Send Lou to COP22!
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Do you want to read original, hard-hitting stories about Africa’s role in the upcoming UN climate talks? I am primed and ready to report on all the big issues; I just need a little help to get there.
I am committed to working as hard as I can to bring the richest journalism to you from the UN’s COP Climate Change conference (background info on this conference below). If I make it to my goal, you will hear from me through blogs, picture stories, audio interviews, news and analysis.
My aim is to focus on African mitigation and adaptation policies, the new frontiers of African climate science and the financial aspects of climate response. I am going to paint a detailed and thought provoking picture of what the talks are all about.
I drafted a budget that will cover my return flights to Marrakech, 13 nights in a cheap hostel or B&B, and a small daily amount for food. It all amounts to £2500 but will make a world of difference to me and the great platform hosting my work. Climate change unfolds in Africa in complex and still unexplored ways. With your help we can make sure no story is left untold.
You can have a look at my work from previous COPs here , and here for my personal feed.
LIFE AFTER PARIS
Last year’s Paris climate conference was a blast. It was the kind of event you attend thinking of your grandchildren and how you will tell your story, beginning with: ‘I was there’.
And there I was, holding my breath, as after days and nights of painstaking talks, countries finally came together to put a stamp on the best climate pact the world had ever seen.
Few now remember that the deal was only a start.
For the media circus and much of the general public, climate change diplomacy was sorted once and for all then. But the Paris Agreement could still result in nothing if countries do not deliver on their promises. And that’s why this year’s COP is arguably as important as last years.
The UN is now getting ready to discuss the HOW last years agreement will play out.
They will do so in Morocco, giving a voice to a part of the world that despite being hit the hardest by climate change, has previously had little say in how the world responds to it. Finally, Africa will be at the forefront of the debate, and for international media this is an opportunity to listen and learn.
WHY SUPPORT ME
I am a journalist based in Nairobi - climate change and development issues are my passion and my area of expertise. Through my work I strive to put them at the service of the public. After working for three years in London, I decided to abandon my comfortable office job to embrace a freelance career in Africa.
You could also call me a bit of a COP geek. I have been following the work of the UNFCCC for more than six years now and attended the last three conferences in Warsaw, Lima and Paris.
Many African media outlets are gearing up for November’s appointment, and the conference will be under the spotlight here in the continent. But much of Western media will neglect it. Only a few big papers will bother sending their correspondents to Marrakech, and Africa may once again disappear from the global agenda.
WE CAN’T LET AFRICA GET LEFT BEHIND (AGAIN)
I’ve teamed up with Climate Home, a UK-based media outlet that delivers some of the best climate change journalism around. Don’t take my word for it, have a browse and see for yourself. Last summer, the organisation received a special grant to start its AfricaFiles pilot in the lead up to COP and beyond.
I have always been a fan of Climate Home because it constantly punches above its weight and never compromises on its journalism, and I feel very privileged to be part of this exciting project.
We are already cooking up some great stories together. But for our work to have the best impact, we need to cover the conference itself.
And that’s where our budget runs out. We face a difficult choice: either covering the conference providing no background, or build up to it with stories from Africa, and take a gamble and crowdfund what we need to complete the project.
I am committed to working as hard as I can to bring the richest journalism to you from the UN’s COP Climate Change conference (background info on this conference below). If I make it to my goal, you will hear from me through blogs, picture stories, audio interviews, news and analysis.
My aim is to focus on African mitigation and adaptation policies, the new frontiers of African climate science and the financial aspects of climate response. I am going to paint a detailed and thought provoking picture of what the talks are all about.
I drafted a budget that will cover my return flights to Marrakech, 13 nights in a cheap hostel or B&B, and a small daily amount for food. It all amounts to £2500 but will make a world of difference to me and the great platform hosting my work. Climate change unfolds in Africa in complex and still unexplored ways. With your help we can make sure no story is left untold.
You can have a look at my work from previous COPs here , and here for my personal feed.
LIFE AFTER PARIS
Last year’s Paris climate conference was a blast. It was the kind of event you attend thinking of your grandchildren and how you will tell your story, beginning with: ‘I was there’.
And there I was, holding my breath, as after days and nights of painstaking talks, countries finally came together to put a stamp on the best climate pact the world had ever seen.
Few now remember that the deal was only a start.
For the media circus and much of the general public, climate change diplomacy was sorted once and for all then. But the Paris Agreement could still result in nothing if countries do not deliver on their promises. And that’s why this year’s COP is arguably as important as last years.
The UN is now getting ready to discuss the HOW last years agreement will play out.
They will do so in Morocco, giving a voice to a part of the world that despite being hit the hardest by climate change, has previously had little say in how the world responds to it. Finally, Africa will be at the forefront of the debate, and for international media this is an opportunity to listen and learn.
WHY SUPPORT ME
I am a journalist based in Nairobi - climate change and development issues are my passion and my area of expertise. Through my work I strive to put them at the service of the public. After working for three years in London, I decided to abandon my comfortable office job to embrace a freelance career in Africa.
You could also call me a bit of a COP geek. I have been following the work of the UNFCCC for more than six years now and attended the last three conferences in Warsaw, Lima and Paris.
Many African media outlets are gearing up for November’s appointment, and the conference will be under the spotlight here in the continent. But much of Western media will neglect it. Only a few big papers will bother sending their correspondents to Marrakech, and Africa may once again disappear from the global agenda.
WE CAN’T LET AFRICA GET LEFT BEHIND (AGAIN)
I’ve teamed up with Climate Home, a UK-based media outlet that delivers some of the best climate change journalism around. Don’t take my word for it, have a browse and see for yourself. Last summer, the organisation received a special grant to start its AfricaFiles pilot in the lead up to COP and beyond.
I have always been a fan of Climate Home because it constantly punches above its weight and never compromises on its journalism, and I feel very privileged to be part of this exciting project.
We are already cooking up some great stories together. But for our work to have the best impact, we need to cover the conference itself.
And that’s where our budget runs out. We face a difficult choice: either covering the conference providing no background, or build up to it with stories from Africa, and take a gamble and crowdfund what we need to complete the project.
Organizer
Lou Del Bello
Organizer
