COP17 is getting closer – 4 days to go!

Just a few more days and I will be on my way to Durban for COP 17 which starts officially on 28 November. My head is filled with abbreviations, politics, climate change issues, ideas for action and work tasks from our online training together with all the information and good advice we have gained from our weekly expert calls over Skype.

I have learned a lot in this short preparation time and I am excited to meet up with the other girls from our youth delegation in Durban. It is difficult to get really prepared for such an event but when we all arrive in Durban, I am sure that the many hours of preparation will be needed.

Besides the training, I have contacted my local newspaper for an interview – and I succeeded. On 29 October a full page was filled up with the message that WAGGGS is sending a youth delegation to COP17 and we want to make a change. I have now arranged with the newspaper that I will send little highlight stories home during COP 17. It is great that my experiences will be shared and people will know a lot more about the youth delegation's goals and work when reading it.

Just the other day, one of my lecturers at university had a surprise for me. During his lecture a picture of me suddenly turned up next to an illustration for COP17. He told my fellow students that he was so proud that one of his students was going to Durban, trying to make a change. 'This is what we all want to do and Kristina is actually doing it! She deserves a big applause.' I turned around and there were up to 100 fellow students clapping their hands and smiling at me. It felt really good and now I am refilled with energy and ready to go to COP17 and act!

See you soon in Durban!

Kristina Nowak Marker, WAGGGS representative at COP 17 from Denmark