Well, what two weeks it has been.
After months of preparation, hours and hours of zoom calls, and endless Slack threads, Mock COP26 has finished on time and delivered the outcomes we aimed to achieve!
As I, and all the Mock COP26 team, look back over the last two weeks, we think about how incredible Mock COP26 has been, how many people we have got involved in, and how we have raised ambition for COP26 next year. Each staff member wrote one word, to sum up how they feel after the event:
You can also see what our delegates thought here:
When I blogged at the start of Mock COP26, I talked about why Mock COP was important – if you haven’t yet, I’d really encourage you to read it.
Before I go on to talk about what comes next, on behalf of the student staff team, I would like to make a few thank yous:
THANK YOU
- To all the Mock COP delegates. From over 140 countries, you are the people who have made Mock COP happen. From watching speaker videos, asking questions for panels, and debating in your timezone caucuses, we are beyond grateful for your dedication and participation in Mock COP26
- To all the Mock COP Volunteer Organisers. Over 200 people have given their time over the last few months to make Mock COP happen. From running social media pages and organising press outreach to facilitating caucus discussions, we are so glad to have worked with you.
- To all Mock COP’s supporters and funders: You have helped with connections, funding, as well as general support and amplifying our work. Over 500 people have donated to our Crowdfunder (if you would still like to donate, this is still open here) and we are extremely grateful to everyone who has done that – this will help fund our legacy work (more info below) We are also grateful to all our supporting organisations and funders, and especially to Clim8 Invest, Mock COP26’s sponsor. Without all of you, this couldn’t have happened.
- To absolutely everyone who has liked a post, watched a video, or done anything to support us – we are so grateful to all of you for being a part of this journey.
- On a personal note, I would like to say thank you to the rest of the Mock COP Staff team. It has been so, so, so amazing to work with all of you, we have done so much amazing work, and I can’t wait to see where we go next.
- By the numbers, we’ve got:
547 crowdfunder donors
350 delegates
216 volunteer organisers
18 student staff members
5 adult support staff from SOS-UK
50 supporting organisations
8 organisations giving financial support
40 speakers & facilitators
13 volunteer translators
6 live interpreters
18 fringe event hosts
4 support staff from Greenhouse PR
5 video producers
2 technology partners
30 academic fact checkers
16 academic contributers
5 academic partner organisations
4 legal advisors
This might be the end of our main event, but it is not the end. We still have to achieve climate justice. And Mock COP is not stopping now.
So, what next?
Earlier today, we launched our Global Statement, legally worded by our supporters over at Client Earth.
After a small break (maybe!) the Mock COP team will move to Phase 2, where we will aim to motivate, mentor, encourage and support delegates to take our Global Statement, our legal treaty, to their politicians, their leaders, and hopefully to COP26 in Glasgow next year.
I hope you’ll join us on this next stage of our journey. Keep an eye on our social media pages (@mockcop26) and our website (mockcop.org) to keep up to date with our work.
And if you’ve got ideas, contacts, or want to support us as we move to our next phase of this journey, we would love to hear from you at hello@mockcop.org.
The conclusion of MC26 constitutes the end of the start of our campaign to fill the void left by the postponement of COP26 with some progressive climate policies – please continue to support us.
From Teach the Future, to Mock COP26, COP26 next? Let’s aim high.
So, it’s not goodbye, it’s see you soon.