Tag Archives: South Asia

Outcomes COP23: Focusing on Addressing Climate Change in the Developing World

03 Sunday Jun 2018

Posted by in Climate Change, UNFCCC

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , , ,

The 23rd Conference of Parties (COP23) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) was held in Bonn, Germany from November 6th to 17th, 2017. It was the first COP to be presided by a Small Island Developing State, with Fiji as its presidency, and was politically and technically important due to diverse reasons.

This article will focus on key aspects of the negotiations which present implications on the developing countries, and prioritises on issues such as adaptation, loss and damage and climate finance. It does not discuss in extensive detail the topics related to discussion as many articles published on COP23 focuses primarily on it, and allocates space for issues that have not been widely discussed and would play a role in addressing climate change in the developing world.

The article does not present itself as an exhaustive discussion on all aspects important to developing countries in addressing adverse impacts of climate change. However, it is compiled with the objective of highlighting outcomes that focus on the needs of the developing countries, aspects that will be crucial to regions such as the South Asian region, and the activities that will follow in 2018 to build on these outcomes.

Adaptation

Climate change adaptation plays a crucial role for developing countries, especially those most vulnerable to climate change. While mitigation of CO2 and other Green House Gases is important, countries that are already impacted by climate change need urgent adaptive measures. The discussions on adaptation at the climate change negotiations were focused on many tracks among which are the Nairobi Work Programme (NWP), the Adaptation Committee, the Adaptation Communications, National Adaptation Plans as well as issues relevant to finance for adaptation.

Adaptation Communications could be seen as a tool under the Paris Agreement that will contribute to highlighting the adaptation-related priorities, and support for adaptation. The progress of the discussions on the Adaptation Communications will be important for developing countries as it would highlight the need for reporting on adaptation efforts and support, as well as drawing interlinkages between the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the Sendai Framework on Disaster Risk Reduction. However, the negotiations on the topic saw divergences among the developing and developed countries on the inclusion of common but differentiated responsibilities and respective capabilities, national circumstances, and flexibility on reporting.

In addition to this, the discussions on NAPs was another key element for the developing countries. This is due to the discussions focusing on support provided through the Readiness and Preparatory Programme of the Green Climate Fund (GCF). Under the GCF Readiness Programme, developing countries are allocated up to USD 3 million per country for the formulation of national adaptation plans and/or other adaptation planning processes by NDAs or focal points[1]. The Readiness Programme is aimed to facilitate the development of NAPs with a focus on national priorities in developing adaptation measures to address impacts of climate change.  During the negotiations on NAPs, it was highlighted by developing countries that several hurdles were faced by them in accessing GCF Readiness Support. This included among others the lengthy time needed to get approval for Readiness Support. Further, it was noted that a very low number of approvals have been received for applications, and the importance of fast tracking and facilitating the access to finance for NAP readiness was emphasized, so as to contribute to addressing  the needs of developing countries related to climate change adaptation.

Climate Finance

As expected, climate finance plays a key role in the negotiations, with support for climate action being indispensable for vulnerable countries. The finance discussions could be deemed cross-cutting and featured  under the streams on long-term finance, finance under the NDCs, Transparency Framework and the Global Stocktake, finance through the GCF, GEF and Adaptation Fund, and the negotiations on the Standing Committee on Finance.

One of the key issues to be reiterated in the negotiations on climate finance was the commitment of developed countries to jointly mobilise US$100 billion per year by 2020, which was agreed to in 2009, in Copenhagen. The next round of updated biennial submissions are requested from developed countries and a summary report will be prepared through these submissions. The upcoming intersessions in May, 2018 will see the organizing of an in-session workshop  on the topic whereby a summary report will be prepared for COP 24, and  two assessments on climate finance will be published in 2018 and 2020 to provide further information on the status of climate finance under the process.

Under the negotiations on the GCF, it was reported that the Fund is truly operational and delivering on its mandate. However, it was noted that the accreditation remains a challenge for many entities that have sought to gain accreditation to the GCF. This triggered the review of the accreditation framework, which is considered a challenge by many entities.

Another topic of interest on climate finance are the negotiations on the Adaptation Fund. The Fund has been a cause of divergence in COP22 as well as COP23. The members countries of the Kyoto Protocol agreed in COP23 that the Fund shall serve the Paris Agreement, which removed the doubts on the placement of the Fund. Further, pledges were made to the Fund, which amounted to US $93.3 million, with new pledges from Germany amounting to 50 million. Similar pledges were made to the Least Developed Country Fund (LDCF) during the COP23 as well.

The developments on the climate finance discussions and the workshop to be held in May will be important to see the pathway for support for climate action in the world.

Loss and Damage

Finance for Loss and Damage was not a win that the developing countries received during the last COP. While developing countries see loss and damage as one of the pillars with mitigation and adaptation, at present climate finance does not cover Loss and Damage as does the other two pillars.

However, there were discussions on the Loss and Damage during the COP, and these focused on the work of the Warsaw International Mechanism on Loss and Damage (WIM), the 5 year rolling plan, and the setting up of the expert dialogue on loss and damage. The Suva Expert Dialogue on Loss and Damage will be organized during the upcoming May session, to be held in Bonn. The discussions on the topic would be important to developing countries to understand the ways in which the topic of Loss and Damage could play a key role in climate change actions, and how finance could be mobilized to address the losses and damages felt by the developing countries due to adverse impacts of climate change.

Dealing with Risk Transfer and Launch of InsuRelience Global Partnership

Two key developments that could be linked and marked to adaptation and the Loss and Damage discussions could be deemed as the mode for addressing risk transfer and the ways of insuring vulnerable communities against the impacts of climate change. While insurance for climate change has been a topic debate, and seen as a negative element in cases where the communities are requested to insure themselves which places an additional financial burden on them, the InsuRelience Global Partnership presented a different structure for risk management.

Funded by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) through a contribution of 110 million euros (US $125 million) the Partnership focuses on disaster risk finance, and provides insurance solutions with the aim of providing affordable insurance for vulnerable groups. Additional contribution to the Partnership was provided by the United Kingdom in the form of   £30 million (US $39 million) as commitment made in July 2017.[2] The  Partnership builds on the InsuResilience initiative founded during the German G7 Presidency in 2015, and aimed to providing insurance for an additional 400 million poor and vulnerable people in developing countries against climate risks by 2020. [3]

COP23 also saw the launch of the  Fiji Clearing House for Risk Transfer, and online resource aimed to provide access to vulnerable countries to  the best available information on affordable insurance and solutions. [4]However, the process contributing directly to vulnerable communities accessing information through the online resource provision remains vague. While a person with access to internet and resources could address one’s questions to the experts on the system, it is unlikely that a marginalized and vulnerable communities will be realistically be able to address their questions to experts and make decisions on how to address risks on climate change. While the launch of the platform is appreciated, for it to be realistically meeting its objective, more work will remain to be done at the ground level.

 

Progress in Agriculture

Agriculture has been a topic of divergence for over many years in the COP process. However, in COP23, the years of deadlock was terminated, with the countries reached an agreement on agriculture which aims to address food security, and impacts felt on agriculture through climate change impacts. This is considered as the first substantive outcome and COP decision in the history of the UNFCCC processes on agriculture.[5]

The agreement on agriculture at COP23 establishes the Koronivia Joint Work on Agriculture which focuses on developing cobenefit based actions on agriculture. This would mean that new actions and strategies will be implemented which focus on both  adaptation and mitigation focusing on both reduction of emissions and building of resilience in the agriculture sector.

The outcomes of COP23 on agriculture remain of great importance to countries of South Asia, and other developing countries as impacts of climate change are strongly felt on the small holder farmers, that contributes approximately 70% of the food production globally. Impacts felt on these farmers impact food security and increase existing vulnerabilities of communities of the region. Wish support of multiple actors, the small holder farmers of developing countries could build their resilience and face the impacts of climate change.

Wins for the Vulnerable

Gender negotiations in COP23 succeeded in developing a decision to develop a Gender Action Plan (GAP). This is developed with the aim to enhance the participation of women in the UNFCCC process and the implementation of the Paris Agreement.

Among activities that are highlighted under the Gender Action Plan are Activities capacity building, knowledge sharing and communication as well as integrating gender perspectives and enhanced knowledge on gender-responsive policy, planning and programming, gender balance and participation, gender-responsive implementation and means of implementation with improved social and gender-assessments and information, and direct access for grassroots women’s groups, and gender-responsive climate technologies. The GAP aims to integrate gender into the many levels of work in addressing climate change, including monitoring and evaluation of climate action.

The decision remains important to developing countries where women remain vulnerable to climate change, and where at most times their voices and concerns are not reflected in the decision-making processes. In highlighting the need for integrating gender into the climate change processes under the UNFCCC, it provides scope for women to engage more in climate change initiatives to contribute as well as to benefit from the actions taken to address climate change.

In addition to the GAP, the Local Communities and Indigenous Peoples Platform was also a highlight of COP23 providing space for the indigenous communities to share experiences and best practices in addressing climate change.

From COP23 to COP24

2018 marks a key year for climate negotiations. With the Paris Rule Book to be finalized by COP24, negotiations on issues related to setting the framework for Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), reporting of adaptation efforts, transparency and MRV framework, elements of the global stocktake, and monitoring of compliance under the Paris Agreement which remain to be finalized.

In May, in Bonn, and in months leading to the COP24 in Katowice in Poland, the discussions will focus on finalizing the Rule Book, and enhancing and building on the outcomes, as well as the unresolved elements of COP23 such as climate finance discussions focusing on article 9.5 of the Paris Agreement, relating to developed countries reporting on their climate finance flows to developing countries which was left unresolved in COP23.

In order to benefit from these negotiations, it will be important for developing countries, to stay focused on the national and global priorities needed to address the sustainable development of their populations. It will be equally important for the developing countries to find avenues for integrating climate change and negotiations on climate change at the global level to the sustainable development priorities at the national and local level so as to prioritise on the needs of the vulnerable communities who are most affected by the impacts of climate change.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[1] GCF Readiness Support, Retrieved from: https://www.greenclimate.fund/gcf101/empowering-countries/readiness-support

[2] $125 Million Announced for New Global Partnership to Provide Financial Protection against Climate Risks, Retrieved from: https://cop23.com.fj/125-million-announced-new-global-partnership-provide-financial-protection-climate-risks/

[3] Ibid

[4] Key Achievements from COP23, Retrieved from: https://cop23.com.fj/key-achievements-cop23/

[5] Countries Reach Historic Outcome on Agriculture, Retrieved from: https://cop23.com.fj/countries-reach-historic-agreement-agriculture/

Regional Cooperation for the Successful Implementation of the Paris Climate Agreement in South Asia

06 Sunday Nov 2016

Posted by in Climate Change, Development, Environment, Paris Agreement, Sustainable Development, Uncategorized, UNFCCC

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

, , , , , ,

16194695709_401c04d02e_z-1

(Photo credits: Biodiversity International via Creative Commons)

The fifth assessment report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (AR5 IPCC) published on regional impacts from climate change has provided that in South Asia, the climate is changing and the impacts are already being felt. It further highlights that climate change impacts will pose challenges to growth and development of the region. It points out to the need for international cooperation to address these impacts and states that, “International cooperation is vital to avert dangerous climate change impacts and South Asian governments can promote ambitious global action,”[1].

Among key areas that the Report points as being priority for the South Asia region are adaptation and low carbon development. It provides that “Adaptation will bring immediate benefits and reduce the impacts of climate change in South Asia.”[2] It also adds that adaptation is fundamental to risk management, and that South Asia has many adaptation options.

While adaptation actions are prioritized, the Report also indicates that low carbon development will also benefit the region, and the merging of adaptation and mitigation actions will lead to South Asia’s path to address climate change and its impacts. According to the Report, “South Asia stands to benefit from integrated climate adaptation, mitigation, and development approaches.”

Impacts of Climate Change on South Asia

Globally, sea levels have risen faster than at any time during the previous two millennia – and the effects are felt in South Asia.[3] Changing patterns of rainfall or melting snow and ice are altering freshwater systems, affecting the quantity and quality of water available in many regions, including South Asia.[4] Climate change will have widespread impacts on South Asian society and South Asians’ interaction with the natural environment.[5]

The AR5 highlights that, “The impacts of climate change will influence flooding of settlements and infrastructure, heat-related deaths, and food and water shortages in South Asia.” [6] It further points to impacts such as temperature extremes (high confidence)[7] which is reflected through the numbers of cold days and nights that have decreased and the numbers of warm days and nights that have increased across most of Asia since about 1950.

Further South Asia is victim to change in rainfall trends. These trends, including extremes, are characterised by strong variability, with both increasing and decreasing trends observed in different parts of Asia. Observations also show that there have been more extreme rainfall events and fewer weak rainfall events in the central Indian region.[8]

In addition to this, the region also experiences sea level rise. Changes of sea level in the Indian Ocean have emerged since the 1960s, driven by changing wind patterns.[9]

Effects of these impacts are already felt, threatening lives, food security, health and wellbeing across many parts of South Asia. Evidence show that there are clear signs that the impacts of climate change are already being felt.[10]

Need for International Cooperation

Given the interdependence among countries in today’s world, the impacts of climate change on resources or commodities in one place will have far-reaching effects on prices, supply chains, trade, investment and political relations in other places. Climate change will progressively threaten economic growth[11] and human security in complex ways, in this region and across the world.[12]

Further transboundary impacts of climate change are felt across the globe, to which actions need to be taken. While impacts are felt, and actions are needed, further needs for cooperation is highlighted by the state of countries in their economic and technical capacity whereby support from those that have a higher level with regard to both will be needed. In South Asia, the capabilities and vulnerabilities are diverse, and cooperation on climate action is needed, with attention to these elements. The political processes at the regional and international level must reflect these needs, in order to implement concrete and effective climate actions.

The AR5 of the IPCC provides that, “South Asian leaders have an important part to play – with all other international leaders – in forging this solution. Cooperating, recognising that everyone must share the effort, and making financial resources available for investment in adaptation programmes and low-emissions infrastructure are important in reaching global agreement.”.

Paris Agreement & Regional Cooperation

The Paris Agreement which entered into force on 4th November 2016, was signed by Parties to the UNFCCC at the 21st Conference of Parties held in Paris, in December 2015. In an unprecedented outcome, the Agreement for the first time brings together all countries under a common cause of addressing impacts of climate change, with all parties taking up contribution towards it. It builds on the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC,) and has as its objective to strengthen the global response to climate change impacts, and keeping the global temperature rise this century to well below 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels and to pursue efforts to limit the temperature increase even further to 1.5 degrees Celsius.

Decision 1/CP1 of the Paris Agreement highlights the need for regional cooperation in addressing climate change impacts when it states, “recognizing that climate change represents an urgent and potentially irreversible threat to human societies and the planet and thus requires the widest possible cooperation by all countries, and their participation in an effective and appropriate international response, with a view to accelerating the reduction of global greenhouse gas emissions.”

It further adds, “agreeing to uphold and promote regional and international cooperation in order to mobilise stronger and more ambitious climate action by all Parties and non-Party stakeholders, including civil society, the private sector, financial institutions, cities and other subnational authorities, local communities, and indigenous peoples,” which focuses on the need for cooperation not only of State actors but also multiple-stakeholders for effective climate actions.

  • Adaptation & Regional Cooperation

The Agreement highlights several areas where regional cooperation is key. However this paper will focus mainly on adaptation and the elements that revolve in facilitating the implementation of the adaptation actions, as based on the climate change impacts assessment of the AR5 IPCCC it is provided as the most important element to the South Asian region.

In the Paris Agreement, Article 7 is the key section which addresses adaptation, and it includes the understanding of adaptation actions needing to have a regional dimension given the climate change impacts faced at different levels.  Under Article 7 (2) of the Paris Agreement, “Parties recognize that adaptation is a global challenge faced by all with local, subnational, national, regional and international dimensions, and that it is a key component of and makes a contribution to the long-term global response to climate change to protect people, livelihoods and ecosystems, taking into account the urgent and immediate needs of those developing country Parties that are particularly vulnerable to the adverse effects of climate change.”

The challenges that arise in cooperation in actions at the international level are at times the issues that pertain to sovereignty and the decision-making power of countries through regional and international decision making. In order to address this challenge which might arise, whereby resistance to adaptation actions could develop, the Agreement further provides that it will not be impacting the country’s decision making processes.

Under Article 7 (5) the Parties “acknowledge that adaptation action should follow a country-driven, gender-responsive, participatory and fully transparent approach, taking into consideration vulnerable groups, communities and ecosystems, and should be based on and guided by the best available science and, as appropriate, traditional knowledge, knowledge of indigenous peoples and local knowledge systems, with a view to integrating adaptation into relevant socioeconomic and environmental policies and actions, where appropriate,” which highlights that the countries will be making the decisions on adaptation processes.

Another mention on cooperation which is on adaptation is through the reference to the Cancun Adaptation Framework where it states that, “Parties should strengthen their cooperation on enhancing action on adaptation, taking into account the Cancun Adaptation Framework, including with regard to:

  • Sharing information, good practices, experiences and lessons learned, including, as appropriate, as these relate to science, planning, policies and implementation in relation to adaptation actions;
  • Strengthening institutional arrangements, including those under the Convention that serve this Agreement, to support the synthesis of relevant information and knowledge, and the provision of technical support and guidance to Parties;
  • Strengthening scientific knowledge on climate, including research, systematic observation of the climate system and early warning systems, in a manner that informs climate services and supports decision-making;
  • Assisting developing country Parties in identifying effective adaptation practices, adaptation needs, priorities, support provided and received for adaptation actions and efforts, and challenges and gaps, in a manner consistent with encouraging good practices; and
  • Improving the effectiveness and durability of adaptation actions.

Such cooperation on knowledge sharing, and providing technical support is vital in understanding best ways for adaptation. Despite certain diversity, there are also common needs and vulnerabilities that the South Asian region faces. While some countries are different from others, they are also similar in impacts faced, vulnerabilities as well as capacities. Given this,  collaboration within SAARC on adaptation actions is important to addressing climate change in an effective manner.

  • Strengthening Regional Cooperation

The Paris Agreement and its decisions request Parties to strengthen regional cooperation on adaptation where appropriate and, where necessary, establish regional centres and networks, in particular in developing countries, taking into account decision 1/CP.16, paragraph. This includes “facilitating the sharing of good practices, experiences and lessons learned; Identifying actions that could significantly enhance the implementation of adaptation actions, including actions that could enhance economic diversification and have mitigation co-benefits; Promoting cooperative action on adaptation;”[13]

In addition to this SBT44 held in 2016,  Partie agreed on a number of activities under the “Nairobi Work Programme under the UNFCCC focusing on adaptation to inform adaptation planning and actions at the regional, national and subnational levels, particularly in relation to, inter alia, ecosystems, human settlements, water resources and health.”

In addition to the specific sections that refer to adaptation, the sections on capacity building also refer to the need for “Fostering global, regional, national and subnational cooperation; Identifying opportunities to strengthen capacity at the national, regional and subnational level.”

Further Article 10 on technology transfer and support provides under sub section 6 that “Support, including financial support, shall be provided to developing country Parties for the implementation of this Article, including for strengthening cooperative action on technology development and transfer at different stages of the technology cycle, with a view to achieving a balance between support for mitigation and adaptation.”

The element of support is crucial for regional cooperation in the context of South Asia as mentioned above, given that while there are similarities, there are also differences that highlight the need for benefitting from one country’s capacities to help the other country adapt to climate change. In doing this, as previously it is important that the countries’ sovereignty is respected and that actions are taken in a manner that the capacity of countries are developed through technical and financial support, as well as resilience being built.

Conclusion

With climate change impacts being felt in the region of South Asia at a higher level each day, and the economic and social vulnerabilities of people of the region rendering them more vulnerable to these impacts, it is important that South Asia as a region takes initiatives to address climate change.

The Paris Agreement entering into force in November 2016, highlights regional cooperation on adaptation as an important element. And it is time for regional actors such as the South Asian Association of Regional Cooperation (SAARC) to take a pro-active role in making climate policy discussed in Nepal in 2014 at the SAARC gathering – where many aspects of climate change and regional cooperation were discussed – be invested into concrete actions. This will in turn contribute to building bridges to address common issues of the region, as well as create/facilitate the creation of links between countries for collaborative actions to address issues related to climate change, through regional cooperation which in turn will (hopefully) lead to a more unified and peaceful South Asia.

 

[1] The Fifth Assessment Report of the IPCC: What’s in it for South Asia? Executive Summary, (2014)

[2]  Ibid

[3] “The rate of sea level rise has been greater than the mean rate during the previous two millennia (high confidence).” IPCC (2013). Climate Change 2013: The Physical Science Basis. Summary for Policymakers (p11)

[4] IPCC (2014). Climate Change 2014: Impacts, Adaptation, and Vulnerability. Summary for Policymakers (p4)

[5] Ibid

[6] IPCC (2014). Climate Change 2014: Impacts, Adaptation, and Vulnerability. Summary for Policymakers (Box SPM.2 Table 1, p21)

[7] IPCC (2014). Climate Change 2014: Impacts, Adaptation, and Vulnerability. Chapter 24 (p3)

[8] IPCC (2014). Climate Change 2014: Impacts, Adaptation, and Vulnerability. Chapter 24 (p6).

[9] IPCC (2014). Climate Change 2014: Impacts, Adaptation, and Vulnerability. Chapter 24 (p6)

[10] IPCC (2014). Climate Change 2014: Impacts, Adaptation, and Vulnerability. Chapter 18.

[11] IPCC (2014). Climate Change 2014: Impacts, Adaptation, and Vulnerability. Chapter 10 (p4)

[12] IPCC (2014). Climate Change 2014: Impacts, Adaptation, and Vulnerability. Chapter 12 (p2)

[13] Decision 1/CP16 UNFCCC

“When you are woman in South Asia, everything becomes restrictive or a word of warning. ” – Senashia Ekanayake

11 Monday May 2015

Posted by in #WomenAtWork

≈ 4 Comments

Tags

, ,

seni

Senashia Ekanayake is a writer, who likes to describe herself as “mediating with her first quarter life crisis and contemplating life as a writer in the making.” She is motivated by two things: writing and environment and firmly believes that if one truly puts one’s heart into something that one wants to do or achieve, then on can end up either having one’s “dream job” or doing something one really likes.

Being a Woman

Senashia says that being a woman in itself is a difficulty she faced. “I incorporated both “woman” and “writer” in the same listing, as it seems to go hand in hand, at least in my instance.  So, the problem with being a woman, is that you are in fact, not a man. Please feel free to roll your eyes in disgust at my extremely sexist statement,” she added.

She explained that she believes why cultures and societies of women praise the birth of sons is simply because they simply do not want their baby girls to go through the same disastrous events as they did.

“When you are woman, at least in South Asia, I’ve realised that everything becomes restrictive or a word of warning. For example anything that falls between a 09am meeting or a 10pm drinks-date will accompany a plethora of “dress properly”; “who are you coming / going with / what is your mode of transportation”; “are you drinking? If yes, don’t drink too much, what will people think? And not forgetting the calls and text messages in between. These words of warning are not limited to only parental forces. If you are in a relationship, married or otherwise, the force and urge to protect the weaker sex is still very strong.”

She thinks to years of cultural conditioning and pruning the statements and questions above have now become normalcy to her.

 Being a “Writer”

“The problem with being a writer is that it starts off with people either expecting you to write books or write for the newspaper,” said Senashia.

“I did a bit of the latter at some point in life yes, as for the former, not as yet so to speak. From the little I’ve understood in my few years of working is that I prefer to be identified as a writer as opposed to trying to explain to people the whole list of undertakings I’ve usually agreed to,” she added.

Senashia said that things get complicated when she has to explain her job to those who are not very internet-savvy. She lists down her solution: “I just top it off with the line I write for the internet because a “writer” is not seen as a chosen career path for a woman. If this was an Austen era, I may have stood a chance I believe but it’s now customary for women to sit behind a secretary’s desk and plan dinner dates for your boss’s mistress.”

Not Working in an “Office”/ Working from Home

One would not call Senashia as someone with a traditional job. This would be partially due to her work set-up which has no office hours or, an office for that matter.

“So my jobs (yes there are two pay cheques from different organisations) allow me the freedom to work from anywhere. I used to work from home until very recently but now I grace the “city” (suburban girl here!) to drive the mothership and as I don’t like the new setup at home,” she added.

“I quite like this arrangement to be honest. One of the first things I need from any workplace is space. In fact that’s the first thing I need from any relationship, family, romantic, friends, work or any other. I need space to think and be about with just myself, and physical space where I can roll on the floor if that’s what I want to do. And this is exactly what my job offers me. No one cares if I’m working in my underclothes sitting atop the kitchen counter,” she explained.

One of the problems faced by Senashia is that the world seems to think of this as an unnatural occurrence.

“Working from home still hasn’t gained momentum in this part of the world and hence is not accepted as a means of earning by most. My folks seem to or at least try to understand what I do as I still live with them. But most of the time,  I even have similar-aged friends who think of my job as “luxury” (I think it’s the wearing underclothes part of the deal) when in fact I still do put in the same or even more hours of work into my job as they do,” she continued.

Balancing Personal & Professional

Senashia finds the question on how personal and professional converge to be an interesting question given that the notion of working from home usually accompanies the notion of “an abundance of free time”, which is not at all the scenario.

“More often than not, I work while on vacation because “season time” for the rest of the world, doesn’t really cut it for those of us who make their own schedules and work with the outside world. Christmas thankfully becomes a universal holiday,” she said.

She also added, “ I would like to think that I have somewhat of a balance yes and am forever grateful as long as I am single as it doesn’t complicate my mojo and throws me off balance! My personal life so far includes my Friday night alcohol-binges with the best friend and dropping an aunty at home or delivering a parcel to the grandmother’s. The family folk might also at times take this working from home thing too seriously and shamelessly ask me to bring my laptop along with me to every place we go.( Sigh)”

Aspirations?

Senashia aspires to have her own writing set-up with about three other writers and designers (according to her something which is with a few questions left to be answered.)

“I really enjoy the work I do and the best part about the writing comes the story you want to tell to the rest of the world. We all have a story to tell and what gets better than someone willing to pay you to tell their story! It’s also one of those moments you look forward to when a client says that they truly like the work you did for them or your writing spoke to them,” she explained.

For those who want to either write or work from home, her advice: “Go for it! There is so much potential and many untapped markets out there – especially in this part of the world where trends come in when the storm has passed – that can be made use of an exploited to create something truly beautiful.”

Single Parenting: For the Love of a Child

20 Friday Feb 2015

Posted by in Features, Random Moments of Life

≈ 4 Comments

Tags

, , , ,

Are you a single parent? Have you gone through years of trying to make ends meet with your priorities tilted towards your child and then be judged by people who think they know what is best for you, try to boss you, and think they know what’s better for you then you do, and also try to exploit you? Then you know what I am speaking here. (More of these might ring better with those mums living in the South Asian region.)

(C) Umanga Samarasingle

(C) Umanga Samarasingle

Dealing with motherhood

You have a kid. You know how the drill goes. People are happy. Everyone wants to see the kid, comment on the kid, get to know what your plans are for the kid. They would tell you how much the kid looks like the father, one of those things you wish they could shut up on, and they would not. In the midst of the big twirl of those who pop in and pop out to see “the kid” you lose track of time, and reality hits only when immediate festivities over. You are with a kid for whom you are to fend, and need to figure out how to spend enough time between your child and the money venture which will ensure that he is not starved. You have no time to sit and think of what just happened in your life, why you are stuck to deal with most of the drama of bringing up a kid on your own (if you did not plan for it, and expected for your partner to be there in the process) but you know you will manage. (Even if you do not thinking you would sure makes a better choice.) You would take up a job that seems decent enough (you cannot be picky as you used to be) and then try to finish up the work and put up with shit you never would have put up. Feeding and clothing your child has become your priority, and you forget most of the rest. All the idiots who come with it, and the bullshit you need to put up with. You have become a mum, a single mum at it!

Putting up with shit

You are usually not the type to put up with anyone’s shit. (Probably why you decide to become a single parent and not to tolerate your partner giving you shit.) But that life style on other fronts in yoru life seems to have changed. You will find yourself working without contracts, without pay on time, with people giving you shit over god knows what. You decide your career becomes based on whether you are capable of taking care of the child. In the process of doing that you try not to lose track of what you believe in, not to lose yourself, and not to end up in jail by killing someone. So in the process you realise Buddha would have been proud of you if he were around: All that patience and tolerance (though you aren’t necessarily one of his disciples) and you find your friends asking you “why are you in a Buddha mood?” You wish to reply with many reasons, but instead you choose to smile. You go into your deep trance of I don’t give a fuck, and realise you have so much endurance when you see some people alive in front of you and talking rubbish away. You name putting up with shit with a better term: patience!

Shopping lists filled with diapers

If you ever were one to make shopping lists, then your lists would be completely different. If you were never to make one and were the spontaneous one, then you have started to believe in lists. Spontaneity seems a relic of late when it comes to your shopping. Your list is filled with baby products, kids products or even teen products depending on how old your kids are, and you become an expert in mind calculations. You know exactly how much you have spent as you spend it at the super market. (The older version of you would have been surprised that you had a clue as to how much you had in your account.) Your purchases for you are calculated, decided with care while you will still have some busy body asking you how you manage to spend so much money on yourself with a kid to be taken care of. You smile with all the desire to stick a sock down that person’s throat without doing that of course. (Older version of you would have been so proud of you!) You smile, walk away thinking of that new way to put up with shit called practicing patience.

Everyone is an expert at bringing up your kid

Everyone seems to know what to do with your kid better than you do. They would advise you on what to call your kid, what to feed your kid, how to dress your kid. In short how to bring up your kid. They will tell you how much time you need to spend with your kid and money does not make children happy. You wonder whether they think you are stupid, or they are smart or whether they intend to feed your kid when you decide to quit work and stay home with the kid. You think of all the money you could have spent on socks which should have been stuffed in these mouths, and decide it would be under that list of things that would not be featured on the priority column on your shopping list. You decide to put them on mute mode, nod your head hoping you nod it at the appropriate time and switch off. Bliss!

Everyone is an expert on what you should do

You think they would know better on what you need to know with the kid. Oh NO! They know what you need to do with your life. When to date, not to date, to marry or not to marry. You have so many people having opinions on even what you should wear or not, that you probably could put up a poll every time you decide on something in your life. It would have been an interesting venture too, and helpful in social analysis. I should start doing this for a change, and see how many blogs I could write based on people’s polls on what I need to do with my life. A new thought, actually this should constitute cheap entertainment given the financial difficulties of going out for constant amusement with the prices of diapers sky-rocketing these days.

Dating. Hold on, you said “dating?”

You have lost the notion of what constitutes dating. Dating might not be a fun affair, nor something easy going. It becomes part of life analysis. Would you waste a few moments with a man who is not going to play any role in your life? You probably would not because you would rather stay home and play with your kid. Coffee or any meal spent on anything not worthwhile (of course you have your own judgement and what not constitutes worthwhile) is a waste. So dating becomes not the easiest thing you realise. And you even try to define what dating is, what the other person thinks dating is, and realise most men have no clue what they are doing even at the age of 60! You honestly hope you would not be that clueless when you reach that age, or wonder whether you would be that good at playing clueless at that age. (For those wondering whether I dated a 60 year old, no I have not. At least not yet. Maybe when I am 55 or 62, who knows. Always leave my options open. This has been the better choice in life.) On top of all that you have a kid sometimes who hate your date, and goes “No no naughty uncles!” or you have one who wants to know why the play mate is lost when you calls dating off. Too much drama, you most likely decide not to date anyone for a while. Just to give a break to your brain. Too much analysis and putting up with shit on many fronts could be bad for it.

d2

The list could be longer. But I think you get the drift. Then again you know it’s all worth it when you see your child and he/she smiles. Mummy can be there hero, the one who is around at least at night or few hours and makes sure that life for them is as comfortable as it can be on any level of life that any single parent reading this lives on. You decide to smile for the world, for your child and yourself and move on. Because life moves on be it whether you are single parent, a married parent, or a parent at all!

A Negotiating Text for 2015 Climate Agreement Reached in Geneva

13 Friday Feb 2015

Posted by in ADP 2015, Climate Change, Features

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

, , , ,

Delegates from 194 countries who gathered in Geneva  for a week long process of climate negotiations will return home with a negotiating text for the 2015 Climate Agreement which is set to reach in Paris end of this year, and to come to effect in 2020.  

With the 5th Assessment Report of the IPCC highlighting the need for immediate actions to address climate change, the negotiators discussed ways to accelerate action on climate change before 2020. They started to outline ideas on a possible pre-2020 actions that will be decided in Paris. With floods and droughts to hurricanes, typhoons and heat waves, the impacts of climate change are felt they have been ever before. This in turn highlights the need all all over the world. Negotiators, ministers, and national leaders to actively engage with each other in the months ahead to get the strongest deal possible in Paris.

Progress Made

“I am extremely encouraged by the constructive spirit and the speed at which negotiators have worked during the past week,” said Christiana Figueres, Executive Secretary of the UN Framework on Climate Change (UNFCCC).

“We now have a formal negotiating text, which contains the views and concerns of all countries. The Lima Draft has now been transformed into the negotiating text and enjoys the full ownership of all countries,” she added.

Speaking on the process of reaching this end in Geneva, Figueres said, “The text was constructed in full transparency. This means that although it has become longer, countries are now fully aware of each other’s positions.”

The Negotiating Text

The text that is to be used as the ground for negotiations for the 2015 Agreement covers the substantive content of the new agreement including mitigation, adaptation, finance, technology and capacity-building. While there were divergences on certain matters, the countries worked together in order to identify the main choices

The text will be edited and translated into the UN’s official languages, after which the text will be communicated to the world’s capitals by the UNFCCC secretariat in the first quarter of 2015 which would respect the internationally-accepted timetable for reaching a possible treaty because it alerts capitals to the fact that a legal instrument could be adopted in Paris.

A Legally Binging Agreement in Paris?

The mere fact that the negotiating text is finalised does not ensure that there will be a legally binding outcome reached in Paris.

Speaking on this possibility, Ms Figueres said, “It does not, however, set this possibility in stone – it merely opens the door for this possibility. As for the legal nature of the agreement, this will only be clarified later in the year,” Ms. Figueres explained.

“Our view is that a legally binding protocol under the convention that is applicable to all Parties, and in line with keeping global temperature increase to below 1.5 degrees Celsius, is the best way to achieve that objective. We certainly have our work cut out when we convene again in June, but we have made important progress here, and AOSIS is committed to working with all parties, groups, and the ADP co-chairs to transform the negotiating text into an ambitious agreement in Paris,” said Ambassador Ahmed Sareer, the Maldives’ Permanent Representative to the U.N. and Chair of the Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS)

Next Steps

The negotiating text is not a narrowed down text, and has many options proposed down by country Parties. This requires that the negotiators to narrow down options and reach consensus on the content. Further work on the text will continue in Bonn in June, and two more formal sessions (with many other informal sessions being held) planned for later in the year ahead of the Paris climate negotiations.

In addition to the meetings of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, there will also be ministerial-level meetings throughout the year that will include climate change on their agendas, among these being the Major Economies Forum; the Petersburg Climate Dialogue and the African Ministerial Conference of the Environment with the upcoming G7 and G20 meetings affording further political engagement on climate change and the Paris agreement.

Climate Change: Not a Stand-alone Issue

Observing climate change impacts across the globe point to the fact that addressing climate change cannot be a stand-alone action. It overlaps with many other aspects such as economy, human rights and development. In 2015 given the key actions that converge it is important that countries work on building links to elements of developmental agenda, and treat climate change as a key issue which would impact the country’s growth.

“We leave Geneva with a lengthy text to work on in the coming months, but it importantly reflects the views and enjoys support from all Parties. As representatives of some of the countries most vulnerable to climate change, including total inundation from sea level rise, our primary motivation is to make sure the global community moves as quickly as possible to cut the emissions responsible for climate change, and provides the support necessary to help vulnerable communities build sustainable futures and adapt to climate impacts that can no longer be avoided,” said Ambassador Sareer.

The countries will convene in Bonn, in June where the next formal negotiations on the climate Agreement will be held.

 

Climate Change Will Hit World’s Poor Harder than Predicted

28 Wednesday Jan 2015

Posted by in Climate Change

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, ,

article

(c) wikipedia

In a recent study done by Frances Moore and Delavane Diaz of Stanford University which focuses on climate ‘damage functions’ point to  stronger impacts on the world’s poor that will be caused by climate change, than predicted before. In a world divided as rich and poor, the study provides that while rich economies will grow well in a warmer world, the economies of the poorer countries would be significantly impacted.

Economic Impacts of Climate Change

The study “ Temperature Impacts on Economic Growth Warrant Stringent Mitigation Policy” states that “damage from climate change that directly affect growth rates have the potential to markedly increase the social cost of carbon because each temperature shock has a persistent that permanently lowers GDP.”

It adds that, “Continued warming therefore has a compounding effect over time, so that even very small growth effects result in much larger impacts than the traditional damage formulation.”

The study also provides that in a world impacted by climate change, “The average annual growth rate in poor regions is cut from 3.2% to 2.6%, which means that by 2100 per-capita GDP is 40% below reference.”

The poorer countries already sensitive to climate impacts due to their vulnerability will have more impact on their economies as the temperature increases. This is reinforced due to the impacts it would have on agriculture.

“Higher temperatures may be more damaging in poor countries because their economies are reliant on climate-exposed sectors such as agriculture and natural resource extraction, or because risk management options such as insurance or air conditioning are not as widely available. In this case we would expect the sensitivity of poor regions to warming to decrease as per-capita GDP increases,” explains the study.

Limiting Global Temperature Increase to Less than 2°C.

While climate negotiations focus around achieving the global level of temperature increase to below 2° C , the Small Island States and the least developed countries call for a target of 1.5 °C.  And the call for the lower level is justified through the study which points out that there is a need to aim for lesser than 2°C. Predictions for the economically optimal pathway points to an increase in a global surface warming around 3–3.5°C which would risk the survival of many vulnerable states, and its communities.

Moore and Diaz’s study finds that if climate change does affect GDP growththen the best path to be adopted is to limit temperatures to between 1.6 and 2.8°C warming in 2100, with a best estimate of around 1.7°C warming.

Impacts on South Asian Economies

The South Asian region is the home of communities that are most vulnerable to climate change impacts. Countries such as Bangladesh, Nepal while being among the least developed countries on the economic scale are also among the most vulnerable to the impacts of climate change with frequent floods and glacier melts. As a small island state, Maldives is also among the most vulnerable communities in the world which are at the threat of losing their homes due to sea level rise caused by climate change.  While the economies of Sri Lanka, Pakistan and India will also be impacted due to impacts on agriculture, on which the country’s food security depends.

World Bank data provides that South Asia remains the home to the most number of people living in poverty. According to the World Bank’s most recent poverty estimates “about 571 million people in the region survive on less than $1.25 a day, and they make up more than 44% of the developing world’s poor.”

While South Asia has an important role to play in the global economic development, with  the world’s largest working-age population, a quarter of the world’s middle-class consumers, the largest number of poor and undernourished in the world will have a key impact on its capacity. Further, as the impacts of climate change are predicted to create impacts stronger than predicted previously, there is a need to take into account such impacts and move towards a low carbon economic path if the region is to move towards economic growth prioritising on inclusive growth for the region.

Link to the report: http://www.nature.com/articles/nclimate2481.epdf?referrer_access_token=uX84_D8tbfdjkKw-3-RWYNRgN0jAjWel9jnR3ZoTv0Ptg3Cgmrekx2ZwUVK-mDiOi7kjblHu2ELqX8U3M_

US-India Collaboration & Obama’s Climate Crusade

26 Monday Jan 2015

Posted by in Climate Change, Environment, Features, UNFCCC

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , , , , , ,

(C) Creative Commons

(C) Creative Commons

Following a successful visit to China in November that resulted in the US-China joint statement on climate change, President Obama is India. On Sunday, he achieved further success through bilateral cooperation between India and the US countries that focused on addressing climate change and energy issues. Both countries concluded negotiations on a five-year MoU on energy security, clean energy and climate change and an agreement to this effect expected as early as possible at a mutually agreed date.

India Not Pressurised by the US-China Agreement

Prime Minister of India negated the assumption that US- China statement on climate change pressurised India to collaborate with the US. While refuting the assumption he also added that his country’s decision to collaborate with US as a rightful duty to the future generations, bringing the focus back to the famous and India’s (probably) favourite element of climate negotiations for India – equity. In this case inter-generational equity.

He also pointed that the need for a global deal on climate change as the reason to move onto a collaboration with US. The PM of India at a news conference on Sunday said, “When we think about the future generations and what kind of a world we are going to give them, then there is pressure”. “Global warming is a huge pressure,” he added.

For a Global Deal on Climate Change

A key element of collaboration between the two countries is bilateral climate change cooperation. This includes not only US and India working together, but also working with other countries on climate change. This in turn would give hope that the expectation is to cooperate closely this year to achieve a successful and ambitious agreement in Paris.

Speaking on the Paris climate talks, the President of the US highlighted the need for India’s voice to be raised in a positive manner if a global deal is to be achieved in 2015. During the Conference to be held in Paris 196 countries will meet and negotiate on a course to address climate change. If urgent and ambitious actions are not made the global average temperature will be on track to levels that will be threatening for human survival on the planet. Given these reasons, the negotiations in Paris will play a decisive moment for all, especially for the most vulnerable states and communities of the world.

Collaborating on Climate and Clean Energy Goals

India and USA also pledged to enhance cooperation on the energy sector. While welcoming India’s intention to increase the share of renewable energy in electricity generation consistent with its intended goal to increase India’s solar capacity to 100 GW by 2022, USA intends to support India’s goal by enhancing cooperation in clean energy and climate change. The two countries already has a U.S.-India Partnership to Advance Clean Energy (PACE) umbrella program, and highlighted its willingness to expand policy dialogues and technical work on clean energy and low greenhouse gas emissions technologies. US-India deal also provides for the expansion of Partnership to Advance Clean Energy Research (PACE-R) a $125 million program jointly funded by the U.S. and Indian governments and private sector. The renewal includes extending funding for three existing research tracks of solar energy, building energy efficiency, and advanced biofuels for five years and launching a new track on smart grid and grid storage technology. Further, this includes accelerating Clean Energy Finance.

The US will also work on demonstrating clean energy initiatives on the ground including additional pilot programs and other collaborative projects, as well as developing an innovative renewable energy storage project and hosting a smart grid workshop. However this collaboration is not restricted to energy, but also includes fields of science, technology, innovation and agriculture.

Developing India, Polluting India

A developing country, India is also world’s 3rd largest emitter of green house gases. Although the need for cutting down emissions remains vital, the need for economic growth and reduction or poverty also plays a key role in India’s economy. In order to address the issues of development, while putting the country on a low carbon emitting trajectory, India needs to move for a rapid expansion of renewable energy. In this venture, the country needs investment and technology, and improving energy efficiency. It is to fill this gap that further US will provide financial support for India’s solar program.

“We very much support India’s ambitious goal for solar energy and stand ready to speed this advancement with additional financing,” said President Obama at a news conference in Hyderabad.

For developing countries, a fact that remains important in the shift to a low carbon trajectory is the price of renewable energy. This would be the reason as to why one of the requests from the Indian PM to Obama has been to ensure that renewable energy more accessible and affordable.

PM Modi has shown interest in the expansion of renewable energy as a way to mitigate country’s large-scale emissions. This shift could be seen as a sign that India is becoming positive towards achieving a global climate deal in Paris, end of 2015.The Prime Minister is reported stating that his nation along with all others has an obligation to act on reducing the fossil-fuel emissions blamed for damaging the climate.

US-India Nuclear Deal

The two countries also succeeded in forming a pact on nuclear energy allowing American companies to supply India with civilian nuclear technology. The nuclear deal which was held up for six years amid concerns over the liability for any nuclear accident has been finalised by setting up a large insurance pool allowing the deal to move forward without further need for legislation.

In the words of PM Modi, this marks a “new journey” of co-operation, with stronger defence and trade ties between US and India. The question is whether shifting to clean energy could be interpreted as a shift to nuclear energy, which is without carbon emissions yet equally dangerous as an energy source due to threats that it poses. If the assumption that cutting down emissions and shifting to renewable energy equals introducing nuclear energy as the solution, and other countries take heed and adopt the trend, it will not be a solution to the threats posed by climate change but another situation that needs to be dealt with caution.