UVic Summit Brings Worlds Together

Fifty students from 18 different countries mingle in UVic’s David Strong building. At a glance, you would never guess they are in the middle of tackling the contemporary world’s most pressing issue: climate change.

This June, student delegates from Mozambique to New Zealand flew to Victoria for the 2009 World Student Environmental Summit (WSES), a UVic student-run international environmental conference. During the four-day summit, the student delegates engaged in presentations, discussion groups, writing blocks and fun local events—all with a focus on environmental sustainability.

The 2009 WSES was co-chaired by two ambitious UVic students: Jill Doucette and Chantal Orr. They both attended the 2008 WSES, the first annual conference, at Doshisha University in Kyoto, Japan last year.

“During the plane ride home [from Kyoto], Chantal and I were trying to figure out how we could bring the 2009 WSES to UVic,” said Doucette. “We were so excited.” Over the next few months, Doucette and Orr drafted a proposal, secured funding and hired a team of students to help them prepare.

UVic agreed to provide the 50 international delegates with food, housing and some of UVic’s most accomplished environmental experts. In return, environmental leaders from around the world came to UVic, putting the university on the map for sustainability leadership.

2009 Summit

During the four-day summit, UVic campus was home for the student delegates. Many delegates had to endure long journeys to attend. University for Peace (UPEACE) Ethiopia student Edda Zekarias was one of three African delegates who participated in the summit--her travel time was over 18 hours. Dubai to Toronto was about 12 hours, plus four hours from my city to Dubai and two hours from Toronto to here. But for me, it was so worth it,” Zekarias said.

“This has been very eye-opening for all of us. It has made me broaden my assumptions, and I am even thinking of going back home and starting projects within my university that can enable students to be more conscious of what is happening to the environment.”

Read more about Edda Zekarias’ experience at the 2009 WSES here
 

WSES Speakers

UVic also hosted several international speakers for the summit, all of them experts in the many facets of climate change. From Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change authors to World Bank advisors and university sustainability specialists, student delegates and the Victoria community learned from their unique perspectives on climate change.

The summit speakers and plenary sessions inspired the student delegates, helping to inform and shape their discussions throughout the conference.

Read more about the Summit’s speakers here

 International Student Environmental Network

This year’s summit reunited several student delegates who attended the 2008 WSES at Doshisha University in Kyoto, Japan. Last year, the students formed a group called the International Student Environmental Network (ISEN); between summits, the network meets online to continue the discussion and momentum of the annual summits.

“The ISEN is the only permanent international network of students focused solely on environmental issues,” said UVic President David Turpin during the summit's opening ceremony. “I’m heartened to see that you have come together as global citizens.”

One of the main topics of discussion was “collaboration”—how do the delegates keep in contact between summits?

ISEN member and Doshisha University student Momo Morioka is confident the relationships between delegates will help them continue to collaborate. “This year, because we are given more time to bond and socialize, everyone is really enjoying it. I feel like there’s more solidarity with the delegates,” said Morioka.

“Everyone is motivated to keep this thing going and feels strongly about contributing to the summit and the ISEN after this has taken place.”

Outcomes

One of the main outcomes of the 2009 WSES will be a student proposal, which will be presented to the attending delegates’ universities, the UN and the G8. This year, the delegates decided to work on the proposal throughout the summit, tailoring it to their discussions. “At first, I was surprised with how the discussions were organized because they were so open-ended, but now I understand why,” said Morioka. “What the [WSES] staff wants from us is new ideas and different perspectives.”

The 2009 Summit team also worked in partnership with computer engineers to produce another deliverable: Wiki Earth, an online database of environmental information.

Already, the delegates’ collaboration has opened up new opportunities. Doshisha President Eiji Hatta, who brought together the first summit in 2008, believes in the importance of a student network like the ISEN. “We are seeking a way to make an exchange program,” said Hatta, “where my university can accept students from the ISEN.”

“I have been deeply impressed with the active discussions of the delegates,” Hatta said. “Such individuals are highly sought after by society.”

Many of the student delegates have already begun to affect the way their universities practice sustainability on campus. Five Tuebingen University delegates have already initiated positive change. “Thanks to the praiseworthy campaigning of our students, we are now implementing an eco management system and have already installed photovoltaic collectors on top of the university’s largest cafeteria building,” said the President of Tuebingen University, Professor Dr. Bernd Engler.
 

2010 WSES

The 2010 World Student Environmental Summit will be hosted by the enthusiastic Tuebingen University delegates. Just like Doucette and Orr one year ago, they have already begun planning.

“During the presentations, lots of ideas popped into our heads,” said Tuebingen student Kathrin Gabriele Schreglmann. “Myself and [fellow Tuebingen delegate] Niko have an extra page in our notebooks just for collecting ideas.” Schreglmann plans on keeping a format similar to the 2009 WSES for next year’s summit. “We really profited from exchanging best practices with Chantal and Jill,” she said. “I think we’ll keep to the red line of the proposal writing and to hand it to global leaders.”

“Also, we are having discussions to see whether we want to increase the number of universities who attend,” said Schreglmann. "We definitely want to have more people from Latin America and, myself personally, I would like to have someone from an Arabic country because we haven’t had anyone from that area at a summit yet.”

At the 2009 WSES closing ceremony, the Tuebingen delegates shared their excitement for next year’s summit. “We want to provide the same inspiring environment for future delegates that UVic did,” they said. “We really look forward to hosting students from around the world.”

Photos courtesy of Anna Clark: annaclark@shaw.ca