THE CHALLENGE IS NOT (Talking Climate Change)

On the 11^th December, a man stood at the front of the Meshwork hall at Klima Forum, the people’s summit as part of COP15, and talked about talking climate change.  I was excited to find this being discussed and joined the back of the assembled audience. In keeping with the Meshworks inclusive, open space methodology, the man was talking about the hierarchies of coming to, or talking about, Climate Change. In particular, he was advocating a participatory- ergo democratic and ethical – space for the public’s collective and individual utterances on climate change in proximity to the official UN negotiations at the Bella Centre. This particular space did not involve ‘experts’ at the front of a (passive) audience, telling them what to think. The man said all this to us whilst gesturing at a complex network diagram with an infra-red pointer. He sometimes had his back to us.

And I silently took notes.

The phrase ‘THE CHALLENGE IS NOT ‘X’ THE CHALLENGE IS ‘X’!’ came up a lot:

I have since carried the refrain around with me, adopting it to situations I encounter during my time in Copenhagen.

THE CHALLENGE IS NOT EXPERTS
THE CHALENGE IS FRONTALITY

THE CHALLENGE IS NOT WOMEN
THE CHALLENGE IS MEN

THE CHALLENGE IS NOT FOOD
THE CHALLENGE IS WASTE

THE CHALLENGE IS NOT RECYCLING
THE CHALLENGE IS THE MESS AND THE SMELL, AND THE FACT THAT THE RECYCLING BIN IS BEHIND THE SOFA

THE CHALLENGE IS NOT BLAH BLAH BLAH
THE CHALLENGE IS BLAH BLAH BLAH

THE CHALLENGE IS NOT THE CHALLENGE
THE CHALLENGE IS [                                  ]

THE CHALLENGE IS NOT CLIMATE
THE CHALLENGE IS SYSTEM

THE CAHLLENGE IS NOT BIG
THE CHALLENGE IS SMALL

THE CHALLENGE IS NOT TECHNOLOGY
THE CHALLENGE IS COLLABORATION

THE CHALLENGE IS NOT TALK
THE CHALLENGE IS SILENCE

THE CHALLENGE IS NOT HESITATION
THE CHALLENGE IS CONFIDENCE

THE CHALLENGE IS NOT ACTION
THE CHALLENGE IS ACTIVISTS

THE CHALLENGE IS NOT DEBATE
THE CHALLENGE IS DEBATABLE

THE CHALLENGE IS NOT WRITING
THE CHALLENGE IS NEW LIFE COPENHAGEN

THE CHALLENGE IS NOT MAKING YOUR NAME AS BIG AS EVERYBODY ELSE’S ON THE WORD CLOUD AT THE SIDE OF THIS POST
THE CHALLENGE IS QUALITY

THE CHALLENGE IS NOT QUESTIONTIME
THE CHALLENGE IS THE QUESTIONS

THE CHALLENGE IS NOT GREEN
THE CHALLENGE IS GREED

THE CHALLENGE IS NOT COST
THE CHALLENGE IS VALUE

THE CHALLENGE IS NOT CHALLENGE
THE CHALLENGE IS EGNELLAHC

THE CHALLENGE IS NOT ME
THE CHALLENGE IS NOT ME

THE CHALLENGE IS NOT BEING CERTAIN HOW THIS IS TALKING CLIMATE CHANGE
THE CHALLENGE IS BEING CERTAIN HOW THIS IS TALKING CLIMATE CHANGE

THE CHALLENGE IS NOT
THE CHALLENGE IS