Aimee Barnes

The official COP process this week has felt a little bit like running on a treadmill. No matter how fast you feel you've been moving, the whole thing never seems to have gone very far.

That said, I feel partially responsible for a news stream out of COP this year that has gone from bleak to bleaker. True, the negotiations may get us little more than a schedule of meetings for the next year, during which time much progress will have to be made before Copenhagen. At the same time, given the U.S. presidential purgatory we're in for the next month or so, it's hard to think we could have expected a whole lot more. So, in the spirit of the holidays, I think it's worth taking a moment to...

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After a lively weekend of holiday fairs, cocktail receptions and NGO parties, the beginning of week two at the United Nations International Climate Change negotiations in Poznań got off to a slow start. The official negotiations were cancelled in observance of the Muslim holiday Eid ul-Adha, so most participants spent their time milling around side events and other informal discussions. 

With a week left to go in the process, there are mixed emotions about how much progress has been made so far, and how much we can expect over the next few days.  A key figure in the process lamented this weekend that although we are halfway to Copenhagen (where COP will be taking place in...

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The word of the day today in Poland was adaptation.

This is a word that many who work on climate change have hoped to avoid, until somewhat recently. At least part of this aversion has been related to the perception that people may lose interest in the issue if they feel like it's a lost cause. In other words, if we admit climate impacts are already occurring, why not just focus entirely on preparing for the inevitable?

Unfortunately, evidence from many corners of the world is already showing impacts of our changing climate, and the IPCC Fourth Assessment Report on "Impacts, Adaptation, and Vulnerability" documents already observed changes in natural and...

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For many engaged in the global carbon markets through the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM), today's experience in Poznań was like finally having their day in court. For the unfamiliar, the CDM is a "flexible mechanism" created under the Kyoto Protocol that enables investment by developed (Annex I countries) in project-based activities to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in developing (non-Annex I countries). The purpose of the CDM is to promote meaningful reductions in developing country GHGs while also promoting sustainable development. If a project undertaken through the CDM can rigorously prove and document that the associated emission reductions would not have otherwise...

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This morning I arrived at the Poznań conference center bright and early and joined the massive cue through security and to obtain the official badge that will gain me access to all the events over the next two weeks (and free passage on Poznań's public transport system!).

There is always something exhilarating about arriving at COP for the first day. The energy is palpable, and already in the early morning the halls are pulsating with people from every corner of the world. From dreadlocked college students and government dignitaries, to business leaders, protestors, NGO leaders and indigenous group representatives, it's a diverse and inspiring group, and you can...

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