“Every view is taken seriously”

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Conference Diary - Day 3 (August 29, 2007)
“Every view is taken seriously”
Press Photos


“You’ ve got two minutes to develop a project. Then I’ll give you one sentence to convince me of it!” Wayne Talbot speaks aggressively, and he has got no time for discussion. He is playing the role of someone who has to make a quick decision whether to support an environmental project or not.

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A group of participants at their visit of the Energiepark, Stadtwerke Herne AG.
Nearly forty participants of the Tunza Youth Conference on the Environment have come to this workshop and are learning from him how to improve the prospects of success of their projects. For many of the participants, the dynamic way Talbot led his seminar was the highlight of the third day of the Tunza Conference. “He certainly makes you think,” said Thomas Christian (20) from the United States.

Speed was also of the essence throughout the day. In a previous plenary session the participants had the chance to present environmental projects of their organisations or from their home countries. They had only five minutes to do so, since the time had to be limited to give as many young people as possible the chance to have their say.

The biggest applause of the day went to Hana Shazwin Azizan (15) from Malaysia. Before her presentation she had distributed disposable spoons and boxes. They are produced out of fibre remains that are generated in the manufacture of palm oil that normally end up on the rubbish heap. “They decompose naturally and can even be eaten,” said Hana.

The schoolgirl from Kuala Lumpur is attending a Tunza Conference for the first time and is looking forward to the next four meetings that will be held before she is too old. “I’ve never before experienced such a well organised event. I’m learning a lot that will help me with my projects. It’s also good that every view is taken seriously and discussed openly.”

Like the two previous days, the organisers had made sure that on the third day, there was plenty of first-hand impressions. This time the excursions were to a research centre for photovoltaics, a biofuel project and a drinking water treatment facility in Cologne, which neighbours Leverkusen.

Zainab Humaidan (20) from Bahrain chose to visit the waterworks and was able, like the other participants, to try a sip of water directly from the treatment plant. This seemingly inconsequential act made it clear to all the visitors just how precious water is. “My friends at home will think it is a joke when I tell them what I did. In Bahrain the water that comes out of the tap is too salty to drink.”

Zainab says that in her home country the financial means would be there to do something about it but that an awareness of the problem would be lacking. But on her return she will do her bit to change this – after all, constant dripping wears away the stone.

The evening programme this time again promised a visit to Cologne. The participants could either enjoy the musical “We will rock you”, watch Al Gore’s film “An inconvenient truth” or tour the famous Old City Quarter of Cologne. They also visited a “Brauhaus”, a typical Cologne brewery.

Press Photos

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Images author: Bayer AG
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A group of participants at their visit of the Energiepark, Stadtwerke Herne AG.

                               
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During an excursion, participants of the Tunza International Youth Conference learned about the mode of operation of a rapeseed oil mill.

                               
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The excursion to Mont Cenis Energy Parc in Herne focused on the topic of solar energy.

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