This week, it’s worth embracing a calmer approach to life at the Fourth International Conference on Financing for Development and relinquishing any sense of authority over your own schedule.
You thought you needed 15 minutes to get to the venue? Add another hour driving and 20 minutes walking — plus a few minutes for rehydration. Thought you’d get right into the venue upon arrival? Add a standstill line for registration and three layers of security. In other words, if you want to get anywhere “on time” you should come at 4:00 a.m. and never leave the main conference center.
The United Nations was also strict on media accessibility today, only allowing journalists to access the area where the main plenary, roundtables, announcements, and official events are held with a U.N. escort. There are some events like this — the G20 summit, for example, blocks most journalists from attending any discussions at all — but it’s not the norm, and can make it difficult to access delegates before they jump into their air-conditioned cars.
About the authors
Jesse Chase-Lubitz
Jesse Chase-Lubitz covers climate change and multilateral development banks for Devex. She previously worked at Nature Magazine, where she received a Pulitzer grant for an investigation into land reclamation. She has written for outlets such as Al Jazeera, Bloomberg, the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project, and The Japan Times, among others. Jesse holds a master’s degree in Environmental Policy and Regulation from the London School of Economics.
Elissa Miolene
Elissa Miolene reports on USAID and the U.S. government at Devex. She previously covered education at The San Jose Mercury News, and has written for outlets like The Wall Street Journal, San Francisco Chronicle, Washingtonian magazine, among others. Before shifting to journalism, Elissa led communications for humanitarian agencies in the United States, East Africa, and South Asia.
