Communities for Future | Communities for Future at COP27

UN Climate Change Conference
COP27 – Sharm el Sheikh, Egypt – November 6 – 18, 2022

Join Communities for Future in our mission to bring the voice and power of community-led climate action, transformational local development policies, climate justice, and regeneration to the international climate conversations.

Members of the CfF network including the Global Ecovillage Network, Gaia Education, ICLEI, CAN Europe, Youth and Environment Europe, Climate Governance Coalition, Sustainability Action Platform and partners of the SPARK consortium will be there, so it is an opportunity to strengthen connections, advocate for holistic, community-level responses to the climate and ecological crisis, demand bold action and political support.

Together we will raise the issues and interrelations of climate justice, gender equality, youth, community action and transformative, local development.

The urgency and the necessity of action on the ground have become more and more clear in the past years as climate impacts are being felt in every country in the world. The recent publication of the IPCC Working Group III Report on the Climate Change Mitigation Progress and Pledges also shows the need for all parties to meet their commitments under the 2015 Paris agreement to keep global warming below the 1.5°C limit.

People who have contributed least to the climate crisis are right now suffering its worst impacts.Worldwide about 26 million people are forced into poverty every year because of natural disasters. Until loss and damage is addressed, there is no climate justice. COP27 will only be successful if a compensation fund is put in place for communities on the frontline of climate impacts.

Furthermore, we need local implementation of international agreements, to translate to and align UN or EU policies with regions and communities on the ground – to shift from talk to action. Currently ECOLISE together with members and partners is working on 10 thesis towards transformative local development policies, linked to the European Green Deal, to bring the voice of communities into European policies more strongly and enable a wide-spread community-led response to the ecological crisis.

No matter the outcomes (or lack thereof) from COP27 we will continue with our mission to inspire and empower local communities to clearly say “no”, to drive transformation, to re-green our ecosystems, and re-build our societies for a positive future – regenerative, more equitable, peaceful, and thriving in harmony with nature. We can all spark a change!

Welcome to join some side events of our members and partners:

9 November 18:30 – 20:00: Oxfam with partners will host a space for voices of the future calling for climate justice, with the example of a climate caravan that young people, farmers, and communities organised and other youth initiatives worldwide.
11 November (time?): Youth and Environment will host a side event for an intergenerational dialogue of continents on climate-induced migration in the framework of adaptation.
14 November 18:30 – 20:00: GEN, Gaia Education with the Nordic Folkecenter for Renewable Energy and Global Youth Development Institute will speak on mobilising youth and transforming communities with innovative approaches for boosting a just transition and embedding the SDGs in education, livelihoods, and renewable energy, ranging from pan-African university courses to youth capacity building for regenerative community design, green energy and local empowerment.
15 November (time tbd): CliMates is organising a capacity building event for climate storytellers to unlock the power of your story to spark climate action. The climate stories will be explored on a truly an active, local social platform through a world map and emphasise how despite difference we go through the crisis together.
15 November 16:45 – 18:15: Women in Europe for a Common Future and partners in this event (in Room Khufu) will showcase outstanding gender just climate solutions that are implemented around the world and transform the narrative on climate action.
16 November 13:30 – 14:30: WECF and partners share a feminist approach to the energy transition for climate justice (in the French Pavillon).
16 November 14:30 – 15:30: WECF presenting a publication about transformative pathways of climate and gender-just alternatives to the intersecting crises (in the PCCB Hub and online).
17 November 15:00 – 16:30: the SPARK consortium will make the case for a loss and damage facility under the Paris agreement and bring voices from experts and practitioners to this side event (in Room Memphis, Blue Zone) organised by the Italian Climate Network.
17 November 18:00 – 19:30: side event by the Italian Climate Network on youth contributing to a more ambitious climate agenda, a dialogue with the institutions happening in the Italian Pavillion.

What can communities and citizens in Europe do about it?

Demand climate justice: Sign Elizabeth’s letter.
Mobilise (young) citizens:
- Get the Climate Justice Toolkit for Youth
- Join the Global Day of Action on 12 November
Advocate for change:
- Support ECOLISE’s policy work on 10 thesis for transformational community-led local development – join as a partner
- COP27 Coalition statement on civil society participation and political demands
Get engaged:
- Learn more about climate justice, gender equality and transformative local community-led development
- Connect with other citizens and implement climate and regenerative actions in your local community – with policy makers, NGOs and enterprises
Build international solidarity:
- Practical initiatives of solidarity from our network e.g ecovillage twinning project, the River of Life, or the Green Road for Ukraine by ecovillages and permaculture places offering safe havens for internally displaced people
What else can be done? Tell us on social media.