Monterrey Institute of Technology and Higher Education (Mexico) The Tec at COP27: lessons and actions on climate change
Whatlessonsdid its participation in theUnited Nations Conference on Climate Change, known asCOP27, leave forTec de Monterrey? What were the results of this summit focused on agreeing on actions against climate change?
As an exercise of reflection, the panel El Tec was heldat COP27: Catalyzing climate action, where directors of the institution and members of the delegation that attended this summit that took placefrom November 6 to 18, in Egypt, participated.
“It is important to have had a presence at COP27, to make public ourcommitment to sustainability, strengthen networks and create alliances,” saidInés Sáenz, Vice President of Inclusion, Social Impact and Sustainability of Tec.
“Also, be active in disseminating knowledge, engaging our students and mobilizing different actors toadvance climate action,” he added during his participation in the panel.
Also participatingwere Juan Pablo Murra, rector of Professional and Postgraduate; Miguel Ruiz Cabañas, director of the SDG Initiative and professor; Cynthia Villarreal, Director of Sustainable Development and Linkage; andValeria Soto, student of Engineering in Sustainable Development.
Tec’s participation in COP27
For the second consecutive year,Tec de Monterreywas present at the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP27), held inSharm al Shaikh, Egypt.
On this occasion, the Tec sent a delegation made up ofspecialists, teachers and students, focused on the area of sustainability.
Villarreal stressed that the Tec delegation, made up of7 people, participated inaround 20 activities, including panels, meetings with leaders and workshopsthat were held in parallel tothe COP27 negotiations.
“We were on9 panels; we presented andexchanged ideas and best practicesin sessions with partner universities around the world; we participated in a planning workshopof the Alliances for Climate Action, promoted by WWF,” he said.
“We made valuable connections, we met withPatricia Espinosa, who until this year was executive secretary of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, and also with officials such asGabriel Yorio, undersecretary of Finance,” he added.
The director also commented that the Tec delegation held meetings with members of university alliances in which Tec participates, such as theUniversity Climate Change Coalition (UC3), as well as severalEXATECdedicated to climate action.
The Tec delegation at COP27
Together with the Director of Sustainable Development and Linkage, the Tec delegation was formed byPerla Martínez, project manager of Ruta Azul, Sustainability and Climate Change Plan to 2025 andMiguel Ruiz, director of the SDG Initiative.
Also, Luis Fernández, Sustainability Coordinator; Pablo Necoechea, national manager of Energy, Environment and Sustainability; Misael Gradilla, research professor in Sustainability and Climate Change.
As well as Valeria Soto, student of Engineering in Sustainable Development and whoalso collaborates as On Campus Intern in the Blue Route initiative.
“I want to underline the importance of attending COP27 from the Tec de Monterrey with a delegation so rich, so prepared and so diverse with whichwe managed to give voice to young people, disseminate knowledge and strengthen ties of collaborationwith other actors,” said Villarreal.
“Also, facilitate action between different sectors and actors of civil society; we learned, we were inspired and we returned motivated so that from the Tec, through climate action, we can reinforce ourcommitment to a more sustainable future,” he added.
The topics addressed by the Tec at COP27
In the different spaces of dialogue in which the representatives of the Tec participated, bothgood practices and climate actions of the institution were addressed, as well as other environmental issues in Mexico and the world.
Villarreal participated in panels where he presented the axesof the Sustainability and Climate Change Plan 2025 of the Tec, Culture, Mitigation, Adaptation, Education,Ruta Azul Research and placed special emphasis on Linking with other social actors and governments.
Martínez, project managerof Ruta Azul, participated in panels where she sharedreflections on the water scarcitythat Monterrey experienced, together with officials from Phoenix, Arizona, and Chile; and also, presented circular economy projects promoted by the Tec.
Also, Fernandez, Sustainability Coordinator, was on panels with authorsfrom the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) on the sixth assessment report that links human activities to the environmental crisis.
Meanwhile, Necoechea participated in a talk ondecarbonization, together with members of the University of Connecticut and thePolytechnic University of Catalonia, where he presented the commitment and actions of the Tec to achieve carbon neutrality by 2040.
Professor Gradilla was in meetings and workshops of theAlliances for Climate Action (ACAs), to share the experience of the Tec in ACA Mexico and the work of academics in theLaboratory of Sustainability and Climate Changein the Tec campus Guadalajara.
Tec student representation
In this edition of COP 27, as part of the Tec delegation, the student Valeria Soto attended, who participated in meetings and activities together with students from other universities in the field of international climate negotiation.
“I was able to learn toprofessionalize the role of youthand studentsin climate action,” said the student.
In this way, the On Campus Intern points out that it seeks to involve young people who are part of the Federation ofStudents of the Tecnológico de Monterrey (FETEC) inBlue Route actions.
In addition, Soto participated in the planning workshopsof the Alliances for Climate Action, where he spoke about the role of Tec in ACA Mexico to countries where universities do not yet have participation.
The student was also part of the coordination of meetings with members of theEXATEC community.
“There are people who are EXATEC who were part of thenegotiating delegation of Mexico, so being able to share experiences and how from the Tec de Monterrey we can move forward was very interesting,” added the young woman.
Soto was also able to meet young activists in global climate action and reflect on the challenge of fostering youth inclusion and involvementin climate action.
Los insights de la COP27
El embajador Miguel Ruiz Cabañas, director de la Iniciativa ODS del Tec y quien gestionó reuniones de la delegación Tec con la ex secretaria de la CMNUCC y el subsecretario de Hacienda de México, compartió algunas de las perspectivas que dejó la COP27.
Para el director, la cumbre climática expuso una serie de retos muy claros:
– “En primer lugar, ver cómo hacer más cooperación para mitigación, es decir, reducir las emisiones de gases efecto invernadero.
– “En segundo lugar, cómo se puede avanzar en la adaptación porque el cambio climático no es un tema futuro, ya está aquí; hay que preparar planes y programas de adaptación para que las comunidades más vulnerables puedan seguir existiendo y desarrollándose.
– “En tercer lugar, cómo el cambio climático ya está produciendo daños reales en muchas comunidades. Estaba el tema de pérdidas y daños; ya no te puedes adaptar a ese cambio climático, sufres pérdidas enormes y hay que crear algún tipo de solución para estos países.
– “En cuarto lugar, avanzar en el tema de financiamiento porque países desarrollados no han cumplido con el compromiso de movilizar más de 100 mil millones de dólares al año para que países en desarrollo puedan iniciar proyectos sostenibles.
Ruiz consideró que el gran éxito de esta cumbre fue establecer el Fondo de pérdidas y daños, que ayudará a países que están sufriendo daños y pérdidas a causa del cambio climático.
“Ahora un comité va a analizar a lo largo del año cuáles van a ser las modalidades y las características de este fondo, y se va a presentar en la próxima conferencia en los Emiratos Árabes Unidos, en Dubái, en diciembre de 2023”, añadió.
Por último, destacó que se mantuvo el objetivo establecido en Glasgow de evitar que la temperatura global aumente a más de 1.5 grados Celsius. Sin embargo, no se logró incluir la reducción gradual de combustibles fósiles, ante la oposición de varios países petroleros.
“Lo más importante es convencer a los jóvenes de que ellos le exijan resultados a nuestra generación; creo que eso es lo que más moviliza la conciencia y cambiar hábitos”, señaló.
Acciones climáticas desde el Tec de Monterrey
Juan Pablo Murra, rector of Professional and Postgraduate of the Tec, who was also moderator of the talk, highlighted the participation of the Tec in the summit in its efforts to be acatalyst for climate action in the country and in Latin America.
“We define ourVision to 2030around the concepts of leadership, innovation and entrepreneurship forhuman flourishing; for that we defined aStrategic Plan Towards 2025where one of the priorities is to create an environment for human flourishing,” said Murra.
“Within that is to work tobe a more sustainable institutionand to have training and research processes, impact, mitigation and culture on sustainability issues,” he added.
One of the bets of the Tec is theInstitute of Advanced Materials for Sustainable Manufacturing, to which resources and opportunities in research are assigned; also, calls for Tec researchers in projects linked to the SDGs, said the rector.
Sáenz, vice president of Inclusion, Social Impact and Sustainability, said that the institution works on the Blue Route Education axis so that teachers can design components within the curriculum and their courses on climate action,SDG 13.
“We are also encouraging moreapplied researchon these issues, thinking of ourcampuses as living laboratories; take advantage of the opportunity to do research with students that benefits the path to sustainability,” said Sáenz.
The vice president pointed out that in addition to the allocation of resources for climate action, the Tec seeks to generate a forceful cultural change, puttingculture at the center of effortsand motivating young people to create sustainable initiatives and ventures.