Youth provide first contribution to Adaptation Fund

Nicolas Gomez, second from right, presents a bag of money, the first monetization of the Adaptation Fund to William Agyemang-Bonsu (far right).

Today at the Bonn Climate Change talks a group of students from Gymnasium Marienschule in Euskirchen, Germany, took a step that no nation or organization on this planet has managed to take. In a symbolic gesture they provided the first contribution to the Adaptation Fund! After hearing a presentation by Stuart Scott, (a consultant & trainer with The Climate Project), the students of Marienschule (represented by Britta Börnicke, Jacob Klein, Fabian Beusch, Nicolas Gomez) decided to take matters into their own hands. The students asked for donations from their class and managed to raise €131.09. This bag of cash was then handed in a symbolic gesture to William Agyemang-Bonsu from the Adaptation Fund Board. Despite trillions of dollars being found to bail out the economy, the developed nations of the world have yet to commit any money to the Adaptation Fund.

The Adaptation Fund was established to finance concrete adaptation projects and programmes in developing country Parties to the Kyoto Protocol that are particularly vulnerable to the adverse effects of climate change. It is supposed to be financed from the share of proceeds on the clean development mechanism project activities and other sources of funding. However, to date, no other money has been produced for the Adaptation Fund.

About Robert

Robert vanWaarden is a professional freelance photographer that travels the world, camera in hand, focusing on the international youth climate movement. He has spent the last two years focusing on the social movements enacting change and the geographical effects of a changing climate. His work has appeared in major national and international magazines and outlets including National Geographic Traveler, CNN and Canadian Geographic. VanWaarden believes in the power of photography to make a difference. He believes that he can help shift the world towards a more sustainable existence.

7 Responses to “Youth provide first contribution to Adaptation Fund”

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1 Juliana Williams Apr 7th, 2009 at 6:14 pm

Leave it to youth to shame the rest of the world into action. Fantastic move, and unfortunately needed.
2 Jesse Jenkins Apr 9th, 2009 at 1:16 pm

That’s awesome. Well played!
3 Juan Hoffmaister Apr 12th, 2009 at 10:04 am

Once again youth show to have more values and morals than most developed countries. The story of this students gives a little hope into what the world might be like if decisions were guided by morals and sense of equity and inter-generational responsibility. Thank you!
4 Tracy Apr 14th, 2009 at 8:08 am

Hello! I am looking for a copy of your group’s intervention at the final LCA Plenary session in Bonn. (Not the Adaptation intervention, but the intervention which used the metaphor about the waterfall, and asking the big kids to take the first leap.) Please forward to me, if possible, via email provided.

Many thanks if you can provide!
Tracy (of UNIFEM)
5 Robert vanWaarden Apr 16th, 2009 at 6:08 am

Hi Tracy, I will send you an email regarding this.