People's climate bash falls flat

On an unseasonably chilly and windswept Durban beachfront, the first official event of the "People's COP" consisted of a smallish crowd of dignitaries and supporters accompanying Deputy President, Kgalema Motlanthe in "walking the blue line".

The original concept was for a blue line to be painted across the city, marking the projected sea level rise. In the event, the Blue Line was rather more ephemeral, consisting of a blue ribbon carried by blue-clad marchers.

Word on the street is that municipal manager Mike Sutcliffe was rather upset by the fact that billions of rands of investment by eThekwini Metro, including the Moses Mabhida World Cup stadium, would be revealed as falling on the wrong side of the blue line. Not to mention the potential implications for property values.

It is certainly too early to pronounce judgment on COP17, but there are worrying signs that the conceptualisation and event management of opportunities for participation in the People's COP is falling short in terms of official arrangements.

The Blue Line parade terminated in a beachfront park with a rather extensive cordoned-off VIP area with what looked like equally extensive catering arrangements. It seemed rather devoid of actual VIPs though.

Any excitement that was generated came from an impromptu demonstration against the development of a local beach, and a climate change computer game.