The times we are living are complex and uncertain, our planetary climate system is failing, and we, humans, are responsible for it. We are facing huge challenges and threats to our future, as well as unprecedented evolutionary possibilities.

Christiana Figueres, former Executive Secretary of the UNFCCC at the time of the Paris Agreement, has been one of the most remarkable climate leaders, able to bring the international community together through her positive vision for the future, while acknowledging multiple pathways for different countries and stakeholders.

It was a pleasure to meet with her in Plum Village, France, where she led  a mindfulness retreat for climate leaders and to share with her about the kind of leadership needed for global transformation . 

Emelina Corrales (EC) | Dear Christiana, could you please tell us, what has inspired your dedication  to the protection of our planet?

Christiana Figueres (CF) | Caring for the environment has always been part of my life, coming from a country with two oceans and some 5% of the global biodiversity on a tiny piece of land. 

I have spent an important part of my childhood in the countryside in the highlands of Costa Rica and always enjoyed being in nature. 

I remember a visit as a child to the cloud forests of the Monteverde Biological Reserve in Costa Rica where I was able to see the golden frog (Incilius periglenes) and being completely mesmerized by its beauty. Fast forward in time, when my daughters were little girls, I wanted to show them this tiny shiny animal and to my surprise the species had been declared extinct. It made me clearly feel that I did not want to leave to my daughters a diminished planet.

This was a direct impact of climate change that I understood would cause the disappearance of a lot of microclimates in my country and the associated biodiversity. This was an epiphany for me, I realized that our success in developing a strong network of national parks in Costa Rica was not sufficient to protect our biodiversity. It was not enough to act locally; I realized we needed to come together as a species to address our common climate challenge. 

This led me to eventually represent my country in environmental negotiations and later on to become the Executive Secretary of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. 

EC | I know you approached very consciously this professional transition from representing your country to serving the international community. Can you please tell us a little bit about that?

CF | Indeed, after years of representing my country, whose position in international negotiations I found very sound and responsible, I knew that I needed to let go of my perspective as a Costa Rican to be able to deeply and sincerely listen to the many different positions represented in the whole international community. 

Knowing the power of rituals, before leaving for the UN I designed a small ritual to help me divest from the national position I had defended for so many years. I ceremoniously folded a Costa Rican flag and handed it to the Minister of Foreign Affairs asking him to safekeep it during the time I would hold the responsibility given to me by the UN.  

EC | You  soon realized, as the head of the UNFCCC, that changing mindsets was instrumental to achieving your mission, after the failure of COP 15 in Copenhagen. How did you address that?

CF | When I took my position as the Executive Secretary of the UNFCCC, we were all demoralized. Nobody, including me, believed it was possible to achieve a global climate agreement in our lifetime. When I heard myself saying this, I realized that nothing would be possible if we didn’t shift this mindset and change the narrative. 

The first for step for all of us was to acknowledge this and consciously choose a more positive attitude. Emelina, we both come from a country where the unbelievable has happened: Costa Rica is a country with no army. This is an example that ‘unimaginable’ is possible, if we believe in it!  Stubborn optimism is a deep belief, I would describe it as conscious decision to choose a mindset of possibility in order for change to be possible.

The second aspect was to identify what was keeping us stuck in a depressed mood. I realized there were a lot of aspects related to work conditions that it was in my power to change, so I asked my team to list some priority decisions that could make work more enjoyable for all, allowing them to come to work on a daily basis with a smile on their face. The list of requests and suggestions were woven into the Smile Project which we implemented over two years. The changes we undertook, big and small, made them feel supported and helped us to come together as a solid and motivated team. 

(EC) | Christiana, we both practice mindfulness in the Plum Village Tradition of Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh. Can you tell us, how has it influenced your action and the kind of leadership you have brought to the preparation of the Paris Agreement? 

CF | The first visit to the Plum Village practice center in Germany at the end of 2013 was a last-minute cry for help in the midst of a deep personal crisis. It was two years before COP 21 in Paris and I could not see how I could continue with that huge task if overcome by pain, while also recognizing that leaving my position would impact this process in a very negative way.

I discovered concrete practices that helped me face and hold my suffering and allowed me to continue with my work. I also found in these teachings matters for reflections to approach this process differently. I was able to recognize that I was acting at that time in my personal life as a victim, and that was preventing me from transforming the difficult international challenge I was facing. The experiences that we live, at the personal level, are mirrored at the global level and I could see this victim mindset, not only in myself, but also reflected in many countries’ negotiation teams and positions. 

I realized we needed to transform that, in particular through the practice of deep listening. Many low and middle-income countries did not feel their reality and position was heard, understood and taken into account. I took a lot of time just listening to them so that this need could be addressed. It was a necessary step to be able to engage in a constructive discussion. Only after they feel their arguments have been heard, could they feel really part of the discussion and open up to new possibilities and eventually evolve their positions.

Looking deeply at this experience, I can see that the Paris Agreement has been a journey from blaming each other, to collaborating with each other. It’s a journey from feeling completely paralyzed, helpless, exposed to the elements, to feeling empowered that we can do this together.

(EC) | So, it seems that what has characterized your leadership is a special attention to the inner dimension of change. Is that correct?

CF | Definitely and it is a reflective process, where what is happening in each of us is mirrored at the collective level in the way these global negotiations unfold. So, self-awareness needs to be the starting point and it can have very powerful effects. 

We could not really control the complex landscape around the climate negotiations but we realized we could change our state of mind and personal behavior and by doing this become a catalyst for overall transformation. All too often in the face of a task, we move quickly to “doing” without first reflecting on “being”—what we personally bring to the task, as well as what others might bring. And the most important thing we can bring is the right mindset and attitude. 

(EC) | Lots of changemakers are getting burned out or discouraged, what kind of mindsets do you think are important to cultivate for them to sustain their work? I know you once had a discussion with Thomas Legrand on that, which was very helpful to him.

CF | I think many of them would like to see their work having more impact. But it depends very much on how we think about impact, and what underlying worldview supports that. We all want to see our work having a direct and measurable impact, whether it is a number of books sold, or lives changed or of tons of CO2 emissions avoided. However, the truth is that we all have impact in countless and unexpected ways, including through our sole presence and attitude as I have said. Maybe someone who reads “Politics of Being” will have a conversation with someone else, who years later would prove instrumental in setting up a new initiative informed by this vision, you never know.  We need to cultivate this awareness, which also means choosing the kind of narrative we want to rely on. Do we want to see ourselves as separate individuals or as part of an infinite chain of people, who will probably never meet but feel part of the same great movement in support of the Earth, future generations and humanity’s transition?

(EC) | Talking about future generations, you are a mother like me. What would you say to young parents about how to raise their children in the face of the environmental crises and these very special times of disruption we are living in?

CF | This one is a hard question! What I believe parents should do is to engage in actions in their homes, workplaces, neighborhoods that will show the way to their children. We keep saying that we need to educate children for the future but today we do not have time. We need to change our mindsets as soon as possible to teach our youngsters that through our examples it is possible to evolve in a lifetime, that change is scary but we can build up courage to step up for humanity, our children, and all the species that live on this planet. We adults can also take example from the young climate activists who have inspired me so much.

Christiana Figueres is an internationally recognized leader on climate change. She was Executive Secretary of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change from 2010 to 2016, where she oversaw the delivery of the historic Paris Agreement. Today she is the co-founder of Global Optimism, co-host of the podcast “Outrage & Optimism” and is the co-author of the recently published book, “The Future We Choose.” MORE

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