The Danish Government specified that 65% of all food in the congress centre for COP15 be organic. Instead, the caterers thought they said 65% tasteless and 100% de-frosted. The food is really bad here (aside from the carrot cake).

Other than that, the event is actually very well organised. The computer systems are good (wi-fi is available everywhere and is very fast), there are recycling bins all over the place, they have put up three massive temporary buildings to house the delegation offices and the Danish people are all very friendly and go out of their way to be of service.

I am not sure where the fruit and vegetables served in the cafes is from, but if one group presenting here in Copenhagen has their way, it may well be from the Sahara in the future…

One of the challenges to overcome in supplying the aviation industry with sustainable biofuel for our aircraft is finding land on which to grow it. The Bellona Foundation of Norway is backing a scheme called The Sahara Forest Project which is looking to use large parts of the Sahara Desert to grow crops and biofuels using solar energy and desalinated water. It’s a good idea. As the above graphic shows, the land can be used for a concentrated solar power plant, a photovoltaic solar power array, greenhouses for growing crops and – importantly for us in aviation – a high-density algae biofuel production facility.

According to the Sahara Forest Project, "Deserts are often used as symbols of infertility and lost hope. Many, if not all of the world’s deserts, formerly supported vegetation. Were it not for the lack of fresh water, they could still do so… the world is not short of water. The water is just in the wrong place and is too salty."

It is these types of forward thinking innovations that will allow us to continue living our lives, but in a low-carbon way and provide much needed economic development and jobs in some of the poorest parts of the world.