Bardoo shines at COP29 in Baku, Azerbaijan

Vincentian Lawyer, Activist, Writer, and NGO leader, Jeshua Bardoo, was pleased to attend the 29th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) dubbed COP29. This year, COP29 took place from the 11th to the 22nd of November 2024 in Baku, Azerbaijan.

While attending COP29, he participated in several panel discussions and stressed an intersectional approach to climate change that focuses on the human rights of the most vulnerable in society, including but not limited to women, children, LGBTQ+ persons, persons with disabilities, Indigenous persons, and persons experiencing poverty, etc.

Bardoo’s attendance at COP29 was a collaborative effort between Island Innovation and the Caribbean Community Climate Change Centre, also known as the 5C’s.

Bardoo was selected to attend COP29 after rising as 1 of the top 8 participants in Island Innovation’s Caribbean Climate Justice Leaders Academy (CCJLA), which is funded by the Open Society Foundations, from a cohort of around 50 participants. As a result of his exceptional performance in the CCJLA, the 5C’s, sponsored and supported Bardoo’s attendance at COP29 in Baku, Azerbaijan, as part of their delegation.

Speaking about his experience at COP29, Bardoo said, “I was truly honoured to have attended my first COP in Baku, Azerbaijan. Ever since I was a child, I’ve always been curious about the environment around me. Throughout my youth, I have also been involved in a number of initiatives that focused on protecting the environment. When I attended the St. Vincent and the Grenadines Community College: Division of Arts, Sciences and General Studies, amongst other things, I pursued and successfully completed studies in CAPE Environmental Science in order to enrich my knowledge on environmental matters.

Currently, my interest in climate change and the environment focuses on its intersection with human rights. In particular, I am concerned about the disproportionate impact of climate change on the most vulnerable persons within our society.

This year, after Hurricane Beryl devastated my country St. Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG), I saw and heard for myself how climate change impacts the most vulnerable amongst us and in fact, how it exacerbates the issues, the inequalities, and the discrimination, that certain groups already face within Vincentian society.

If our vulnerable are not protected, it significantly hampers our climate adaptation and resilience efforts. There can be no true climate justice, unless all voices, including the voices of the most vulnerable, are taken into account and considered.

I am truly thankful for the opportunity to be a part of Island Innovation’s CCJLA and to have attended COP29 under the 5C’s delegation. It has inspired me to take greater climate action in order to ensure that we have Climate Justice for not just some, but all.”

Island Innovation is an expert consultancy specializing in innovation, sustainability, and development for islands.

The Caribbean Climate Justice Leaders Academy Program, a program of Island Innovation, is a unique opportunity for young Caribbean environmental advocate and community leaders to learn about Climate Justice, engage with global policymakers, and promote climate action.

The Caribbean Community Climate Change Centre coordinates the Caribbean region’s response to climate change. Officially opened in August 2005, the CCCCC is the key node for information on climate change issues and on the region’s response to managing and adapting to climate change in the Caribbean.