Activists step up the pressure in Cancun
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In the waters off Coco Bongo, a beach in this resort city, models of the Statue of Liberty, the Sydney Opera House and the Eiffel Tower were bobbing up and down.
At Cancun Messe, a massive convention center that is holding many of the exhibits, displays and side events for the United Nations climate change talks, two giant statues of a rural man and woman were erected. By the statues, an activist from Oxfam Mexico, who called herself Rostros Voces (which means "faces voices" in Spanish) and her colleagues passed out leaflets and video CDs, telling passers-by that any decisions coming out of the talks should not forget women as the main victims of climate change.
As the UN climate change talks pushed on, activists were in full effect on Wednesday, stepping up pressure on negotiators from different nations for a balanced outcome with a series of activities in and outside the conference venue.
With the immersion of the models of iconic structures, Greenpeace representatives said they wanted to illustrate the global threat of climate change.
"Climate change knows no borders, it does not discriminate," said Kumi Naidoo, executive director for Greenpeace International. "The rising tide of climate impacts, be they economic, environmental or humanitarian, will affect each and everyone of us, no matter rich and poor."
Li Yan, Greenpeace campaigner from Beijing, called on negotiators to "deliver climate funding, technology cooperation and forest protection at Cancun".
"These outcomes would lay a good foundation for the final agreement to be reached in next year's climate change conference in South Africa," Li said.
According to insiders, a proposal that the new climate fund should represent women was added to the negotiation mix at the last minute.
It is "a critical step toward ensuring that climate funding reaches those who need it most," said Stanley So, campaign manager for Oxfam Hong Kong.
A group of children from Munich International School planted trees right outside the main conference venue at the Moon Palace in Cancun to call on people to "stop talking, start planting".
"Just talking does not stop the glaciers from melting and the rainforests from disappearing," said a campaign flyer.
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