UN Climate Negotiations
Appalachian State University
Student and faculty participation in global climate policy
engaging students in climate diplomacy
Overview
Students are selected into the UN Climate Negotiations course and program through a competitive application process. The program is offered through the Walker College of Business and welcomes students from all disciplines.
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The course familiarizes students with the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the annual conference of the parties (COP).
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In November, the delegation of students and faculty from AppState travel to the COP and participate in the negotiations.
The Students
Mitigation & Adaptation
Chelsea Gulliver
MBA (Sustainable Business)
"The best chance that Small Island Developing States (SIDS) have to influence global change is through collective action at the United Nations."
Read Chelsea's Policy Brief on Small Island Developing States (SIDS)
Grace Waugh
BS Sustainable Technology
"By participating in this course, I will be able to engage with peers of different backgrounds and disciplines, enriching my understanding through their experiential contributions and creative ideas and further preparing me for my future as an environmental authority on the international stage."
Renewable Energy
Read Graces's Policy Brief on Technological Innovation and Implementation
Urban Planning
Jonathan Buckley
BA Economics
"Understanding the functions and processes going into global climate events such as this would give me great insight into the international cooperation, agreements, and disagreements the nations of the world have with one-another."
Read Jonathan's Policy Brief on Adaptation and Sustainable Infrastructure
Matthew Mair
BA Economics
BS Political Science
"I hope to combine my economic background with my knowledge of political science to create meaningful change in the world in terms of climate policy."
Read Matthew's Policy Brief on Sea Level Rise and Climate Finance
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Environmental Policy
Environmental Law & Policy
Rachel Crabb
BS Sustainable Development
"I would love to gain a better understanding of the pathways that policies take during events such as the United Nations Climate Change Conference, and how those policies are changed and shaped along the way until they become an agreed upon goal, such as what happened during the 2015 COP in Paris."
Read Rachel's Policy Brief on Sustainable Agriculture
Luke Halodik
MBA (Economics)
"I want to learn how climate change is being managed on a global scale and the efforts and negotiations that countries are proposing and how they could affect our future."
Read Luke's Policy Brief on Ocean Warming and Sea Level Rise
Fisheries Management
Faculty Advisors
Dr. Dave McEvoy
Professor and Chair
Economics
Dr. McEvoy serves at the Organization Head for AppState's involvement in the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. His research is focused on the design and effectiveness of international environmental agreements. Dr. McEvoy has graduate degrees in environmental economics from the University of Massachusetts-Amherst and the University College London.
Lee Ball
Chief Sustainability Officer
Lee’s scholarly and professional interests focus on nature-based solutions, sustainability leadership, sustainability literacy, resilience, biophilic design, regenerative design, decarbonization, climate justice, and change agency related to community engagement. Lee has a doctorate in Sustainability Education, a master's degree in Environmental Education, and a bachelor’s degree in Natural Science.
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