Programs & Initiatives

BC@UNCOP—UN Climate Conference

Boston College is an official Observer Organization for the United Nations Climate Change Conference, also referred to as the Conference of the Parties or COP. This highly influential annual global event serves as the center of global climate change policymaking. Boston College sent students and faculty to COP26 and COP27.

COP 27

COP27 was held in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt from Nov 6, 2022 – Nov 18, 2022

Over the course of the Spring 2023 semester, the BC delegation of faculty and students that represented the university in Sharm El Sheikh will be delivering a series of programs to share their experience of attending COP27 and broaden the conversation about the pressing dangers of climate change and the ways we, as individuals and as a campus community, can addrees climate change through advocacy, scholarship and professional avenues.

The COP27 Experience

During COP27, the Schiller team hosted live updates from Sharm El Sheikh to inform the BC community about the status of the proceedings from a first-hand perspective. The delegation also posted updates on Twitter and Instagram.

We did this to both expand the experience for as many of the campus community as possible to counteract the limited number of conference badges awarded to Observer Organizations, and to support the Schiller Institute mission to increase awareness of issues related to our core areas: energy, environment, and health.

Coverage of the Delegation's Experience at COP27

The latest edition of The Environmental Eagle -- a newsletter from EcoPledge and the Office of Sustainability, included two great pieces about the COP27 experience and the Schiller Institute's event in October, On the Road to Sharm El Sheikh (see below).

BC@UNCOP Series: On the Road to Sharm El-Sheikh | October 19, 2022

To increase understanding and awareness of global climate change policy and action, the Schiller Institute for Integrated Science and Society hosted an event featuring Somini Sengupta, International Climate Change Correspondent for the New York Times. Sengupta also moderated a panel of BC faculty experts, including Lacee Satcher (Sociology), Hanqin Tian (Schiller Institute and Earth and Environmental Sciences), Sandra Waddock (Business), and David Wirth (Law).

COP 26

COP26 was held in Glasgow, Scotland from Oct 31, 2021 to Nov 12, 2021

Boston College students and faculty attended the 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference in Glasgow, Scotland—BC's first accredited delegation—and continue to work at reducing environmental and climatological harm caused by human activities.

Under the leadership of the Schiller Institute, every non-graduating student and faculty member regardless of rank was provided the opportunity to apply to represent BC at COP27. The invitation was sent to 17,000 people. We received over 350 high quality applicants from faculty and students. Slightly more than 50 were invited to the second round. Twenty were selected for the delegation with seven alternates.

The selected group of students and faculty represents BC with a diversity of disciplines, experiences, and cultural perspectives.