The UN Climate Change Conference in Bonn takes place in several zones. The "Bula Zone" in the World Conference Center Bonn and on the UN campus is the venue for government delegations, while climate actions take place in the so-called "Bonn Zone" in the Rheinaue park, where governments and non-government organizations share their projects. The University of Bonn presents its activities under the roof of the profile area Innovation and Technology for a Sustainable Future. Participants include the Geographical Institute, the Institute of Geodesy and Geo-Information, the Meteorological Institute, the Nees Institute for Biodiversity of Plants and the Center for Development Research.
New Alliance for Sustainability Research
Participants of the Bonn Alliance for Sustainability Research include the University of Bonn with institutes from the Faculty of Agriculture and the Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences as well as the Center for Development Research along with other mayor players located in Bonn: the Institute for Environment and Human Security of the United Nations University (UNU-EHS), the Bonn International Center for Conversion (BICC), the German Development Institute (DIE) and the Bonn-Rhein-Sieg University of Applied Sciences.
On Wednesday, November 15th, at 1:30pm, the agreement will be signed at the Bonn University booth in the Bonn Zone by the Rector of the University of Bonn, Prof. Dr. Dr. h.c. Michael Hoch, by Prof. Dr. Jakob Rhyner, Vice-Rector Europe of the United Nations University and Director of the UNU-EHS, by the directors of BICC, Michael Dedek and Prof. Dr. Conrad Schetter, the director of DIE, Prof. Dr. Dirk Messner, and the President of the Bonn-Rhein-Sieg University of Applied Sciences, Prof. Dr. Hartmut Ihne.
Discussions
At the climate conference, scientists from the University of Bonn participate in events on climate protection. Meteorologist Prof. Dr. Clemens Simmer is involved in a panel on "Science of Extreme Events". It deals with the question of how extreme events such as heat waves and floods are related to climate change.
The Bonn disaster preparedness and management program (KaVoMA) contributes to the climate conference with a side event, a panel discussion on "Climate Change Adaptation and Disaster Risk Management: What are we missing?", which takes place at 12pm on Tuesday, November 7th, at the Cities & Regions Pavilion.
As part of the COP23, the EnergieAgentur.NRW organizes day excursions that lead to climate-friendly projects throughout Northrhine-Westfalia. On November 9th the day excursion will lead to the teaching and research station of the University of Bonn in Klein-Altendorf. Among other topics, delegates of the conference can inform themselves about biomass research.
There are also various other activities around the university related to the UN Climate Change Conference. For example, there will be a video installation in the University’s main building with pictures on the subject of food and agriculture in the context of climate change – open daily from 11am to 6pm until November 17th.