COP16: Using art to communicate

The Government of Mexico has the responsibility of hosting and organizing the sixteenth session of the Conference of the Parties of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP16) and the sixth session of the Conference of the Parties serving as the meeting of the Parties to the Kyoto Protocol (CMP6). Both meetings were this year held in Cancun, Mexico, from November 29th to December 10th, 2010.

The Climate Change Village
For the last couple of weeks Cancún has been the platform for representatives from 194 parties, including ministers and heads of state, United Nations delegates, accredited non-governmental organizations and international media. In order to communicate the importance of 'climate change' the Federal Government decided to create a ‘Climate Change Village’- an exhibit area to promote dialogue related to environmental and socio-cultural issues amongst non-governmental organizations, the private sector and civil society.

The Climate Change Village is a parallel venue designed to include the general population and NGO's in the process of communicating, adapting and slowing climate change. Located 13 km from the Cancún Centro the Village hosts thematic expositions, conferences, and debates performed by the civil society, as well as cultural and artistic events and exhibits that underlines “climate change” in alternative/artistic ways. The Village runs from Saturday, November 27th, to Sunday, December 12th, 2010. During the period an estimated 1200 visitors were expected on a daily basis. Among such visitors were delegates from the COP16/CMP6, non-governmental organizations, globmedia, tourists, and local Cancún residents.

Art as a tool to communicate
An exhibition of photos showing the Mexican culture was held in the climate village during the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP-16). Using art to promote and communicate the massage of climate change is new an ddefiantly more successful than presenting hardcore facts to the populations. One could argue that “value-driven” art and pictures in the image making process regarding communicating and adapting climate change is more vital than presenting numbers and graphs.

While artistic and visual expressions tend to encourage people to percept and act differently, pure scientific facts on the other hand hardly affect us.  Pure facts are often to complex and overwhelming. Thus, using art, images and positive visual scenarios in order to bridge the gap between people and the science regarding climate change is defiantly a mayor step toward better communication.