BSSC at 27th UN Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP27)

The Bartlett School of Sustainable Construction will be participating in the 27th UN Conference of the Parties on Climate Change (COP27) in Sharm El-Sheik, Egypt.

With COP 27 being seen by many as one of the most important climate summits in history, academics from BSSC are hoping to build on their work in influencing decision-makers to implement effective climate change.

Our academics will be working with multiple stakeholders including United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF), United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) Egypt, United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), International Labour Organisation (ILO) and International Coalition for Sustainable Infrastructure (ICSI).

In preparation for this year’s summit, Prof. Priti Parikh and her team published a paper titled ‘Africa and Climate Justice at COP27 and beyond: impacts and solutions through an interdisciplinary lens’ which argues that climate justice needs to be at the heart of the COP27 negotiations in Sharm El Sheikh. With an interdisciplinary team of experts at UCL, Prof. Parikh also released a carbon footprint calculator for transparent travel to COP27. This project was funded by UCL Grand Challenges.

Prof. Priti Parikh said: "I am looking forward to working closely with UNICEF Africa, International Coalition for Sustainable Infrastructure and the Institution of Civil Engineers among others. Clean technologies by itself will not solve the climate crisis. Just pathways for clean energy transitions in marginalised communities requires building financial resilience, gender inclusive solutions and improved understanding of socio-cultural factors."

Dr Effie Konstantinou, who is one of the delegates said: “I will be attending COP27 in Egypt this year to build awareness of the ways in which ethics influence decision making in projects designed to address Grand Challenges, such as climate change. My contribution is based on a 4-year, APM funded study on the ethical dilemmas that senior leaders and experts face when addressing Grand Challenges, and on a 3-year, PMI funded study with Dr Vedran Zerjav into how project management practices change in projects addressing Grand Challenges.

I believe that COP27 is a great opportunity to intensify the efforts needed to develop a distinct focus on ethics and how it influences senior decision making in Grand Challenges projects.”

Professor D’Maris Coffman said: “I am looking forward to discussions at COP27 about how to best improve carbon accounting and to ensure that climate finance evolves in a manner that supports, rather than undermines, just transitions. It is extremely encouraging to see talk of climate reparations on the agenda, as the countries in the Global South cannot be expected to forgo economic development opportunities that the Global North have enjoyed. It is exciting to see so many at BSSC are contributing to conversations about how to best tackle the climate crisis and how to best promote climate justice.”

Click below to find out more and get in touch with our participants:

• Prof. D’Maris Coffman
• Prof. Priti Parikh
• Prof. Tim Broyd
• Prof. Xi Liang
• Prof. Dabo Guan
• Dr Efrosyni Konstantinou

To find out more about the UCL delegates at COP 27, click here.