Alliances for climate protection: students develop strategies for achieving the two-degree target during a climate conference simulation
Setting emissions targets for fossil fuels, making political decisions about deforestation and land use, and establishing a climate fund – around 300 students grappled with these tasks this week during a UN climate conference simulation. The organizer is Multivision e.V., an association that is committed to political and social education for young people. The Audi Environmental Foundation sponsors the realization of the all-day conferences at Ingolstadt schools. Participating schools included the Staatliche Realschule Kösching, the Katharinen-Gymnasium and, on July 22, the Freiherr-von-Ickstatt-Realschule in Ingolstadt.
During the week the young people experienced the typical sequence of events at a United Nations climate conference. Just like at a real conference, the participants had to demonstrate negotiating skills as representatives of their countries and, with their decisions, limit the increase in the global average temperature to a maximum of two degrees Celsius by the year 2100. The means for achieving this goal was left completely open, requiring participants to demonstrate initiative, independent research into possible solutions and a sensitivity for the needs of others. The organizer is the Multivision association, which instructed the young people over a total of six class hours on one day each. Afterwards, the participants presented their results and discussed them in plenary. Rüdiger Recknagel, Managing Director of the Audi Environmental Foundation, said: “Among the major challenges related to climate protection is the fact that it will take several decades for the actions we take today to have a noticeable impact. We want to help ensure that people are aware of the environmental impact of their behavior at all times. That’s why environmental education is one of the cornerstones of our foundation.”
About Multivision e.V.
Multivision e.V. is a Germany-wide non-profit association based in Hamburg. The aim of the association is to promote political and social education for young people. Multivision designs and organizes educational events on socially important topics such as sustainability, ecology, democracy and human rights. The association was recognized by the UNESCO Commission as an official measure of the UN Decade of “Education for Sustainable Development.”
