As earth warms, students travel far to protest

By Benita Singh

In 1997, the U.S. made a commitment in Kyoto, Japan. It was called the Kyoto Protocol and it pledged to reduce harmful greenhouse gas emissions by an average of 5.2 percent by 2012. Yet this year, domestic pollution has been on the rise as the U.S., which accounts for four percent of the world's population, also accounts for 25 percent of annual greenhouse gas pollution.

COURTESY GREENPEACE David Sandalow, PC '78, a main U.S. negotiator, surrounded by student protestors at the Hague conference. David Corson-Knowles, TC '03, shakes his hand.

Such statistics are a foremost concern for student activists David Corson-Knowles, TC '03, and Katherine Lo, CC '03. On Thurs., Nov. 17, Corson-Knowles and Lo, along with 223 students from across the U.S., attended the Hague Climate Convention in the Netherlands. All 225 activists were sponsored by Ozone Action, a non-profit public interest organization, and Greenpeace; Lo and Corson-Knowles applied to serve last spring and were selected in August.

The students joined delegates from around the world, who began negotiations on Mon., Nov. 13 to refine and implement the Kyoto Protocol, which, despite being signed in a preliminary show of commitment by over 100 countries in 1997, cannot take effect until a substantial number of industrialized nations officially ratify it. Three years later, none have done so.

The talks in Hague come in the wake of emerging scientific evidence pointing to the mounting perils of global warming. According to a recent article in the New York Times, studies have reported that the atmospheric temperature is the hottest it has been in 100,000 years. Scientists from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change also predict a three to 11 degree increase in average temperature over the next century.

But on Fri., Nov. 24, hopes for reaching an agreement to address these issues faded as the convention ended with no negotiations made and no countries eventually ratifying the protocol.

"That is just as well," Corson-Knowles said in response to the deadlock at Hague. He continued, "If there had been an agreement, it wouldn't have been a very good one."

Corson-Knowles' view that no agreement is better than a harmful agreement corroborates the opinion of delegates from developing nations who most adversely bear the effects of global warming. Lo recalled that Tuvallu's foreign ministry was in the process of buying land to which the nation could retreat should their small island nation become vulnerable to atmospheric changes and weather hazards. Both student and foreign delegates believed that the provisions called for by the U.S. would be inefficient in addressing such immediate concerns.

One of the primary concerns at the conference was nuclear power. Various industrial nations wanted a provision to allow the development of nuclear industries, which, they argued, are less detrimental to the environment than industries run by coal and fuel.

Though the provision was eventually rejected, it still incited much discontent among the environmental activists. Corson-Knowles, along with 100 others, marched through the offices of delegates, distributing "awards of shame" to those nations proposing nuclear power as a clean development mechanism. Because the action was taken after the Dutch government revoked the activists' permit to march, Corson-Knowles and other student activists were arrested.

Lo noted that the failure in the negotiations was largely the result of conflict between economic and environmental concerns. Many countries, including the U.S., saw economic stability for their oil companies as the priority. But, as Lo said, "We shouldn't sacrifice our basic values for the oil industry. We shouldn't sacrifice our future."

Her view was substantiated by Yale economics professor William Nordhaus. "The failure of the Hague meeting was a signal that major countries, particularly the United States, have not reached a consensus on the importance of global warming or the kind of steps necessary to prevent damaging future climate change," he said. Nordhaus saw economic concerns as a primary obstacle. "Centrists are caught in the middle of a furious battle between conservatives in denial about the environmental consequences and environmentalists in denial about the economic costs," he said.

Upon returning to Yale, Knowles and Lo began an Independent Study with policy professors as well as professors from the School of Forestry and Environmental Science. As a final project, both will write the ideal treaty that defines and details the Kyoto Protocol.

Typically an annual meeting, this year, a second convention has been scheduled for May in Bonn, Germany as a result of the ineffectual results of the Hague convention.

Until May, Corson-Knowles and Lo will continue to bring their experiences from Hague to the student body through the Yale Student Environmental Coalition. Lo underscored the importance of using the student voice to put public pressure on elected officials. "We must keep in mind," Lo stated, "what this is going to mean to people our age and the next generation. We are the next generation."

Back to News...