The luxury of being a student at COP is a relaxed daily agenda. While official countries’ delegates need to navigate a multidimensional game of chess between science, politics, and corporate realities, students can best form the fascinating part – learning and asking hard questions. I’ve attended COP29 for the entire two weeks and see COP as something to tackle in three parts: before, during, and after.

One famous general said, ‘Plans are useless, but planning is essential.’ Even though many things change before and during the COP, a student can get ready by laying the foundation for a successful few days by identifying people to have coffee with.  UNFCCC regularly publishes the list of all registered participants, which may come helpful. There are usually a few dozen private companies as well as the world’s major NGOs. As such, one could find a few companies of interest and connect with the people before coming to the COP.

Despite hundreds of events, there are only a few main items to follow. In Baku, major topics were the new collective quantified goal (NCQG), loss and damage, and article 6. With one of these topics in mind, one could even go around countries’ pavilions and have some in-depth discussions while learning about the country’s agendas (or the absence of one). Overall, a student can lay a successful foundation for COP by having a lineup of conversations with people of interest and having a topic in mind to follow.

During the COP, students in our group had three main approaches: follow one topic deeply, engage in various items broadly, or work for a client (an organization we all found and supported in various extends). My classmate Sameer Swarup (MEM’26) took the first approach and closely followed the loss and damage processes. By the end of the conference, not only was he highly proficient in the subject, but he also knew the key actors involved. When asked for the interview in the corridor, he gave a brilliant answer with no preparation.

The second common approach was to look for events of interest broadly. As my master’s project topic is biodiversity credits, I was looking for related events. Furthermore, I wanted to see how COP is different from other conferences. Hence, I attended high-level opening statements, ministerial statements, and several press conferences. I also got to stop by for events in many pavilions, including the United States, Sweden, China, Indonesia, and more.

Thirdly, as part of the class, we needed to have a client and work with them. The work extends varied. As part of the Ukraine delegation, I organized a panel on the role of American universities in Ukraine’s recovery. Kayla Fericy, a third-year PhD candidate in Civil and Environmental Engineering, brought her invaluable technical expertise in water quality and offered her insights. I was also asked for some interpretation support. Hence, I shadowed our deputy minister at various talks where she made opening statements or spoke on a panel. Additionally, as a president of the University of North Carolina MBA Net Impact Club, I created content for the Net Impact Instagram.

Second part of the article: Being a student at COP: During and After.