The Fifteenth Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) in Copenhagen in 2009 was the largest-ever negotiation on climate change, and possibly the largest gathering of heads of state in modern history. A wide diversity of non-state actors attended, from trade unions to women’s groups, and each sought to influence the proceedings. Inter-governmental organizations (IGOs) such as the World Health Organization, the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR), and the International Organization for Migration (IOM) also participated. These organizations lobbied states to reach an agreement on climate change and encouraged negotiators to take their particular interest (e.g., health, refugees, migration) into account in the final agreement.

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