Grenoble Ecole de Management, first Grande Ecole with the Société à Mission status, will be the only French business school to send a delegation of 12 students to the Blue Zone of the COP26 as witness to the global climate negotiations taking place from October 31st to November 12th in Glasgow (Scotland). To follow the delegation, visit: Impact on Linkedin and Instagram and GEM ONU on Instagram.
Since 1995, the COP has brought together the signatory states of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) every year. In 2021, more than 190 world leaders are expected, as well as tens of thousands of representatives from governments, cities, regions and non-state actors (companies, investors, NGOs, etc.), to accelerate action towards the goals of the Paris Agreement and the UNFCCC. The COP26 must address four major challenges:
- Secure global net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by mid-century and keep 1.5 degrees within reach;
- Adapt to protect communities and natural habitats;
- Mobilize finance for mitigation and adaptation;
- Work together to deliver on the first 3 challenges.
Learn more on: https://ukcop26.org/
Last summer, Grenoble Ecole de Management received its accreditation as Observer to the international negotiations regarding the fight against climate change, one of the GEM's 5 commitments. The delegation consists on12 members, who all study at Grenoble Ecole de Management:
- 1 PhD student from GEM Doctoral School, Manuel Ramirez, an expert in the link between organizations and the ecological crisis pursuing his research work on-site during the COP26;
- 8 students from GEM ImpAct, an association with an environmental and social vocation;
- 2 students from the GEM ONU, the school’s association specialized in Geopolitics;
- 1 GEM student coordinator of the Climate Fresk, joining to raise awareness of Climate Education.
The GEM students delegation, in immersion into the topical challenges of our society
“We want to encourage and support our students and partners in carbon neutrality by 2040-2050. Them and us will benefit from ambitious outcomes of the negotiations. To capitalize on this experience at the heart of COP26, the GEM delegation will keep a journal and carry out on-site interviews that will be shared” explains Mark Olsthoorn, Professor at GEM advising the delegation.
“COP26, a flagship event in the international fight against climate change, is an amazing opportunity for our associations to bring students closer to the challenges of the international discussions about the protection of the environment and human populations. Today, our society can no longer afford to leave climate change to esotericism.
We believe that it is time to make the change makers’ voices heard. The great challenges of our century must be accessible for everyone: from the individual to the national level, from associations to students. With a daily logbook and various events we aim to communicate the experience of the delegation to as many people as possible, because the participation of a school or an association only makes sense if it is supported, taken up and shared around a common goal of global sustainability” says Yanis Badin, President of the GEM ImpAct Association.
