A fortnight of fighting climate poverty

In early December, Oxfam campaigned tirelessly through a fortnight of crucial UN talks in Bali

Battling through the relentless heat of the tropical sun, the Oxfam team were there to help build urgency for a climate treaty, create more awareness of the impact of climate change on poor people, and to lobby world leaders to put the needs of poor people at the heart of the UN talks.

We dived straight in

Our policy buffs began spelling it out that climate change is devastating poor people’s lives. Hosting meetings, talking to the media, and whispering in the ears of world leaders, they laid out the facts and figures.

Our partners from developing countries shared their stories and made it plain and clear that for people living in developing countries, climate change is not about switching lighbulbs, but about poverty on a massive scale.

Then the polar bears came out in support of the humans

Outside of the negotiations, Oxfam received surprise support in the form of protesting polar bears!

Having trekked thousands of miles from their snowy homes, the bears showed off in front of the cameras but carried with them a serious message of 'climate solidarity' saying, "we're in this together", and "save the humans".

And we reminded the UN to play their part

As more delegates, more negotiators, and more press showed up, Oxfam reminded the UN that the world was watching.

Our photo exhibition of people – from both poor and rich countries – holding placards reading “It’s Up to UNow”, reminded Ministers that if they played their part, a historic climate agreement was possible.

All looked set for a deal

Over a week into the talks and we were feeling optimistic – many rich countries were agreeing that as they are the ones who've contributed the most emissions, that they should provide the cash to help poor countries cope with climate change.

Then a few countries tried to scupper things

But just as things looked promising, US negotiators started meddling, removing text from draft agreements and generally showing a downright disregard for the effects of their actions.

Unable to stand by and watch, Oxfam's polar bears danced straight back onto the scene. And to make it ultra clear that climate inaction would not be tolerated, Oxfam got together with our friends from other organisations to hand in the signatures of more than 23 million people demanding action.

Fortunately, common sense prevailed

More than 24 nail-biting, sleep-deprived hours after the official close of the conference, a stalemate remained

Until finally, the fight back began, and the US were told by one delegate to show leadership or "please get out of the way". With those words, the US backed down, common sense held up, and an agreement was reached.

But it was far from what we were hoping

The Bali talks did produce a roadmap to tackle climate change, but the Bush Administration (dragging Canada, Japan and Russia in tow) did a fine job of throwing away the compass and are forcing us to take the journey in a gas-guzzling 4 × 4, not the solar-powered speedster the world urgently needs.

We’ve had good progress on adaptation funding, which should make sure poor countries receive the cash to help them adapt to climate change, but rich countries still have to deliver the money.

Bali was just the beginning of the journey. There’s still much more for world leaders to do to stop climate change pushing poor people further into poverty.

Related links

• Climate change is already having an impact on the world's poor. Oxfam is calling for action.
• Real stories: how climate change is devastating poor people's lives