Journal of Science Policy & Governance
​Volume 20, Issue 01 | March 28, 2022

Op-Ed: How UNFCCC's COP Can Achieve Carbon Neutrality

Natasha Dacic (1), Alexa B. White (2), Ranveer S. Ajimal (3), Katelyn M. Boisvert (4,5), Lunia E. Oriol (1), Sivah Akash (4)
  1. University of Michigan, Department of Climate and Space Sciences and Engineering, Ann Arbor, MI
  2. University of Michigan, Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Ann Arbor, MI
  3. University of Michigan, College of Literature, Science, and the Arts, Ann Arbor, MI
  4. University of Michigan, School for Environment and Sustainability, Ann Arbor, MI
  5. University of Michigan, Ross School of Business, Ann Arbor​
Corresponding author: ndacic@umich.edu
Keywords: carbon neutrality; climate change; hybrid conferences; carbon offsets; UNFCCC; COP; greenhouse gas emissions
https://doi.org/10.38126/JSPG200102

Executive Summary

International conferences such as the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change's (UNFCCC) Conference of the Parties (COP) attract over 25,000 attendees from around the world and have an alarming carbon footprint. Carbon neutral events have increased in popularity, and help to curb large amounts of emissions and slow climate change. We discuss techniques to reduce carbon emissions without settling for offsets from an individual and conference scale. The UNFCCC COP can reduce its overall emissions significantly by implementing a hybrid conference model and more sustainable conference choices. COP can lead the way in establishing a sustainable model to advance the climate agenda without exacerbating the global climate crisis.​

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Background header image courtesy of Katelyn Boisvert
Climate Blue is the University of Michigan’s student organization that educates and empowers its members and surrounding community about climate change science, its impacts, and climate policy (both domestic and international). It’s 2020-2021 Research Task Force members are:

Natasha Dacic is a Ph.D. candidate in the Climate and Space Sciences and Engineering Department. Her research focuses on urban and agricultural greenhouse gas emissions.

Alexa B. White is a Ph.D. candidate in the Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Department. Her research focuses on how agroecology can resolve the future of world hunger as it relates to international climate policy, specifically UN Sustainable Development Goal 2.

Ranveer S. Ajimal is an undergraduate biochemistry research assistant in the Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology department.

Katelyn M. Boisvert is a dual Masters student completing a M.S. from the School for Environment and Sustainability and a M.M. from the Ross School of Business.

Lunia E. Oriol is an undergraduate student in the Climate and Space Sciences and Engineering Department. Her research focuses on atmospheric modeling and atmosphere-biosphere interactions.

​Sivah Akash graduated in 2021 with a M.S. from the School for Environment and Sustainability. His Master’s project involved determining the transportation emissions baseline for a group of buildings in Ann Arbor, MI.

Acknowledgements 
We thank Khang Huynh and Ethan FitzGerald for their insightful edits and feedback during the review period. We thank Dr. Avik Basu and Dr. Richard Rood at the University of Michigan for their helpful comments on this manuscript.

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