And so, it begins.

An eager group of 16 students (and I’d say an equally eager group of 2 staff members) boarded the bus to Paris. The upcoming 8 and a half hours are definitely going to be exciting. The plan has us arriving in Paris by around 10, getting settled, and grabbing some sleep before work begins tomorrow.

So what are we actually doing?
The essential idea is that we work with NGOs, while simultaneously managing the blog. We’ve managed to establish cooperation with an organization called Place to B that has created different working shifts for each of the members of our group. Everyone that won’t be working with them during a certain time will go to events around Paris (anything from art exhibitions, to movie screenings, to climate discussions) and will be updating the blog with all of the new experiences.

While the bus stopped for a short time in Verdun for a break before embarking on the road to Paris again, I looked around at the group. All of the people around me were engaged, eager, and very ready for action. All of the people came either from a position where climate change will directly affect them, or from a position where they feel somewhat responsible for what is happening. Regardless of the background, however, I get a very positive feeling when I think of what is possible with this group.

Now, the creative part of the project (namely, our blog) may seem rather strange at times- how is art going to change anything? I know, I’ve never really been too artsy either, but I’ve begun to realize its value when it comes to spreading awareness. For example, Monstanto, a large biotechnology corporation with a rather infamous reputation, is currently participating in the climate conference. Recently, they got called a “climate hero” for promising to become carbon neutral by 2021. Lots of people find such a label very ironic in the case of a corporation known to destroy biodiversity and ruin fertile land- and many of them have expressed this frustration through art, such as sketches of large corporations tying countries’ hands behind their backs.

Thus, the journey continues, and inspiration grows. Let’s see how it goes?

-Bobo