"Hey, Yvo de Boer's here!"
That phrase wouldn't make most young people perk up and scan the room frantically, but at COP14, we are all climate nerds, and seeing the UNFCCC Executive Secretary is one of the best celebrity sighting you can make (especially in the first week before most of the ministers and high-level politicians arrive). If you can't get enough of him, he holds a press conference each day, or if you wanted to get really up-close and personal, you could have attended the "Next Generation Climate Change" side event today. Yvo appeared to take questions partway through the event, which was designed to air the views of youth and negotiators about the role of youth in the climate negotiation process. Although he stated clearly that, "the voice of youth is not being heard," he appeared reluctant to actively support requests for more youth representation in government delegations (only 3 countries' delegations here have youth representation), a youth constituency at the COP, or relaxing the stifling regulations around the daily actions put on by youth - one of our only ways of getting our voice heard here.