This week’s show gave our listeners insight into the 21st Conference of Parties (COP21), a conference of world leaders under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). Our hosts, Harry Rice, Ed Waisanen, Bailey Schneider, and Rebecca Hardin were joined in studio by members of the University of Michigan Climate Change Delegation and the ground control team that’s supporting them at the climate negotiations in Paris. We were also joined by V Epshteyn and Ellen Loubert from UM Divest and Invest to hear about some local action that is taking place on the University of Michigan campus and in Ann Arbor.

COP 21 just wrapped up its first week in Le Bourget, Paris and will extend until December 11. The goal of the conference is to reach a legally binding and universal agreement to combat climate change and reduce greenhouse gas emissions to limit global warming to 2°C above pre-industrial levels. Over 50,000 participants including government leaders, environmental advocates, NGOs, UN agencies, and academics will be in attendance.

The participants are categorized as negotiators or delegates. Ten University of Michigan and faculty members will participate as delegates. The UM delegates are given the duty to report on what happens at the conference and to ensure that the negotiations are transparent. The UM delegation is part of an elite group of universities that can attend the COP conference. You can follow them on twitter. 

We featured a clip from the second part of our climate series which ran earlier this year, entitled “City Limits to Climate Change.” Here are Katie Brown and Becca Baylor interviewing Dr. Paul Edwards about the history of the negotiations and what’s at stake at this year’s conference.

Divest and Invest is a “coalition of students, faculty, staff and alumni at the University of Michigan dedicated to divestment of fossil fuel financial assets.” You can follow them on facebook and twitter.  To keep fossil fuels in the ground and promote renewable energy resources, join Divest and Invest at the Michigan Climate March on Saturday, December 12 at 2:00 PM in front of the Federal Building in Ann Arbor.