Youth Climate Champion with UNDP India, Prajakta Koli a.k.a. Mostlysane made history as the only Indian YouTuber to be invited by Google to the COP28 Summit as a speaker. The COP28 Climate Summit took place in Dubai, United Arab Emirates from November 30 to December 12, 2023. Prajakta got the opportunity to participate in and speak at multiple panel discussions and high-level interactions at the summit.
When asked how she plans to leverage her platform to raise awareness about climate issues while being a prominent figure in the digital space, Prajakta said that having an audience that pays attention every time she has a conversation around climate action is her biggest superpower.
“At platforms like COP, I get to talk to people as either they’re a part of the problem or the solution, either ways I get to learn and get answers to questions that helps simplify communication. All communication around climate action is so complex everywhere and that’s where I get to simplify it for my audience,” said the YouTuber.
Let’s take you through Prajakta Koli’s COP28 journey:
Day 1
Her first day at the summit entailed insightful discussions with some key global dignitaries.
Prajakta had a conversation with Michael Regan, Administrator, U. S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), about the role of EPA at COP i.e. Conference of the Parties. The Environmental Protection Agency is a United States federal government agency whose mission is to protect human and environmental health. It is responsible for creating standards and laws promoting the health of individuals and the environment.
Next, she spoke to the Rector of the United Nations University, Prof. Tshilidzi Marwala. They discussed how Education and AI can play an important role in tackling the effects of Climate Change at COP.
The widely loved YouTuber had a very inspiring exchange with two powerful women: Sarah Hendriks, Deputy Executive Director for Policy, Programme, Civil Society & Intergovernmental, and Jemimah Njuki,
Support at UN Women & Chief, Economic Empowerment at UN Women. They dived deep into the need and relevance of women empowerment in climate change.
Also Read: Prajakta Koli Is The Only Indian YouTuber At The COP28 Climate Summit In The UAE
Prajakta was asked what inspired her to attend COP28, and why is addressing climate change important to her. She responded saying, “I feel very grateful that I’m in a position where a brand like Google, NASA, COP 28, United Nations think that there is value in making these conversations happen and that’s where I come into picture.”
She further added, “I’m always very excited every time there is an opportunity to do any conversation with anyone influential, learn as much as you can and I think COP 28 is a great platform to do that. It is important because I’m a citizen of this world and it should be important for all of us as we are responsible for it.“
Day 2
The second day at the prestigious COP28 summit for Prajakta was filled with engaging panel discussions that addressed Climate Change.
The first panel conversation was called “Powering People to Change | Inspiring Meaningful and Measurable Behaviour Change.” Here, the focus was on behavioural change – how an individual’s behaviour can affect or repair the adversities arising due to climate change. It took place among the following members:
- Angela Cooper (Senior Strategist, Sustainability Lead, BEworks)
- Lucy Shea (CEO, Futerra)
- Anila Gopal (Global Sustainability Head, Unilever)
- Jaya Adapa (SVP Media and Content, Futerra)
The second panel conversation was on the topic of “Harnessing Human Narratives for Good | Climate Stories That Matter.” The focus here was on how storytelling is an important factor in climate change. At a time when climate change demands urgent action, storytelling is emerging as a powerful tool to reshape our understanding, engagement and action around this global crisis.
A behavioural collective change that lies at the heart of transformation can only be achieved through the persuasive art of storytelling. And content creators are a great tool to bring about that change. That’s where an influential creator like Prajakta comes into the picture where she can engage her vast community in conversations that matter.
The panel entailed the following members:
- Solitaire Townsend (Co-Founder & Solutionist, Futerra)
- Arizona Muse (Founder, DIRT Charity)
- Alice Aedy (Co-Founder, EarthRise)
- Wirruungga Dunggiir (Elder, Namba Gumbaynggar Nation)
Day 3
On the third day of the climate action summit, Prajakta Koli interacted with Jyotsna Puri who is Associate Vice President for Strategy & Knowledge Development at the International Fund for Agricultural Development. The two ladies spoke about the main issue at hand, that is Climate Change as a whole and also discussed the importance of academic inclusivity of this topic.
An advice Prajakta wishes to give the younger generation to work towards climate change is “to start educating yourself.” She says, “I think as much as there is awareness about the problems, there’s not so much awareness about the roots of the problems or the solutions that we can work around. So it’s important to speak about it in your homes, with your families, with your friend circles, at work, as much as you can.“
Day 4
Exploring NASA’s New Experiment
This was one of the most important agendas for Prajakta at COP28. She interacted with Dr. Benjamin Hamlington at NASA, a Research Scientist in the Sea Level and Ice Group, in the Earth Sciences Section. She also met the artist Yiyun Kang. They spoke about the water scarcity experiment that NASA has conducted in association with Google Arts & Culture (GAC) which has been explained by Yiyun in an easy-to-understand format for everyone.
Given how tough it is to communicate the subject of climate change, Google Arts & Culture bridges this gap with artist collaborations. They believe artists have a great role in communicating and visualising climate data. This empowers users to engage with practical online tools. Now, that’s what you call real ‘influencing.’
Yiyun Kang is creating an online interactive experience that explores aspects of water scarcity that the world is facing today. It interprets data from NASA and proposes solutions, adaptation and mitigation recommendations that we are or should be using to combat water scarcity today.
India’s favourite YouTuber, MostlySane was also seen on a panel for Extreme Hangout for Google. The objective of the conversation was “Meet the YouTube Creators: Democratizing Access to Climate Information.” It revolved around the following:
- Showcase the various ways that Creators share credible climate information.
- Hear from Creators about how corporations and policymakers can support the work they do.
- Know from Creators how they connect with youth on the climate message and prepare future generations for what they will end up facing.
- Learn how Creators can help policymakers and leaders connect with the younger generation and inspire positive change around climate initiatives.
This panel was hosted by Kate Brandt, Chief Sustainability Officer at Google and the panelists included:
-Prajakta Koli a.k.a. Mostly Sane, YouTube Creator
-Jacob Beaucoup, YouTube Creator, Breaking Lab
-Alice Aedy, Co-Founder and CEO of EarthRise
Prajakta was also on the panel for ‘Entertainment and Culture for Climate Action’ (ECCA).
One thing that has come out from all these insightful panel discussions is that the art of storytelling is critical to the climate change discussion. Prajakta Koli’s presence at the COP28 summit is one of the biggest opportunities for a content creator to get people talking about the pressing issue of climate change which is no longer a distant reality. Her fanbase extends beyond the national borders and thus, she can easily enable them to think about these social causes that will have a direct impact on their lives.
