With about 35,000 delegates from almost 200 countries attending Cop27, navigating the sprawling poorly signposted conference centre in Sharm el-Sheikh has been a huge challenge for grassroots activists, and so has finding a way to participate meaningfully within the confines of the UN rules and a repressive state.
Days are long and intense, the negotiations full of legalese and acronyms, and on top of that a lack of affordable food and overzealous security presence has intensified the pressure. But with so much at stake, community leaders have fought hard to be heard and here Cop first-timers from three of the countries most affected by climate disasters this year – Spain, Pakistan, and Nigeria – share their highs and lows from Egypt.
