The Conference ran for two weeks and was tasked with coming up with an agreed ‘roadmap’ for discussions over the next two years on the second phase of the Kyoto protocol after 2012. The UN process requires consensus from all participating countries, which included the USA. There over 10,000 people representing 180 countries, and this was always going to be an enormous challenge. I hadn’t considered what might happen if the parties failed to reach consensus or how close we would come to that happening.
We arrived at the Conference centre on the Monday of the first week to hear that already the Australian delegation had been greeted with a standing ovation. This was due to Kevin Rudd’s announcement that his first action as Australia’s new Prime minister would be to ratify the Kyoto protocol.
Our crew for this last leg of the film consisted of me, Esther our fearless cinematographer, Jeff doing sound and SamLara, our 15 year old daughter as PA and stills photographer. She was the youth reporter for a webcast for the NSW Education Department focussed on climate change. This involved doing a video report on the major activities taking place in Bali associated with the conference and lining up two guests for a live webcast on the first Friday at 11am. Our assistant director, Felicity Blake also joined us in Bali, but on this occasion, she was working for both a US environment group and for Dorjee, helping them organise the Green Governor’s Dinner.
The first week was relatively quiet. The leaders were all due to arrive in the second week, so this was a time for the negotiators to bunker down in backrooms and work out deals. Dorjee was doing a lot of strategy meetings and preparing for the dinner he was hosting for the Governors of four provinces; Aceh, Papua, West Papua and Amizonas. There was a significant amount of lobbying and activities to promote REDD (Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation) which was the main issue of concern at this conference for our characters. And almost all of our characters were in Bali. Governor Irwandi and Governor Bas were promoting their innovative forest protection and carbon trading projects. Patrick was there to speak for the indigenous people’s of the forest and ensure REDD negotiations took account of their rights. Hardi was there to speak for the orangutans. And of course, Dorjee was there to pull together all the players associated with his ambitious project and to announce it to the world. And he was there to monitor the outcomes of the conference, particularly in relation to the forests. The stage was set for the final show-down.
Some highlights of the first week included:
• An innovative and impressive Balinese dance performance created to signify the importance of the forests in relation to climate change.
• The Indonesian Minister of Forestry launching his REDD proposal with Governors Irwandi of Aceh and Governor Bas of Papua at his side – a symbolic breakthrough for the two Governors.
• Greenpeace honouring Governor Bas at the launch of their forest protection strategy
• Wetlands International’s awareness raising event that included the Governor of Kalimantan. Hardi Baktianoro arrived from Borneo to attend this event.
Hardi is the brave and resolute campaigner we met in the remote areas of Kalimantan capturing footage of illegal logging and the destruction of orangutan habitat. He was Lone’s right hand man at the orangutan rescue and rehabilitation centre until he decided to strike out on his own to take more direct action to protect orangutans. He came to Bali with his photographic and video evidence, determined to show it to someone with the power to stop the destruction. At the Wetlands International event, he fronted up to the Governor of Kalimantan and told him what he had seen. The Governor had just been at the podium expressing his determination to protect the forests, and was in an open and sympathetic mood.
He promised to meet with Hardi after the conference to examine his evidence and take immediate action. Throughout the conference, there were signs and a sensibility that ‘the world is watching’. This was very clear to the Governor of Kalimantan as we filmed his meeting with Hardi and recorded his promise to do something.
Dorjee’s Green Governor’s event was scheduled for the Friday night of the first week. There was some drama leading up to the event, arising from the juggling act of trying to get four headstrong governors into one room at the same time to discuss their common interests. Dorjee’s resilience and charm were once again called into play, resulting in an evening of important relationship building, significant gestures, charm and humour and another milestone in Dorjee’s long hike to achieving success. As he so eloquently put it as his guests were leaving; this is an end but not the end.
At this stage, Dorjee was still hoping for a major breakthrough at Bali. He needed a commitment from the delegates in the main plenary on including REDD in the second phase Kyoto agreement. He also wanted a signed and sealed deal on his Aceh and Papua projects before the conference ended. He wasn’t getting much sleep.
In the second week of the Conference, the temperature soared. As the world leaders flew into the sweltering Bali heat, the pace and stakes were lifted and the debate got heated. Greenpeace brought in balloons with giant eyeballs and slogans to remind the delegates that “The World is Watching”. The number of side events and related activities increased. We attended the launch by the President of Indonesia of the orangutan protection program with Australian environment minister Peter Garrett and Terri Irwin as guest speakers.
We also heard Sir Nicholas Stern give his assessment of the targets needed to avert a catastrophe, and Al Gore stridently criticising his own country for lack of action and poor leadership. And we were there when Kevin Rudd received the prolonged applause from the entire world for his leadership in signing the Kyoto protocol as his first major act as Prime Minister. It was a proud moment for Australia. We managed to get access to a meeting between our prime Minister and Sir Nicholas that was fun to be part of, even though we were only allowed to film the two men shaking hands and laughing. That evening Kevin Rudd hosted an event for all Australians in Bali. It was informal and relaxed, and no filming was allowed, but we were very impressed to see Kevin mingling with the crowd at length and taking the time to talk to people.
He even had a chat with Sam, and gave her a warm hug for the camera. Finally this 15 year old has a Prime Minister she can respect and leaders such as Al Gore and that she can look up to and admire. In the final days of the conference, she threw herself into the youth activism program with renewed vigour and enthusiasm that made her parents very proud.
Friday was meant to be the final day of the conference. But by midnight, the delegates still had not agreed on the broad principals of the next phase of the agreement. Word got out that the USA was obstructing progress. Not knowing when the delegates would return to the main plenary hall, we were ready to sleep on the floor of the media area so as not to miss anything. Then we heard that the translators had packed up, so we ducked back to our hotel for a few hours sleep, and were back on our balcony by 7am.
The final day was one of high drama as the pressure to reach an agreement mounted in the room and around the world. The two USA representatives were sitting near enough to us to get a close up. When they announced that they could not support the agreement, known as the ‘Bali Roadmap’, because the developing nations weren’t making a strong enough commitment to reducing emissions, the room erupted with loud booing. The developing countries then went on the offensive. They urged, pleaded, cajoled and even begged the USA to show leadership or “get out of the way”. The pressure on the two US delegates was enormous, and eventually they gave in and agreed to support the proposal. The room erupted in cheers. The entire world had agreed on one thing. It was a fine moment.
There was one more vital piece of business. The inclusion of REDD into the next round of Kyoto was put to the delegates and agreed unanimously. Dorjee was in the room wearing a radio mic and his small whoop of relief and joy was understated but deeply felt. This was a profound moment for Dorjee, for the forests and for the orangutans. It means that mechanisms for reducing emissions from deforestation and degradation, including carbon trading deals, are now on the table for talks that map out the new 2012 climate treaty. While that is still five years off, the agreed text offers retroactive benefits for ‘early action’ that protects forests today. This is the outcome Dorjee wanted and needed to build confidence and credibility into his carbon trading deal for the forests of Aceh and Papua. Although he wasn’t able to get a signed deal in Bali, the acceptance of avoided deforestation into the next global treaty provides him with the missing piece of the puzzle to push the deal through.
With the conference finally over, we all headed for the beach. I filmed Dorjee surfing and relaxing at a beach side café. And then the storm that had been building for days broke and the rain came bucketing down. Dorjee walked out into the storm, and unaware that I was filming, raised his hands to the heavens and let the rain pour over him. It was a magic moment, a Shawshank moment, and a fitting end to our film.
Where to from here? We are back in Australia, and the editing has begun. For the next four months, editor Jane St. Vincent Welch and I will be attempting to bring the almost 200 hours of footage down to a 90 minute film. It feels a bit like trying to squash an elephant into a matchbox. The action spans four continents over 10 months. The story is vast, the characters compelling, and the issues complex. Our challenge is to make these complex issues clear while maintaining a strong dramatic narrative and the right mix of humour, gravity, tragedy and triumph. Watch out for a world premier sometime around early May.
Cathy Henkel
December 2007.