Train to Copenhagen

Take the train to the United Nations Climate Change Conference 2009 in Copenhagen

The Train to Copenhagen team has one goal: bringing people to Copenhagen and bringing COP15 to the people. Taking the train is part of the solution in combating global warming. Trains are the most environmentally friendly mode of transport, so why would you travel by any other means to the one event in 2009 that can make a difference to the planet’s future?

The International Union of Railways (UIC) and its members and partners (see www.uic.org) are organizing the Climate Express from Brussels to Copenhagen on 5 December, a 12-hour on-track conference about transport and climate change where the aim will be to find out how we can solve the challenges posed by the transport sector with regard to global warming.

Events will be organized all over the world as part of this project to show how you can travel in a sustainable way. Be an ecopassenger and join the train to Copenhagen!

The Kyoto to Copenhagen journey In November 2009 a team of environmental experts, NGOs and journalist has boarded the Trans Siberian Express in Vladivostok.

The trip is a key part of the Train to Copenhagen project and is organised by the Russian Railways (RZD http://eng.rzd.ru/). RZD planned different stops, at Irkutsk, Novosibirsk, Yekaterinburg, Novgorod and the team will end their journey in Moscow 10 days later. Each stop is giving the team the opportunity to meet the local environment authorities, experts and journalists, discover innovative railway technologies, and witness the impact of climate change on the Russian territories and meet.

From Moscow the team will join the “Climate Express†going to Copenhagen thereby linking the East and the West via the Trans Siberian Railway one of the key international corridors linking Asia and Europe.

They are actually bringing the rail message to Copenhagen. Indeed, on 5 November 2009, the UIC Asia Environment Conference took place in Kyoto, where the world’s first global agreement ever on climate change was agreed upon in 1997. In this symbolic place, the conference participants signed the ’Message from the Rail Sector to the COP15 - from Kyoto to Copenhagen’.

The symbolic journey from Kyoto to Copenhagen represents the passage to the next generation agreement on the future climate regime.

The train journey will demonstrate how railways are acting in the spirit of the Kyoto protocol and actively reducing the emissions from the transportation sector. Follow the adventures of the the travel team, their experiences and observations on the changes due to global warming on www.traintocopenhagen.org/The-Kyoto-to-Copenhagen-journey/

The Transiberian Journey

UralAnton Lange for "Russia from the train""> Kimonos in Kyoto UIC"> Welcome in YekaterinburgIvan Shapovalov"> Ivan Shapovalov"> Novosibirsk-BarabinskIvan Shapovalov"> Sakhalin railroadAnton Lange for "Russia from the train""> IzborskAnton Lange for "Russia from the train""> lake from train windowAnton Lange for "Russia from the train""> Boat-ride across the mouth of the AngaraIvan Shapovalov"> Novosibirsk_1Ivan Shapovalov"> Ivan Shapovalov"> UNEP winning picture">  See all photos

The wagon will be attached and detached to five regular Trans-Siberian Expresses during the journey, as the program elaborated by Russian Railways envisages stops in 5 Russian major cities during the trip. Excursions, technical visits and meetings with the local authorities and press are planned as well as a meeting RZD top-management upon arrival at Moscow on 1 December.

The departure from Vladivostok is planned for 21st November.

On 24th November the wagon will make a stop in East Siberia. Participants of the journey will have an excursion on Circum-Baikal Railway and a ferry journey across Baikal lake.

Upon arrival at Novosibirsk (West Siberia) on 26th November participants will visit a wagon-laboratory to establish level of environmental pollution in the area of the rail line and Zayeltsovsky ecological park.

On 28th November the train will arrive at Yekaterinburg (Ural), where visits to the rain and melt-water purification facilities at a sub-station and carriage-washing facilities at the Sverdlovsk passenger sub-station are planned.

The next wagon stop at Nizhny Novgorod (Central Russia) on 30 November envisages meeting with regional environmental organizations, excursion to the Nizhny Novgorod Kremlin and inspection of the repair-construction train.

On 1st December the train will arrive to Moscow where a meeting with RZD top-management will take place and RZD HQ.

The Climate Express

Guillaume Pepy, SNCF CEO ; Francisco Cardoso dos Reis, President of CP Board ; Rüdiger Grube, DB CEO and Yoshio Ishida, UIC Chairman"> Achim Steiner, UNEP Executive Director, James P. Leape, WWF Secretary General"> The Climate Express in Brussels Midi Station - WWF Coach"> On board press conference "> Event in Cologne"> Richard Brown, Eurostar Director General ; Louis Negre, French Senator ; Guillaume Pepy, SNCF CEO ; Jean-Pierre Loubinoux, UIC Director General ; Rüdiger Grube, DB CEO ; Yoshio Ishida, UIC Chairman ; and Francisco Cardoso dos Reis, President of CP Board"> Peter Muff, Railteam Director"> The Climate Champions- British Council- performing an Indian dance"> Jean-Pascal van Ypersele, IPCC Vice-Chairman, whistling off the departure of the train"> Ben Webster, journalist at the Times and moderator"> Jean-Pascal van Ypersele, IPCC Vice-Chairman ">  See all photos

They took the train to Copenhagen!

More than 400 EcoPassengers travelled with the Climate Express from Brussels to COP 15 in Copenhagen

On 5 December, Jean-Pierre Loubinoux, Director General of the International Union of Railways (UIC), the initiator of this special train, together with Achim Steiner, the Executive Director of the United Nations Environment Programme and James P. Leape, Director General of WWF hosted more than 400 high level EcoPassengers: climate change negotiators, rail business leaders, environmental activists, journalists and a group of Young Climate Champions on board of the Climate Express taking them to COP 15 in Copenhagen.

The Climate Express is part Train to Copenhagen™ campaign aiming to support and encourage decision-makers to delivering a successor to the Kyoto Protocol, the first international effort to cut green house gas emissions. Its purpose is also to send out the message that the next-generation climate agreement and its supporting policies and procedures need to address the transport sectors growing emissions.

A CO2-free journey

By drawing power entirely from renewable sources of energy, the journey on the Climate Express is totally CO2-free. If the same group of people flew to Copenhagen instead of taking the train, they would produce 115kg CO2 per person.

Illustration of the journey and on board debates, by Bigger Picture"> Illustration of the journey and on board debates, by Bigger Picture"> Illustration of the journey and on board debates, by Bigger Picture"> Illustration of the journey and on board debates, by Bigger Picture"> Illustration of the journey and on board debates, by Bigger Picture">  See all cartoons

Background information

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  Train to Copenhagen flyer

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  Facts and Figures - Railways and Environment

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  CO2 Reduction through combined transport

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  Railways and the Environment

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Videos

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Check your emissions!

Check the emissions of your travel and the travel of the products you buy in the best possible way! EcoPassenger and EcoTransIT are two user-friendly internet tools to compare the energy consumption, CO2- and exhaust atmospheric emissions for planes, cars and trains (and trucks) in Europe. With "the best possible way" we mean the most fair and comprehensive way. The methodology behind the calculations are sound scientific, focusing on a life cycle approach to the energy involved, and approved by the European Environment Agency.

EcoPassenger EcoTransit

Position Paper and Rail Message

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  Message from the Rail Sector to the COP 15-From Kyoto to Copenhagen

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  Position paper

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J.Kettner, Y.Ishida, JP Loubinoux with the message signed by the rail sector ">

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