COP 15 – The political dimension

UN puts a good deal of their official materials on their web site and on their channel on YouTube. For instance, take a look at UN secretary general Ban Ki-moon’s introduction to COP15 in Copenhagen: "Let us join together to seal a deal in Copenhagen" (Ban Ki-moon).

Teacher’s notes

The above video is used in connection with a general discussion with the class as an introduction to the climate problem. Ask the class:

1. Do the pupils know of the Kyoto Protocol – what have they heard or know about the goals?
2. Ask the pupils to give examples of climate change that they know of.

Showcase

This theme about the Maldives in the shadow of climate change gives good food for thought and debate.
Click here to read the case of the Maldives on the COP15 website.

EU has produced a series of PowerPoint presentations that give provide outlines, such as introduction to climate change, international negotiations, etc.
Click here to open the PowerPoint presentations from the EU.

NASA's Climate Time Machine
Then show the pupils the climate time machine from NASA where you may track the Earth’s climate based on observations from 1885 until now.
Click here to open NASA's website > Select Climate Time Machine on the right side.

• Show the various measurements, and review the possible causes stated by NASA.
• Then give the pupils the opportunity to discuss why the climate problem is so important to the world – and thus to the politicians – right now.
• Use group work, and ask each group to present their proposal - preferably on overheads, flip chart, or large screen.

Watch also this video that shows the differences in CO₂ emission per capita in different parts of the world
Click here to open the view on differences in CO₂ emissions.

Climate dictionary

Many different technical terms, which the pupils will probably ask about, are introduced throughout the study. To help with this, both COP15 and UNFCCC have produced a dictionary with the most common technical terms.
Click here to open the official dictionary from COP15
Click here to open UNFCCC’s comprehensive climate dictionary