Articles

A student perspective, a student expertise 

CliMates is an international student network. Its research reflects the voice of an international body of higly qualified students, currently pursuing studies in fields related to climate change and sustainable development. 

A collaborative and multidisciplinary approach

Any issue related to climate change requires taking into account different angles and perspectives. It also requires people of different backgrounds working together to tackle the complexity of climate change. CliMates take on a variety of approaches to the research topics, and work together on the interactive platform and at the CliMates Conference of Delegations. CliMates come from highly diverse academic backgrounds. The profiles of all CliMates may be viewed in the Network and Organization sections of this website. 

An ability to embody local, regional, and national scales

CliMates believe that the local scale is not targeted and reflected enough in international cooperation. For this reason, CliMates focus on the local level, as well as the regional and national levels, to bring forth solutions that would have the most effective and real impact.  

Innovation and also Credibility 

CliMates delegations strive to as creative and bold as possible in their research and propositions. However, they also reflect the positions and the national contexts of the country they represent. They comprehend the situation in their country at different levels, and then try to go further. 

 A constant participatory process

While several instances of international negotiation occur throughout the year, the UNFCCC Conference of the Parties remains the most consequential conference in the realm of international cooperation for climate change mitigation and adaptation. However, this summit lasts only 2 weeks at the end of each year. This time frame potentially creates an obstacle to fruitful negotiations and binding agreements. Thanks to the CliMates Collaborative Research System, CliMates may research together, propose and debate solutions throughout the entire year. This process then ultimately prepares for the CliMates Conference of Delegations in the fall of each year.