Fourteen schools from the Harris Federation in and around London came together for a morning of UN-style climate negotiations. Each country team represented different countries, researching, presenting, and passionately debating their challenges and achievements, then making pledges for joint action.

The team at InterClimate Network warmly congratulates everyone who took part in the Harris Federation July 2021 mini-COP26 climate conference.  We highly commend the participants for their preparation and research, their understanding of the environmental and political situations in each of their countries, and how well they responded to other countries’ views and positions.

It wasn’t easy doing this virtually, but every country contributed, and all the teams made concise and very well considered points.  The solutions that emerged from the intense collaborations were inspiring, with the conference agreeing that all nations must:

  • Speed up the transition to electric cars for personal and public transport
  • Put laws in place in every country to see the end of coal power, and renewables suited to each country
  • Prioritise joint reforestation programmes
  • Bring about a Global Ocean Alliance with funding to support it

We really do hope the negotiations go as well in COP26 in Glasgow this November.

Our thanks to Dill Anstey, Vice Principal of the Harris Federation sixth form, for her inspiring words that everyone can be the agents of change, through small actions that we each do.  You posed some great questions about what is happening across the Harris Federation, and what more can be done for example around the use of renewables and plastics.  The new Harris Federation award for the most effective climate action by a Harris school is a brilliant challenge!

Last but not least, a massive thanks to Paula Power, Radhika Chandrasingh, Jeremy Linton and all the other teachers involved for all their work behind the scenes to make this conference happen.

If participants in the conference, or other schools would like ideas for taking action in school, see this page of our website.