“The entire conversation around climate change was, ‘Pakistan…it’s Pakistan now, but the world next,’ 23-year-old Maryam Jamali recalls.
asserted
Jamali → ’ → change
-founder of Madat Balochistan, a women and indigenous-led grassroots organisation dedicated to rehabilitating communities affected by climate change, Jamali became a climate activist during the catastrophic floods of 2022.
asserted
Jamali → lead → 2022
As her family and community members faced its devastation, Jamali used phone calls to coordinate relief efforts in Sindh and Balochistan.
asserted
Jamali → face → Sindh
It soon became apparent to her, however, that her work was akin to putting a bandaid on a gunshot wound.
asserted
work → become → wound
The communities at the forefront of climate disasters could not just be passive recipients of reactive relief work, she realized.
uncertain
she → realize → work
They should have the leverage to determine what prevention, recovery and rehabilitation means for them before catastrophe strikes their homes and fields.
asserted
catastrophe → have → homes
Moved by her experience, Jamali decided to apply for participation in the 27th edition of United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) COP, scheduled to be held in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt in November that year.
asserted
Jamali → move → November
It proved to be a challenge and she soon realized, she wasn’t experientially equipped enough to navigate the bureaucratic process and international networks that could support her accreditation and funding.
She didn’t give up.
uncertain
She → prove → accreditation
She applied for COP28, and then, again, for COP29.
asserted
She → apply → COP29
On this attempt, she managed to secure a conference badge with the help of a friend through a sponsoring organisation.
asserted
she → manage → organisation
COP29 took place in Baku, Azerbaijan and Jamali soon ran into a funding issue.
asserted
Jamali → take → issue
She turned to online fundraising for support, but of the USD 2500 required at the time for the trip, Jamali was only able to raise USD 2000 (approximately PKR 555,600 in 2024).
asserted
Jamali → turn → 2024
Jamali is not the only one who ran into this wall.
asserted
who → run → wall
He began work in 2022 by joining WANG (We Are New Generation), a youth-led organisation, which worked on flood relief and recovery in Balochistan.
asserted
which → begin → Balochistan
Last year, Roonjha applied and was selected to attend COP30, but he couldn’t make it because the selection did not include financial assistance.
asserted
selection → apply → assistance
He reached out to many organisations and international groups he had worked with previously but couldn’t secure enough funding to cover travel, accommodation, and visa costs.
asserted
he → reach → travel
Attending international climate conferences, Jamali says, often hinges on personal connections and organisational affiliations.
asserted
Jamali → attend → connections
“It’s a very, very secretive process,” she says.
asserted
she → ’ → ?
She noted that activists from major cities and more privileged, urban backgrounds managed to gain greater access to these international forums than people who are practically on the frontlines of climate catastrophes.
asserted
who → note → catastrophes
“These climate forums are inaccessible to working class people or actual climate affectees who are experiencing climate change on the ground,” she says.
asserted
she → experience → ground
Roonjha says WANG provided a foundation for his work through which he gained hands-on experience, began pursuing further opportunities, and earned recognition.
asserted
he → say → recognition
“Even with my experience in climate work and the backing of an organization, I still couldn’t make it to the COP,” he says.
asserted
he → make → COP
“Aspiring to attend COP and actually being able to attend COP are two very different things.
asserted
Aspiring → aspire → COP
Many young climate activists work in an individual capacity in their communities since structural funding is hard to come by, so they have to rely on more recognized climate organizations to access major forums like COP.
asserted
they → work → COP
Durlabh Ashok, founding director of Climate Forward Pakistan (CFP), a leading youth-led climate organisation that sends delegations to COP every year, says the organisation offers limited financial assistance to its delegates.
asserted
organisation → lead → delegates
It supports delegates through subsidised accommodation, accreditation assistance, and speaking opportunities, while delegates are normally supposed to pay for their own travel, meal, and other expenses.
asserted
delegates → support → travel
“We don’t want to operate as a grant-driven organisation because that inevitably gives us inherent clout over funding decisions,” Ashok says.
asserted
Ashok → want → decisions
However, the model leaves delegates responsible for taking the financial obligations of the participation.
asserted
model → leave → participation
Applicants may be ascertained on the basis of their climate related work and the familiarity with the UNFCCC procedure, but they must also showcase that they can fund their participation either on their own or through sponsorship.
uncertain
they → ascertain → sponsorship
Climate activists from underrepresented communities often deal with additional impediments of participation.
asserted
activists → deal → participation
A person with years of grassroots experience supporting climate-hit communities which are on the frontlines of climate disasters find it difficult to access the networks of these organisations compared to their counterparts operating from more urban settings.
asserted
it → support → settings
This year, for example, of the cohort selected by CFP, only one activist from Balochistan made the cut.
asserted
activist → select → cut
While admitting the challenge, Ashok says that CFP seeks to keep the COP route accessible by providing necessary documentation to delegates in order to approach potential sponsors while assisting them with logistical arrangements, including visas and accreditation.
asserted
CFP → admit → visas
There is no restriction on paper, just between the lines
There is no explicit requirement under UNFCCC rules for climate activists to come from an urban or privileged background.
asserted
activists → be → background
For NGO observers, participation generally takes place through organisations that have been conferred observer status, which then nominate delegates within their allocated quotas.
asserted
which → take → quotas
Travel, meal and accommodation are not particular requirements for securing observer status, but they still can determine whether a nominated delegate can turn their formal selection into actual participation.
asserted
delegate → secure → participation
The UNFCCC has also noted concerns regarding geographical diversity and representation in observer participation.
asserted
UNFCCC → note → participation
The UNFCCC has admitted the financial obstacles confronted by observer organisations from marginalized communities and developing countries and has planned to explore ways to facilitate broader participation.
asserted
UNFCCC → admit → participation
Currently, there is no specific funds generally available to observer organisations as compared to the Trust Fund for Participation that provides financial assistance only to the representatives of developing country Parties.
asserted
that → be → Parties
Even those who eventually make it to the COP as representatives of observer status do not have the same negotiating impactful role as country negotiators.
asserted
who → make → negotiators
…and 14 more, not listed.
The Aporia
