There is something profoundly different in the climate diplomacy landscape this year. As COP29 struggles to agree on financing in Baku, a group of activists has decided to break the mold. They call it Anti-COP, and it is proof that the environmental movement is changing, tired of broken promises and endless negotiations.
The sadness of Baku and the silence of the streets
The streets of Baku are strangely silent. There are no colorful parades of the past COP, you can't see the activists' provocative signs, nor can you hear the protest chants. The hustle and bustle of COP29 is only the hum of the air conditioners in the luxury hotels where the negotiations are being held. It's as if the world has stopped reacting, resigned to yet another announced failure.
And is it, will it be like this across the board? Maybe not.
An unexpected twist from Mexico
Far away from the spotlight, in Oaxaca, Mexico, something extraordinary is happening. Nearly 200 activists from 40 countries have created a whole new space. No five-star hotels, but shared dormitories. No private jets, but shared organized trips. Even the toilets are compostable. It's Anti-COP, and it's much more than just a protest.
It is a living laboratory of concrete alternatives. Here, activists are not just criticizing: they are building a different model of international cooperation. They are demonstrating that we can discuss climate without waste, without hierarchies, without that patina of luxury that has made COPs increasingly (frighteningly) distant from reality. And above all, they are putting the voices of those who experience climate change first-hand every day back at the center.
The most important question: who pays?
When you mention money, everyone runs away. Especially in environmental matters. And in Baku, I fear, we will not see any exceptions. There too, there is still discussion about who should pay to save the planet: United States ed XNUMX-XNUMX business days they would also like the new economic powers, such as the China, contribute. A broad coalition of developing countries opposes.
Sounds like you’ve heard it before? You have. It’s the same debate that’s been going on for years, as the global thermometer continues to rise.
The four pillars of the ancient COP29
Activists in Oaxaca have identified four crucial themes: themes that rarely find space in official negotiations. On the agenda of the other side of COP29 are:
The Impact of Clean Energy Megaprojects
The transition to clean energy is creating new territorial conflicts. Large wind and solar projects, often presented as climate solutions, are causing significant destruction in local communities. In particular, large wind and solar farms are being installed on ancestral lands without adequate consultation process, depriving indigenous communities of their traditional lands.
These projects, despite their “green” credentials, often replicate the same extractive models as fossil fuel industries.
The Global Water Crisis
La scarcity of water it is becoming a global emergency. A quarter of the world's population is affected by economic water scarcity, while Approximately 885 million people do not have adequate access to safe drinking waterThe problem is compounded by the expansion of agricultural and industrial uses, with developed countries consume about ten times more water than developing countries.
By 2025, 1,9 billion people could live in regions with absolute water scarcity.
The commodification of Nature
Conservation policies are paradoxically contributing to the commodification of ecosystems. UNESCO itself she was accused of complicity in this process, for transforming ancestral territories into “natural heritage sites of humanity” from which indigenous populations are systematically excluded.
This approach to conservation often ignores that indigenous peoples have historically been the best custodians of biodiversity.
The forced displacement of indigenous peoples
The case of The Forest in Mexico is an emblematic example of climate displacement. But it is not an isolated case. From the Congolese forests to the Asian ones, and even in the desert Indigenous peoples systematically suffer human rights violations and forms of discrimination. Forced evictions are often accompanied by physical and psychological violence1, with a particularly severe impact on indigenous women.
These displacements not only threaten the physical survival of communities, but also compromise their cultural and spiritual integrity.
From the bottom up: COP29 in the background
It's not just about parts per million in the atmosphere, but how our societies have transformed.
These words from the activist Xiye Bastida encapsulate the essence of Anti-COP. It is no longer time to wait for solutions to come from above. Communities are starting to organize, share experiences, and build concrete alternatives.
And in Baku, meanwhile? At the “real” COP29? The former Mexican climate negotiator Sandra Guzman Moon he is right when he says that it will be “very, very challenging” to find an AGREEMENT. He could say “it will be impossible,” but he has balance. The point is that maybe, for the first time, it is no longer that important.
While world leaders continue to debate in air-conditioned rooms, a new movement is emerging. A movement that no longer wants to wait.
- Report on the violation of the rights of indigenous peoples in the world: https://www.europarl.europa.eu/doceo/document/A-8-2018-0194_IT.html ↩︎
