A lot has happened in the world since November 2021, when COP26 came to my home city of Glasgow. We’ve seen Russia go to war with Ukraine, causing upheaval for many citizens, a new IPCC report has outlined that global warming is not being addressed quickly enough, and Will Smith’s actions at the Oscars seem to be getting more public attention than climate change ever does (yet again).

It’s not all bad news.

The IPCC report has shone a spotlight on global opportunities to act on the climate emergency now, and some parts of the world have shown accelerated climate action including Germany announcing its decision to bring forward 100% renewable power by 2035 - there is hope for our future!

So many negatives sparking against the positives made my COP26 experience feel more relevant than ever. So here’s a recap of what I learned and what I now think as a result of attending many events at COP26.

A favourite venue was the New York Times Climate Hub.

Several panels were held within what felt like an indoor forest! You can watch the NYT events here. Those I enjoyed included Michael Mann, Mary Robinson, Wanjira Mathai, and Dame Ellen MacArthur - they opened my eyes to the reality of the need for new energy solutions, and of climate migration which I hadn’t appreciated the potential impact of before.

Fleeing danger is a reality of climate change today.

Every day on the news, we see what many from Ukraine are having to face due to recent actions from Russia, a problem which reflects the close parallels of dealing with a crisis that will grow if we do not combat climate change correctly.

Similarly, where we invest our resources for energy was debated at the NYT Climate Hub, an issue which has been felt by many in recent weeks with rising fuel prices becoming hard to tackle. Goals House continued the debate about energy as part sourcing ideas for climate solutions during their Switch Pitch panel. What is clear to me is that energy will continue to become a greater risk to overcome, affecting the poorest the most, showing again how climate change, politics and world economies are all interlinked and cannot be seen as issues to manage in isolation.

The Female Quotient Equality Lounge was a favourite at COP26.

Held at Wood House, this event highlighted the role of diversity and inclusion on climate action. Here we heard from individuals such as Anders Rodenberg from Denominator, who had fantastic insights on the disparities between sectors on diversity outcomes. Diversity and inclusion panels (you can see them here) included Deeana Ahmed (Our Next Energy) and Fiona Bannister of Decarbonized, with perspectives I’ve continued to contemplate since! These insights inspired the data-minded part of me to seek more climate justice facts both locally and globally, with an inspiration to help improve awareness of this within our TEDx community.

People were again at the heart of COP26.

People I met became a huge part of the COP26 experience, and I’ll continue to learn from them. Cameron Saul of TogetherBand was one such individual, who collaborated with UN Global Compact to bring Indigenous, Brazilian and Climate activists together at COP26. Their personal insights were an emotive urgency for action that is needed now.

Additionally fascinating was a perspective John Elkington shared with me, (he’s one of 2021’s TEDxGlasgow Make or Break speakers). It was clear to him that COP26 was different, and he’d met more people than ever who were attending COP for the first time, including me! We agreed it is extremely positive for more people to participate, holding leaders to account on their commitments and seeing future generations being part of the climate debate.

I agree with John Elkington.

The inclusion and growth of people being involved must continue in order to address climate change effectively - diversity and inclusion really matter! New to the COP experience, it will be hard to forget; the people, the discussions and the broad perspectives I’ve been part of, all of which have restored my climate optimism.

So what’s next?

I’ll continue to work on the 2030 strategy for TEDxGlasgow, and I’ll proudly wear my TogetherBand for goal 17 as we proceed; pushing partnerships for the goals for ongoing action will be a focus for me at TEDxGlasgow, and encouraging ongoing improvements of COP26's Glasgow Pact. Climate justice is on the table more than ever!

By Zebunisa Ahmed, TEDxGlasgow Head of Strategy

Header picture - me (centre), with Wood House panel members

COP26 Then and Now