Our man at the crucial climate change talks, John Lanchbery, has sent this latest postcard from Paris.
Saturday dawned bright and sunny in Paris - marking half-time in the global climate talks.
I had breakfast with two RSPB colleagues who arrived last night and were off to Forests Day to showcase our work on tropical forests (see yesterday's blog here), together with a colleague from BirdLife. I set out first on the Metro and then the RER to the UN climate negotiations at Le Bourget (see below), home of the old Paris airfield but now transformed in to vast conference centre.
By one o'clock in the afternoon officials had completed their negotiations on the draft climate change agreement. They had not actually finished it but they had run out of time and they had probably gone as far as they could. It is now up to ministers to finalise the agreement.
After four years negotiating, the draft agreement looks like a treaty, at last. It is full of options for ministers to choose. If they pick the best options (see our asks here) then we will have really good treaty in a week or so. If they do not, well...
At six o'clock the French Presidency of the COP announced how they plan to conclude the agreement with ministers - by next Friday evening - they promised. In fact, a short overrun through next Saturday might well be a good sign, indicating a will to get things right. After that, all experience indicates that they are likely to go into autodestruct mode, with the USA and China sitting in a closed room and deleting each others favourite options, as they did in Lima last year, to give a minimalist outcome.
However, this seems unlikely at present. The vast majority of countries clearly want a decent treaty, and said so just before lunchtime on Saturday. Importantly, they all feel that they “own” the draft agreement. It is not something pushed upon them, as in Copenhagen. Whilst they do not all have the same priorities, they realise that they need to give as well as take and not let down their leaders who spoke so optimistically last Monday.
Sunday is officially a day off although lots is happening in the background: officials frantically briefing their minsters, country groups coordinating and us non-governmental people having a strategy meeting - starting a bit late to allow for the after-effects of the NGO party on Saturday night.
Finally, it would be remiss to report back from France without mentioning the food. It is very good. Not surprisingly, the conference centre is populated with small and large service points providing freshly made traditional fare, including numerous types of bread, cakes, crepes and raclette (with traditional warm red wine). All of the baguettes are baked on the premises – 10,000 a day. There is an all pervading smell of good cheese. The only problem is that because everything is made to order when you order it - it can take a while to actually get hold of the food. None of that Anglo-Saxon fast food rubbish here.
More from John soon...
Sorry to hear that John Lanchbery is having such a tough time - still I guess someone has to do it!