, and we hope that each person who reads these blogs will feel inspired and empowered to be a part of the change our world so desperately needs. To achieve positive outcomes, we all need to unite as a multigenerational effort to create solutions and agreements that work for everyone.

We look forward to sharing this with you,

Dan