Tag: Bonn

The usually sleepy climate negotiations were given a wake up alarm call today by a wailing siren outside the conference centre. It was an NGO stunt involving two trucks and two very loud air raid sirens, each enclosed in a locked cage. To turn the sirens off, the police had to cut their way through each metal cage to reach the machinery and arrest the protesters.

On their way to the plenary delegates at the UN climate talks here in Bonn, pass by a ragged bear holding up a sign: 'No coins, it's change I need.' It is a silent protest. If we would hold a minutes silence for each of the death caused by climate change, we would not be uttering a word for the next 180 days and even longer.

It was an aerial photo made by more than 400 volunteers who braved heavy rain to send out their message to the world.

The areal image was possible thanks to white boiler suits that were provided by the tck tck tck campaign. The passionate activists included members of NGOs from all over the world as well as local participants. 

We all lay down in a park near the climate negotiations meeting, using our bodies to spell out the words "Yes You Can".

Behind the paraphernalia of a United Nations International meeting, remains the harsh reality of the negotiations: little is decided in the long and boring plenary sessions, rather key discussions happen in front of a coffee – or a beer – in between hours.