Climate Bottom Meeting

The climate meeting COP15 in Copenhagen has started today, and the city is full of people concerned with climate issues on all scales. The conference arena in Bella Centre is packed with delegates from all over the world, (and as the news said today, there was not enough space for the huge interest), a boat from Greenpeace arrived a couple of days ago, and thousands of activists, researches and other interested people from all over the world are gathering throughout the city to, in many different ways, take part of the 1,5 week long conference.

What is to be said and decided in these Climate Change meetings is uncertain and vague for me. They’ll probably not solve one single climate problem in Bella Centre (and anyhow it seems inaccessible in many ways to most people), but one already apparent result is the grand attention towards climate issues in all kinds of fora. Wherever you walk in Copenhagen you’ll either hear, see or feel there is something going on, and there are many ways to approach and participate the climate debate these days…

One opportunity is to go to Christiania, where they every single day have a “Climate Bottom Meeting” which will serve as an alternative view on the climate issue, and how we all can change the world. You’ll find the whole program on this page, but I will highlight two days which seems interesting for city planners and/or bicycle enthusiasts :)

Sunday 13th - Ecological Construction and Urban Renewal from Below Focus on sustainable building/architecture and urban change.

Monday 14th – Sustainable Energy – The Ecological Footprint Focus on new forms of energy, and how to get to the CO2-neutral society. I will definitely try to attend the part of this meeting concerning bicycles…

Transport
Moderator: Jane Kruse, Danish People’s Center.

14.20-14.40 Christoffer Lux and Anders Rosenqvist Energy-Bike and its successful story Also demonstration of the bike by children from Christiania

15.00-15.15 Per Jørgensen Møller, Engeneer & President of the Danish Committee for Electric Cars The cars of the future

15.20-15.50 Esben Larsen & Chresten Træholt, lecturer at the Danish Technical University and students from DTU Electric cars, what then?

15.55-16.15 Holger Jørgensen, Bicyclelogical Institute The modern Transport-structure with coupling to climate care and bicycle traffic

16.20-16.30 Lars Engstrøm and Annie Lerche, Christiania Bikes The fairytale of the Christiania bikes

Jane Kruse outlines and introduces the hall to:

16.35-16.50 Lars Barfoed (Conservative Party), transport minister ‘Future Transport System  in Denmark’ Mike Legarth (CP), spokeman for Christiania