World People's Conference on Climate Change and the Rights of Mother Earth

With the world moving at an ever-quickening pace, it is very important to document the change process as it is happening. Static Photography has had the opportunity to be at some of these world-changing events such as the United Nations Climate Change Conference that took place in Copenhagen, Denmark in December of 2009.

Another such event is taking place in Bolivia this week called the World People's Conference on Climate Change and the Rights of Mother Earth. This conference is more directed towards a people's movement for negotiating climate justice legislation on a global level.

THE CONFERENCE 

The World People's Conference on Climate Change and the Rights of Mother Earth is especially monumental for it is the first large conference on climate change after its large world predecessor in Copenhagen. This conference is taking place April 19 to 22, 2010 in Cochabamba, Bolivia. The four days are broken up into group sections which will cover topics such as structural causes of climate change, institution of a Climate Justice Tribunal, climate migrants and refugees, climate debt, technology transfer, and action strategies for dealing with impacts of climate change.

The major difference in this event is that the final documents that will come at its conclusion will be created at the base level that is affected by climate change: people. From world leaders, to indigenous communities, everyone will have a voice and the ability to speak forth about the topics that are present in their communities. Unlike other conferences, this particular event allows all attendees to submit agenda items for discussion which empowers everyone to have a direct involvement in how climate change affects their community. In direct response to COP15, this conference should have a powerful message.

 

OUR PARTICIPATION AT COP15

This journey would be a follow-up documentation to the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen that photographer Kris Krüg attended in December of last year. Kris was an official photographer of the international campaign TckTckTck. TckTckTck was an international effort to connect smaller NGOs to create a large global campaign around the importance that a legal, fair and binding contract came out of COP15.

Kris was able to shoot the inside of the Fresh Air Center, the actual negations that took place within the Bella Center and the countless protests that conveyed on the streets of Copenhagen during the conference.

These photos were vital media for writers who used them in blog posts but mostly for the people who were not present at the conference. Kris also had the opportunity to advice a photography project by TckTckTck called Time to Click which showcased photography from global communities that were directly affect by climate change.

 

THE IMPORTANCE OF ATTENDANCE

With the success of the Fresh Air Center in Copenhagen as a means for citizen journalism to rise as a major player in documenting world events, a few brave soldiers are making the trek down to Bolivia to cover this conference. There will be no "official" media center, but the available journalists and media makers will be producing content and providing needed updates to this major event. Photographer Kris Krüg and studio manager Danielle Sipple would be the only two Vancouverites attending the conference and it would be a sure missed opportunity if western Canada was not represented down there. A small but growing Twitter list has been created with the people that are attending the conference.

With the remoteness of the conference's location and the urgency of having this world event documented, Static Photography is going out on a limb and footing the entire bill for this trip! This entire trip is being planned just within the last week or so and there are a few ways you can help to make this journey happen.

 

HELP FROM OUR FRIENDS

Our good friend, environmental hero and international photographer Chris Jordan has graciously donated a 20x24 signed print of one of his photographs to auction off as travel sponsorship to the conference. Chris heard our call for sponsorships and really believed in the need for this trip to happen. Chris Jordan is an amazing photographer and the help of this donation is allowing this monumental trip to happen.

Chris Jordan creates large scale photographs that often speak directly to the mass consumption of products in the world today. He has photographed the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, large industrial yards showing the chaos of disposable society and most recently, the devastating effects of plastic pollution on the Albatross population on Midway Island in the Pacific Ocean. He also produced a series of photographs called Running the Numbers which depicts ordinary objects in the staggering numbers that they represent in the world. His art has been shown around the world with some of the pieces reaching over 10 feet in height.

 

THE JOURNEY

Static Photography will be leaving for a 27 hour travel journey to Bolivia this week to make it for the start of the conference on April 19th. Chairman of the Environmental Parliament Dr Pano Kroko has granted journalistic accreditation to documentarians Kris and Danielle for the duration of the conference. This accreditation will allow them to participate in the conference proceedings and document the people and process. Coverage of this conference is immediately necessary due to the lack of North American journalists that are attending.

 

HOW CAN YOU HELP

There will be a few ways to support this Static Photography and the immense cost of this trip. The first is by placing a bid on signed 20x24 print of Chris Jordan's photograph from his series 'Intolerable Beauty'. All of the proceeds of this auction will go directly to the cost of travel to the conference. The relativity of Jordan's work to mission behind the World People's Conference on Climate Change and the Rights of Mother Earth coincide preciously with the same fervor in the necessary vocalization of the ways the world is changing. The perfection of the whole auction is that by supporting our journey down to Bolivia you can be owner of a piece of work that supports that decision as well.

If you want to help but aren't in the market to buy art... make a donation to our ChipIn page for the World Peoples's Conference on Climate Change. This is created for the people who want to support the trip but may only have a certain amount to contribute.

A third way is through helping spread the content that comes from the conference. We will be producing a bunch of pictures, videos, photo essays and blog posts. This would be a great way to support this trip!

 

A FINAL NOTE

This journey is challenging in many ways but definitely worth it when considering the history it is documenting. We cannot stress the importance of this opportunity as well as the honor it is to have this opportunity. Issues effect the world community on a universal level and this conference is giving the people a direct voice in how to legislate these effects.

If you are interested in placing a bid on the auction for a print of photograph from Chris Jordan's Intolerable Beauty series, you can find information right here.

Published author Kety Esquival tells why she is heading to Cochabamba

Council of Canadians ask for the attendance of Canadian Government at PWCCC

Bolivia Recharges the Fight to Rescue our Climate by Bill Mckibben

World People's Conference on Climate Change Facebook Page

World People's Conference on Climate Change Facebook Event Listing