By vikkichowney on December 12, 2009
In short, I should be. I finally got semi-accreditation at the end of last week (in the form of an NGO pass no less), but as is always the issue, logistics and red tape have been the only prohibiting factor in gaining access to the summit.
Oxfam once again invested resource and time in sponsoring me to attend. Without being part of a large news group or agency, it’s almost impossible to get in as a blogger without this. They’ve always been very good at providing this support without expecting specific coverage in return, which gave me a lot of freedom at the G20 summits in London and Pittsburgh.
The accreditation process for COP15 raised the usual issues, the first of which was an online form that timed out after a few minutes, making it a veritable race to complete before you got thrown off the site. Then, like Pittsburgh, when some of the bloggers under the Tck Tck Tck banner (the group that represents a wide variety of charities) weren’t approved – we were asked to re-apply, putting NGO contacts down to signal to the UN that we’d be attending under their approval. When I found out that this process had been closed, as the accreditation team had approved TOO many media, journalists and NGOs than the venue could actually hold – without even processing governmental staff yet – I threw my hands up in despair.
I decided then not to go, as I didn’t see the point in adding to the estimated 41,000 tonnes of “carbon dioxide equivalent” that will be emitted “for the whole conference including travel to and from Copenhagen”. I didn’t get accreditation for Pittsburgh either, and spent a lot of the time in the official offsite media centre. It was fine, but I found it frustrating as I could have watched the live feeds on Sky or the BBC from anywhere.
Even though the majority of world leaders only flew out late this week, lending my input for Copenhagen while back in the UK is proving to be tough. I’m led to conclude that actually, though being there but not BEING there was irritating to me, being in the local vicinity meant that I was still plugged in. I could still talk to the other delegates, media and observers for a different opinion. Whatever people might say, sitting in a room with someone that can answer a question vs. blogging from the other side of Europe with relatively little external input is a very different thing.
I’m disappointed that even though time and time again, online journalists and bloggers have proven themselves to be vital in providing a diverse range of viewpoints, it’s still incredibly difficult to get an appropriate level of access. I’m not asking for a free for all, but I haven’t seen any input on what’s happening at COP15 from any perspective other than major broadcasters or NGOs. What I’m really missing is what this means to the average person on the street, and an opportunity to influence or ask questions as the summit happens.
Posted in Charity/NGO, Events |
By vikkichowney on December 12, 2009
I didn’t do very well at NaBloPoMo. I lasted for about two weeks, posting a short piece every day, but then I hit a wall. It wasn’t that I couldn’t find anything good enough to write about, it was simply a matter of time.
I’m not really sure why I attempted the project in the first place, I think I was just curious to see if I’d learn anything. In fact, I really have.
I went through what I’d assume is the typical cycle for anyone attempting one of the various video/blog/novel projects that happened throughout November: proud that I got through the first week, naively thinking it would be fine to put it off till the last thing I did during week two, hating that I’d agreed to do it and resorting to posting photos on week three, then utterly exhausted/skipping it entirely on week four.
The purpose of National Blog Posting Month from the organiser’s perspective seems to be encouraging creativity among bloggers, but I actually found the opposite to be true. I’m a firm believer in the fact that creativity can’t be forced. It can be encouraged, through inspirational surroundings or such, but when I signed up – I’d made a commitment. Maybe that says a lot about my own character, but I couldn’t look at it as anything else.
It became a bit of a chore. All of a sudden I wasn’t enjoying writing for my blog, I was resenting it. Maybe it’s because I’m a writer during the day, and produce a lot of content that fits into an editorial schedule. Therefore, having one at home as well didn’t suit me?
Perhaps it was the sheer volume of it all. Since I started this blog, I’ve been setting my times and places to write for it – and I’ve never felt tied down. Or perhaps it’s just as simple as placing priority on what pays the bills over what doesn’t. You can be utterly in love with a subject, but if you’re exhausted from a day of work, it makes no difference. Whereas some people may have responded well to the project, I wonder if it’s those writing their blog full time that found it more useful – instead of those that treat their blogs as a secondary output.
Posted in NaBloPoMo |
By vikkichowney on November 23, 2009
So, I’m behind on NaBloPoMo, REALLY behind. I feel bad, as I wanted to do the full month, but sometimes other things just get in the way. I’m not going to rest on it for too long, and instead have written the digest-style piece below covering seven interesting things I’ve seen or done in the past week:
1. Greenbang covered the new pan-European ‘Sensors Anywhere’ (SANY) project, which is attempting to make it possible for data could to be freely and easily exchanged by researchers across the globe. Most importantly for me, this would make it possible for policy-makers seeking ways to better adapt to climate change.
2. I spoke at the 140 character conference on Tuesday about G20 Voice and how the project only worked because of the technology we were able to use to ‘report back’. I meant to finish by saying that the key aspect was the element of freedom (no restrictions or expectations on what we had to cover) within a fairly strcutured programme. We as bloggers always expect to do whatever we want to, but actually, still respond to having some kind of schedule to dip in and out of.
3. Helen Christenson launched her photography show ‘Meltdown’ on Wednesday, which tracks her journey through her mother’s homeland, observing the effect of climate change on the landscape.
4. The highlight of the BIMA awards 2009 on Thursday was a performance by Beardyman. I couldn’t believe that one man could so acurately beatbox like that. Incredible.
5. Treehugger showed us a new stylish concept for solar power charging – the iPetal. It’s nowhere near production, but in a world where appearance is everything, it’s products like this that are going to drive a mass audience to ‘be green’.
6. A Guardian story popped up in my Google Reader during the week about Siemens’ new bulbs. Exciting huh? Well, actually the new LED lights use less than a quarter of the electricity of a standard traffic light, and cut down on emissions related to fleets of vans having to change them every six months. The concept won first prize this week in the energy and environment category of the inaugural iAwards, set up by the government’s Business, Innovation and Skills department.
7. Bizarre news came out yesterday that computer hackers had broken into computers at the Climate Research Unit (CRU) at East Anglia University and claim the data they found proves that global warming has been overstated. The CRU responded by saying; “[our] research is, and has always been, fully peer-reviewed by the relevant journals, and is one strand of research underpinning the strong consensus that human activity is affecting the world’s climate in ways that are potentially dangerous.”
Posted in Charity/NGO, NaBloPoMo, PR & Marketing |
By vikkichowney on November 14, 2009
While pondering today’s NaBloPoMo (almost halfway there!), I came across a tweet from my good friend Alfie Dennen’s new project Bus. Tops. Just a little shout out before I continue, as its just been chosen as one of the 12 commissions of public art across the country by the Arts Council and the London 2012 Cultural Olympiad. Very exciting news.
With this in mind, the Bus. Tops account had posted the link to another bus stop and arts related project; an exhibit in the Tate Modern’s 2007 series ‘Global Cities‘. It was in fact, Treehugger’s coverage (which is one of my favourite eco-blogs, alongside Greenmonk and Greenbang).
“…too bad it’s just part of an art show, rather than out on the streets. For his commission, the artist Nils Norman has borrowed a bus shelter, a sign and a lamppost from London Transport and turned them into vehicles for environmental information whilst making them look like everyday advertising.”
The posters depict impending environmental disasters and the roof has been adapted to show how green spaces could look in the future. Nice.
Posted in NaBloPoMo |