By Marleen Buizer, Postdoctoral Researcher
Was it to be a Roadmap, an Agreement or a Treaty? In the very end, it became ‘but’ an agreement with a commitment to limit global warming to 2°C. What do they mean by commitment? It gives an odd feeling, this agreement, as temperatures outside are swinging around 40°C now and temperatures in Australia are breaking new records almost every year. Unfortunately, the Copenhagen agreement has no teeth. No deadline for a legally binding treaty, no commitments to CO2-reductions and no reduction target for the long run. I am telling myself that it is normal for these processes to take a long time…
So what is next for us? While Copenhagen came to a standstill in December, we went out in the Wandoo forests, to select sites for future research and, later on, to participate in a field trip organized by Liz Manning. We found that in some areas the Wandoo were doing remarkably well, but why were they not doing so well at other spots? What makes the difference? How about the Tuarts in the coastal zone? At seed collection day with volunteers, we found many Tuarts full with buds and yet some other trees were obviously suffering. If it is about global climate change, why then are results so differentiated and local? Though Climate Change for some has become an empty signifier or an umbrella term for a whole range of phenomena, it is also a trigger for relevant research as far as we can judge it; to what extent does a shortage of water affect the trees? Are they able to adapt? What are the conditions in which they can? What is the role of borers and fungi? Etcetera. Regardless of Copenhagen, there is work to do in 2010! We wish you an explorative productive new year with plenty of common sense!
