Students’ COP2 in France
For the past year, the world youth’s mobilisation for climate had a huge impact in France. Numerous movements rose on this occasion, and the #FridaysForFuture strikes are still a thing in many French schools.
Of course, the student world was not exempt from this general movement. The French students’ COP1 were held in early October 2019 and was a success, managing to gather representatives from many universities to talk about climate change and ecology. With other students’organisations, la FAGE held an event called “Make our Lessons Green Again” in December. It contributed to the creation, by the French Ministry of Higher Education, of a task force centred around the inclusion of environmental issues in the courses.
Surfing upon this dynamic, a group of students decided to organise a Students’ COP2 in Grenoble on April 4th and 5th with the help of la FAGE and others. This time, three main objectives have been identified:
- Reunite students, professors and universities deans to work on the environmental issues within the French higher education and take measures together;
- Establish a summary of the initiatives taken by the community since the creation of the Green Plans in 2009 and take precise, measurable engagements;
- Increase the number of local and global initiatives through cooperation and the exchange of knowledge, skills and ideas.
To ensure that these objectives are reached, the COP2 team will not only organise a “traditional” COP with the different parties reunited! In the meantime, there will be a fest with conferences and debates, creative activities, games and concerts. There will also be an initiative forum with people from around France coming in to highlight the actions they undertake locally: enterprises, NGOs, associations… To inspire others to act similarly.
One of the core principles of the Students’ COP2 organisers is openness. When facing such huge stakes, we must think together and work together to find the appropriate solutions. As European students, you may want to participate too or come to that event. If that is so, you will find any information you wish and a registration space at the following link: https://cop2etudiante.org.
(1) French universities are obliged to create Green Plans to reduce the ecological footprints of their campuses; however, they have no legal obligation to apply them
