Kite Insights in the Green Zone at COP28

The future will require solutions for living on a warming planet. Innovation born from human ingenuity will define this new era, ushering in economic opportunities and power shifts that could remake far more than our physical lives.

The scale of the green transformation will touch every aspect of our existence. Climate changes, and is changed by, everything from conflict and health to gender equality and technology. As private and public actors seek to transform systems to shape a sustainable future, they will inevitably need to address the social forces at play.

In light of an increasingly disrupted and polarised world, the temptation however might be to seek solutions outside of ourselves, and to overlook the fact we cannot transform our system without also changing the mindsets and behaviours that have created that system.

By widening our lens on climate, we can create clearer pathways for action toward the positive tipping points we all seek for people and planet.

This programme, hosted at the Kite Insights stage, will feature experts from industry, learning institutions and the public sphere along with NGO leaders and activists.

We will aim to explore the following questions among others: How can we navigate and harness these “Climate&” intersections to lead into our collective vision for a healthy future? What systems change is necessary to shape this vision? And how should we inspire, sustain and lead the change we need on a massive scale?

CLIMATE& PROGRAMME

December 5th – DP World Majlis

10:00 - 10:15 Welcome and introduction

Introduction with Sophie Lambin

10:15 - 11:00 Climate& Systems change: toward positive tipping points

Tipping points are small changes that trigger larger, more significant changes. They can be warning signs of danger ahead or they can be signs of hope and reason for optimism. In the midst of the climate crisis, it can be difficult to identify tipping points accurately, let alone direct resources to encourage positive change and stall momentum in the wrong direction.  

As we reimagine our economic, energy, food, transportation and other systems, how can we recognise and encourage the positive tipping points needed to achieve them? In this session, we’ll explore the small changes with the potential to drive the acceleration of the green transformation and how to turn them into systems level change across cultures, societies and geographies.   

  • Joshua Amponsem, Founder, Green Africa Youth Organization and Co-Director, Youth Climate Justice Fund
  • Tim Brown, Chair, IDEO and Vice Chair, Kyu Collective
  • Lorna Gold, Director of Movements, FaithInvest
  • Moderator, Kirsten Dunlop, CEO, Climate-KIC

11:10 - 12:00 Climate& Energy in collaboration with dss+

The energy transition is not happening fast enough for us to stay on a well below 20C pathway, as the parties agreed in Paris in 2015.  What are the barriers to progress in the energy transition in terms of inventing and implementing new energy systems? How do we accomplish net zero by 2050 whilst protecting health, livelihoods and well-being in a just energy transition?  

In this discussion, experts from business, society, and the public sector will explore pathways to sustainable energy models and the infrastructure investments needed to support them.  How do investors in the energy transition and infrastructure consider health, livelihoods, and wellbeing in their decisions? What are the implications and opportunities for the energy sector and the industries in their supply chains? How can stakeholders contribute to the energy transition –now – considering the associated costs, particularly within hard to abate sectors?  

  • Mark Dickson, Global Head of Energy Transition & Decarbonisation, dss+ 
  • Andrew Kamau, Co-Director for the Energy Opportunity Lab, Center on Global Energy Policy, Columbia University
  • Mika Ohbayashi, Director, Renewable Energy Institute
  • Moderator, Rajiv Joshi, CEO & Founder, Bridging Ventures

12:00 - 1:00 Lunch / Networking

1:00 – 2:00 Climate& People: Debate in partnership with LinkedIn & The New York Times in collaboration with LinkedIn

‘We can upskill our way out of the climate crisis.’

Upskilling people for climate action could be the key to greater employee agency and the decentralisation of green solutions. If its full potential were unlocked, it could accelerate a sustainable future while preparing more people for jobs in a new economy.

But could training programmes and the emphasis on ‘green’ skills be masking the absence of a fundamental mindset shift, and the imagination required to act radically? Is upskilling just another box we introduce into our systems when we don’t want to think outside of it?

That said, if you’re serious about green transformation, you can’t succeed without investing in the right human capital: empowering people with the necessary industry knowledge and tools to deploy meaningful solutions.

  • Efrem Bycer, Senior Lead Manager, Public Policy and Economic Graph, LinkedIn 
  • Michael Okoroafor, PhD, CSO, McCormick  
  • Marina Marçal, Head of City Diplomacy, C40 Cities 
  • Luisa Neubauer, Co-Founder, Fridays for Future Germany 
  • Jaha Dukureh, CEO & Founder, Safe Hands for Girls & Africa Regional Ambassador, UN Women 
  • Joel Makower, Chairman & Co-Founder, GreenBiz Group 
  • Rachel Kyte, Co-Chair, VCMI & Visiting Professor of Practice, Blavatnik School of Government, University of Oxford  
  • Josh Harris, Communications Director, We Mean Business Coalition 
  • Sharan Burrow, Vice Chair, European Climate Foundation 
  • Harjeet Singh, Head of Global Political Strategy, Climate Action Network International (CAN-I)  
  • Moderator, Stephen Dunbar Johnson, President, International New York Times
  • Moderator, Sophie Lambin, Founder & CEO, Kite Insights

3:00 – 3:30 Coffee Break / Networking

3:30 – 4:00 In conversation: Tom Friedman & Johan Rockström

Dec 8th – Green Zone – Women’s Pavilion, Kite Insights & The Conduit

1:00 – 3:00 She Changes Climate

Co-hosts: Kite Insights, SHE Changes Climate, Women of the World
UNFCCC High-level champions

COP28 HIGH-LEVEL MULTI STAKEHOLDER DIALOGUE WITH 50:50 BALANCE
BUILDING TRUST AND RADICAL COLLABORATION FOR PEOPLE & THE PLANET

DECEMBER 8TH 2023 – YOUTH DAY
Women Pavilion – COP28 Green Zone

13:00 – 15:00 Dubai Local Time

This multi stakeholder dialogue will explore opportunities to create new areas of collaborations among those involved in addressing the interconnected crisis of Climate and Nature and its impacts on People. New risks are emerging in the already complex planetary crisis, contributing to rising inequalities and unprecedented impacts on the most vulnerable, heightened political instability, increased frequency of conflicts, pandemics, economic shocks, just to name a few. These require new solutions and, importantly, new ways of seeing, being and working: a commitment to collaborate that makes a systemic transformation of society possible. To address this, we are all invited to work together beyond logos, egos and institutional boundaries, breaking down sectoral barriers and silos, through what we call “radical collaboration”: working as One team for One Planet. We see diversity and inclusion as the essential ingredients of collective success. By practicing deep listening to all voices during the dialogue, we can emerge from the dialogue with shared values, a common vision and pragmatic solutions to better protect the Global Commons.
The dialogue will spotlight inspirational women leaders and high-level representatives from Member States, UN agencies, private sector, indigenous communities, farmers and youth in a spirit of shared leadership, while championing a 50:50 vision for gender balance, as well as inclusion and diversity.

SPEAKERS AND CONTRIBUTORS TO THE DIALOGUE INCLUDE:

Opening & closing:

  • Catherine Stewart, Climate Ambassador of Canada
  • Hana Al Hashimi, COP28 Chief Negotiator (tbc)
  • Mary Robinson, Chair of the Elders
  • Ana Patricia Villalobos, Head of delegation of Costa Rica
  • Head of Delegation of Uganda
  • Mamta Borgoyary, Co-Director of SHE Changes Climate
  • Carey Bohjanen, Founder/ CEO of The Rallying Cry

Facilitated dialogue:

  • Dr. David Nabarro, 4SD Director of Strategy
  • Sandrine Dixson-Declève, Co-President of the Club of Rome
  • Carine de Meyere, Women of the World
  • Shreya Ghodawat, SHE Changes Climate Ambassador for India
  • Kristina Rodriguez, UNFCCC Climate Champions Team for Ocean
  • Runa Khan, CEO of Friendship Bangladesh
  • Samar Alshorafa, CEO of SHE is Arab
  • Dr. Johan Rockström, Director of Postdam Institute (tbc)
  • Noora Firaq, Deputy CEO of Climate Outreach
  • Laurel Kivuyo, SHE Changes Climate Ambassador Tanzania
  • Shristi Adhikari, SHE Changes Climate Nepal
  • Akilah Jaramogi, SHE Changes Climate Trinidad and Tobago
  • Maria Fernanda Espinosa, CEO of Global Women Leaders (tbc)
  • Hindou Ibrahim, Présidente des Peuples Autochtones (tbc)
  • HL representative of Germany (tbc)
  • Jagan Chapagain, Secretary General of IFRC (tbc)
  • Hanae Bezad, Sovereign Nature

CO-HOSTS AND FACILITATORS:

3:10 – 4:00 Climate& Nature in collaboration with WRI Brasil

The Amazon is at a critical tipping point of deforestation and degradation that would be devastating not only for Brazil, but for the world’s climate. How can we turn what has become a global existential threat into a chance to reshape the future of Brazil? How can the Amazon region become a catalyst for a new economic model, and a vision for a low-carbon future, free of deforestation? Finally, what role can the private sector and financial institutions play in safeguarding the land and livelihoods of the indigenous communities already protecting this future?

4:00 – 4:50 Climate& Innovation

Innovation that fundamentally reshapes how people interact with the planet is on the horizon. It many cases, it may already exist but lacks the scale needed to impact nature and the environment.  Often tech-enabled, these innovations transcend industry with implications for entire systems. But for innovation to fulfil its promise in climate debates, it must also apply to how humans innovate not just what they invent.  How might we expand the definitions of – and thus support for – effective innovation to propel us toward positive climate tipping points? 

    • Philippine de T’Serclaes, CSO, Dassault Systemes  
    • Sue Duke, Head of Global Policy, Leads LinkedIn Economic Graph   
    • Michael Okoroafor, PhD, CSO, McCormick 
    • Moderator, Joel Makower, Chairman and Co-Founder, GreenBiz Group

Interactive audience dialogue