Reflecting on Glasgow - The Thirst for Good Work

My home and office are much quieter than Glasgow and COP26.

Greetings! The past few weeks, I have returned to something closer to my routine before COP, even before our preparations for COP, with more time near my wood stove and in the woods and rolling hills just outside. With my son at school and my wife at work, during the day I feel quite far from marches with 100,000 people and densely packed hallways in the blue zone. And as with my late-fall garden, I can find some of the last harvests of the year among the browning leaves and frostbitten stems as I reflect back on Scotland.

Seemingly everyone understands now that we are not just behind on slowing the rate of climate change; we’re behind on adaptation as well. The crowds in Glasgow showed a deep resolution that the world is watching companies and governments closely, looking at their actions, expecting accountability. The depth of that resolve is strongest in youth, even in children. Companies still seem very slow in terms of moving beyond “efficiency” and “scarcity” and modest corrections, but for the first time I heard a lot of government representatives earnestly asking how: how do I implement, how do I speed up, how do I transform.

That “how” is why we work. In one session, a short video played of national adaptation focal points talked about their work on climate planning and implementation. Yes, they need funding, but that is only one issue. After watching the video while sitting on a panel, I pointed up: “Look at their faces — they are all young professionals. All of them. They have no training for this work. And they do it because we need them to.” They are trying to help themselves so they can help their fellow citizens.

They provide a powerful example for the rest of us — showing their thirst for good work. I listened to many sessions where I heard skilled, eloquent speakers describe the need for effective adaptation, placing water at the center of our work. In many cases, these are groups I know well and that are really just at early stages of developing resilience projects and adjusting programs to meet new needs. I hope they returned from home from COP26, aware both that this gap exists and that we — that is, you and I — can help quench that thirst.

John Matthews

Corvallis, Oregon, USA