COP25 – Madrid – Report 3 (Phone)

Wednesday 4th December 2019 Madrid, Spain

COP Press conference

The day started with our press conference “Climate Emergency needs Visionary Leadership”. Prior to us, the Fridays for Future School strike movement held their press Conference and so the hall was packed and vibrant with the energy when we entered.

In our press conference, we discussed what qualities are needed to be a change maker and visionary leader.

Speaker from the left: Sister Jayanti Kirpalani, Director Brahma Kumaris in Europe, Main Representative of Brahma Kumaris to UN, Moderator Sonja Ohlsson, Brahma Kumaris Denmark, Martin Frick, Senior Dir for Policy and Programme Coordination UNFCCC, Golo Pilz, Energy Adviser to the Brahma Kumaris.

Golo gave an overview of what the Brahma Kumaris are doing for the climate emergency and how to facilitate the necessary transformation. Martin Frick emphasised that visionary leadership means to see something that is beyond what is visible now – to be able to see our climate resilient future. Sister Jayanti gave 3 key points for leadership:

Keep your promises
Be inclusive and bring everyone together
Walk the talk

Link to stream: https://unfccc-cop25.streamworld.de/webcast/brahma-kumaris-world-spiritual-university-climate-

Lecture at University Carlos III

The title of a guest lecture by Golo was “Transition to innovative and clean technology demands a new mindset”. It was held at the superior technical department at one of the main Universities in Madrid. Golo gave a brief update on climate change and then talked in detail about the renewable energy projects of Brahma Kumaris. Towards the end of his talk, he made the connection between our thoughts, awareness and the decisions we make. He highlighted the importance of meditation to bring about the necessary shift in habits and lifestyle.

More than 50 students participated and had many questions at the end. The dean of the university joined in the middle of the talk and thanked Golo for his inspiring presentation.