A young Evansville woman is among those who attended the U.N. Climate Conference in Scotland. WNIN’s John Gibson spoke with her.
Catherine Heiger is a junior at Indiana University, where she takes a climate course.
Heiger and a dozen other students were selected for the trip.
She told WNIN her focus was climate finance.
"It's seems that some of the developing nations don't feel that the financial contributions really get to where maybe the developed nations think it will going. It might be just not as effective or there might be corruption in some countries."
Heiger also noted the differences between credentialed conference participants in the so-called “blue zone” and activists and indigenous people on the streets of Glasgow in the “green zone”…
"I really felt a huge disconnect between these two zones which is incredibly problematic because the people in the green zone are not being heard by the decision makers in the blue zone."
Heiger says she tries to stay optimistic.
"Because I think it's pretty significant that there is such a large conference with people from all over the world attending. And I sort of think an imperfect process is better than none at all."
But Heiger worries a lot gets lost in the details.
"It's so detailed and so difficult to get everyone on the same page so I feel like when it does happen it's really remarkable. But also, to get to that point it' usually iks a pretty watered-down text."
Heiger and her classmates found time for some sightseeing, including a trip to Loch Ness, where they didn’t see a monster but an ancient castle and a rainbow.
"Throughout the day, the sun came out and when we arrived at Loch Ness and saw this castle, this rainbow just kind of appeared. And it was really just a beautiful ending to the week. I could not have asked for a more pisturesque moment, honestly."
As a young woman, it’s fair to say Heiger hopes to see many more rainbows and castles, so long as people preserve the planet.
