In a first, close to three hundred people gathered earlier today in what was promoted as “the first peaceful environmental march in Qatar.”

Organised by Doha Oasis – a nongovernmental organisation set up by the Qatari government in the lead up to the UN climate change negotiations – the event took place by the Al Corniche. In a sign of good faith, the Qatari government approved and partially organised today’s event. Commentators have speculated that this was to appease the international NGO community who had concerns about civil society participation coming into COP18.

Mohammed Al-Muhanadi, who organised the volunteers for today, told The Verb that after the Arab Spring and other similar protests focused on opposing the status quo, Doha Oasis wanted to raise awareness and promote what this generation can achieve. “We did something that is actually positive,” he elaborated when explaining the meaning behind the message of “one environment, one people, one earth”.

The final week of negotiations commence on Monday with the arrival of high level ministers.

By Linh Do with reporting by Andrés Fuentes and Holly Jones, photo by Laura Owsianka.