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

03 Sunday Jun 2018

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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/

Adaptation and Inclusive Development: Ensuring That Nobody’s Left Behind

29 Sunday Mar 2015

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As the impacts of climate change increase in severity, and are felt on a daily basis, adapting to climate change has become one of the main aspects of addressing the adverse effects of climate change. Coordinator for the Adaptation Programme at the UNFCCC, Youssef Nassef, shared his views on why adaptation is vital when speaking of solutions to climate change, and how working on it is of great importance.

youssef

Addressing Climate Adaptation

Mitigation has been, and is still in many states, the key focus over decades at the climate change negotiations as well as the actions on the ground. This is due to the fact that in order to maintain the increase of world’s temperature at a level that is healthy for its ecosystems’ survival, cutting down of fossil fuel emissions is pivotal. However some effects of climate change are irreversible, and we need to find other means of addressing them.

Speaking on the concept of adaptation and its importance, Mr Nassef said, “Climate change is bound to affect people’s lives, livelihoods and assets. Adaptation is the means by which people can fend off the potential damage arising from the adverse effects of climate change, and can take advantage of any opportunities afforded by these changes.  The countries that have realised its importance the most are those who are already suffering from extreme climatic events or those whose population has experienced observed changes within their lifetime that are attributable to climate change.”

He also highlighted the element of resilience and the way in which people’s vulnerability impacts their ability to adapt to climate change impacts.

“The capacity to adapt is very much linked to the level of human development of a society.  Fortunately, the international community has developed mechanisms, such as the National Adaptation Plan (NAP) process, that provide frameworks for all countries to be able to rigorously assess their vulnerabilities and identify and prioritize their adaptive responses,” he said.

Working on NAPs

Established under the Cancun Adaptation Framework, the NAP process enables Parties to formulate and implement NAPs as a means of identifying medium- and long-term adaptation needs, and developing and implementing strategies and programmes to address those needs.

“The NAP process is picking up nicely in different parts of the world. The process is generic enough to accommodate different approaches that countries may wish to undertake, or have already undertaken even prior to the establishment of the NAP process.  There are a few Least Developed Countries  that are close to finalising the formulation of their NAPs, and a few non-LDCs that are also progressing well, with the mainstreaming of adaptation into planning processes being placed at the center of their efforts,” explained Mr Nassef.

He also explained that the NAP process is a country driven process which allows for it to respond to the needs of each country. While the process envisages efforts to support countries in the development of NAPs, it remains the decision of each country how it wishes to embark on the process.

“Given its longer term outlook and its link to the development goals of each country, the NAP process is by default a very country-driven process, and so there is little room for direct replication across contexts,” he added.

UNFCCC has received National Adaptation Programme of Actions (NAPAs) from 50 countries among which are the South Asian countries Bangladesh, Bhutan, Nepal and Maldives. Out of the countries in the region, Sri Lanka has commenced the preparation of its National Adaptation Plan for climate change, which is titled National Climate Change Adaptation Plan (NCCAP) which is due to be released for validation in April 2015.

Speaking on sharing of knowledge among countries, Mr. Nassef added that the UNFCCC is hopeful that the LDC Expert Group will be in a position to share good practices and lessons learned soon, once a critical mass of feedback has been received from countries that have made sufficient progress in their NAP process.

Overcoming Challenges & “Adapting Forward”

Mr. Nassef spoke also on what he sees as the most challenging aspect of addressing adaptation and responded that it is the framing adaptation in a manner that is forward looking that creates the challenge.

“What is most challenging to adaptation is framing it in a context of “adapting forward” to a desired future state of development.  Unlike mitigation where a country may strive to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to past levels, countries should visualize adaptation as one of the components that support their achievement of their future developmental vision,” he said.

He further elaborated that when a catastrophe happens and assets are damaged, one does not rebuild them in the same way as in the past – with the same vulnerabilities that rendered them liable to such damage; one rebuilds them incorporating a level of resilience commensurate with a conscious vision of the future environment and aspirations.

“This is not just applicable to physical assets, but also to policies, livelihoods, productivity and other aspects of development which may feature in a country’s future vision,” he added.

UNFCCC and Its Role in Adaptation

The UNFCCC process catalyses adaptation and provides overall guidance to its assessment, planning and implementation.  This has generated a number of supportive mechanisms. These include a knowledge hub for adaptation known as the Nairobi Work Programme. The work of the UNFCCC further involves a process for the identification and implementation by Least Developed Countries (LDCs) of their urgent and immediate adaptation needs – the NAPA process, and a process for the formulation and implementation of National Adaptation Plans.

Explaining further the role of the UNFCCC, Mr Nassef added, “The UNFCCC process also mandated the establishment of a number of funds under its financial mechanism, as well as a set of provisions to support the development and transfer of technology. This allows the provision of a comprehensive framework that supports the whole life cycle of adaptation.”

Multi-stakeholder Involvement in Addressing Adaptation

Multi-stakeholder involvement in the framing of policies and actions on adaptation is vital for pro-poor and pro-vulnerable adaptation policies.

Speaking on the inclusivity of stakeholders in the work on adaptation supported by the UNFCCC Secreatariat, Mr Nassef said, “The UNFCCC secretariat engages a wide range of stakeholders in support of the adaptation regime.”

He also sees the engagement of stakeholders as a challenging task while also an opportunity to create ownership for actions and policies on adaptation.

“Stakeholder involvement is indeed a challenge, but also a great opportunity for collaborative work.  It is a challenge because ministries in governments are usually divided by sector, but adaptation is a multi-sectorial concept. It is at the same time a great opportunity because, as a result of the climate change discourse, countries are being enabled to develop processes and methods by which such interdisciplinary work is elevated to a new level.”

Mr Nassef further stressed the benefits of broader representation to ensure that it is an inclusive process.

“The multiple stakeholders involved in the adaptation process need not be just government entities, but actually representatives of each and every segment of society and of its livelihoods. The need for broad representation of all segments of society makes the engagement of civil society organizations paramount.”

“The role of this comprehensive and balanced set of engaged stakeholders is to ensure that all aspects of vulnerability, whether associated with gender, demography, sector, region, ecosystem, industry, or otherwise, is taken into account in planning for adaptation.  It is an integrative process which teaches us a lot about inclusive development planning under which nobody is left behind,” he concluded.

A Negotiating Text for 2015 Climate Agreement Reached in Geneva

13 Friday Feb 2015

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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.

 

People are Black or White…not Brown, not Yellow!

20 Wednesday Nov 2013

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I was standing behind a friend yesterday when I thought it would be fun to cover his eyes like an immature being, and he responds immediately, “Ah Sri Lanka!.”

Since my hands remain covering his eyes, I ask him how he knew it to be me. He replies, “well it was easy, I saw a black woman going past me, and I knew it was you!”.

“Racist!”I call him, and tell him that he was trying to spread the apartheid, but left it at that as I knew the man had no brain and mouth filter at times. Last night being one of those moments when he announced quite generoulsy to a guy I found attractive that I was in the process of evaluating how he looks. Despite the fact that he was being an idiot, the line made me consider a lot of things. His reply to my accusation of him being a racist was, “well you are black non?”.

I wondered how a lot of Sri Lankans would react to his words. With all the money they invest in facials, creams and make up, so as to look lighter skinned as they humanly could achieve.

My buddy was not a true “whitie” in theory, (though of course his skin was ten shades lighter than mine) given that he came from one of those tropical French colonies. He says he misses the place since his move to the land of his coloniser about 6 years ago, while we walk to the stadium together one morning.

Having listened to him and his chatter, I ask him whether he ever manages to hook up with a woman, given his horrendous bluntness in analysing things, and he responds that he did manage a long while back and thus not too up-to-date with flirting. A few days later, he lobbies someone from the ministry of finance, a short haired young lady who he orbits at a party. I bug him over it and he tells me it is all part of lobbying. I show him the middle finger as he had already embarrassed me in public at 2 am with his thoughtless announcements.

Well coming back to the original topic of people, men and women and most importantly shades of skin,  I think I should introduce my buddy to people in Sri Lanka. He would call all of them black, and go “you are black non?” with his air of “I have proved my point, so you better not say anything different”.

So to sum it in short, I shalt say bless those poor souls in South Asia who consider them not too black, but close to a lighter shades of brown, and make sure that fair and lovely is applied with all reverence! Bless all those souls who think they are yellow, cause the make-up companies decided to create foundation shades called yellow or saffron!

Going with my buddy’s precedence I shalt type thus:  the world has only two shades. Black, and white! And the rest is..well non-existent.

From a Pinch of Salt to “Pinches” of Gender

30 Friday Nov 2012

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One speaks of gender rights and environmental rights. Speaking of them in combined mode, and that too on the UNFCCC track can be a challenge, but not necessarily one that is over burdening given its due importance.

Women play a key role in day to day life, and are those who are most burdened by issues pertaining to climate change. Nevertheless it be seen that it is on women that the focus remains lacking. In Decision 36 of COP 7 in 2001, the need to focus on gender and women has already been highlighted. On referring to the Beijing Declaration of 1995, the Decision goes to lay down the importance of the inclusion of women delegates in the UNFCCC process, and other form of entities that take action on climate change. This is based on the need for effective communication of women’s needs which can be most clearly stated by those who are affected due to their absence.

Furthermore articles 3,4,5, 15 and 16 of the Beijing Declaration stress on the need of women’s inclusion in development and equal treatment of men and women in development. In addition article 27 of the same provides that in the development of developing countries, the inclusion of the women in the process is needed, and highlights the need for participatory development where women are not side-lined by their male counter-part.

If one wonders what the relevance of all this is to “climate talks” or the UNFCCC process as one may call at one’s choice, the relevance lies in the fact that women are key victims of the impacts of climate change. They are the most vulnerable and are affected by climate disasters. Furthermore in agricultural communities affected by climate change, women walk for many kilometres in search of water. In Africa and certain parts of South Asia, in regions hit by droughts, women not only suffer to find water, but also combat the scarcity of food in feeding their children. Maternity makes those vulnerable more vulnerable to climate change, health-wise as well as financial wise. In many coastal communities livelihoods are affected, agricultural communities are impacted with loss of crops due to sudden changes in the climate. The mother of the family bears all of it, while struggling to adapt to changes in circumstance, while at a loss of livelihood through harsh changes in the climate.

Not only the aforementioned, the lack of awareness and lack of education among women regarding the impacts of climate change does affect their ability to react to what they are in the process of confronting. The seasons may change, the crops may be damaged, and the rains may fall harsher, but the lack of knowledge on what impacts their life, makes the woman unable to adapt to the situation as appropriate. Hence the need for more focus on Article 6 and education. Girls in societies where they are deprived of access to education render them vulnerable, and deprive knowledge to forth coming generations, where mothers would play a key role in shaping the lives of the children. As chichŽ as it may sound, that be the reality, and one can do but to acknowledge , if needs to be taken sane that education of a woman is the educating of a generation.

So what is needed? More inclusion of gender (I do see many women in the process of the UNFCCC, so may be focussing on highlighting the cause of women and their rights in combating climate change could be the next step for those who walk the corridors of UNFCCC – including the writer, that being me of course). So time to suit up, buckle up, and call for climate justice, several “pinches” of gender included.

President of COP17, H.E Maite Nkoana-Mashabane Speaks to Youth

02 Friday Dec 2011

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A youth briefing with the President of COP17, H.E Maite Nkoana-Mashabane was held at 6pm, in Mopane Meeting room in the ICC on the 2nd of December 2011. Speaking to the youth, the President noted the need for the leadership to take action and provided information on the development of negotiations on the green climate fund. Some of the extracts of her discussion with youth is mentioned below.

“We need leadership in action..It must take us a few steps forward and not back..We should not also be only talking about the second commitment..we need to start discussion of the legal work of the future framework. The work needs to start in Durban..There is a need for us to operationalize”

She added that the green climate fund as one of the main issues that needs to be of focus in Durban. “The delegation in that plenary..there is not one saying we do not want the green climate fund..they say that it needs to be operationalised in Durban…We do not waste time, we move to the sources of funding, ..here tomorrow”

She also highlighted that “we need more inputs..so that by the time we adopt this, it will really take us forward..For small islands and developing countries they are saying this is not about adaptation but about survival..on adaptation the approach has been fragmented.” Thus she stressed further the need to concentrate on how can we make the mechanisms are well coordinated while differentiating technology mechanisms from technology transfer. She stated “technology mechanisms are not same as technology transfer”

Highlighting that language plays a key role in the UN negotiations she added further, “I have also learnt that in UN language, language makes a difference. If we let it lose, then all of us have to wait passive.”

Following her speech the President of COP 17, was willing to answer questions of youth. The questions posed to her were mainly centred on the green climate fund, gender and female negotiators in delegations, and the inputting of youth recommendations to the process.

“Q1. Much of what you spoke about was how will we fill the green fund how do we fill it..what is your opinion on innovative financing, and financial tax?

“ Q2. How have the informal talks been going on climate fund and its operation?”

“Q3. How do you ensure the involvement of more female negotiators and youth delegates in the negotiations?”

“Q4. What will happen if Kyoto Protocol fails in Durban?”

“Q5. Civil society submissions and their expectation, we never received an appreciation of it, we want to make sure that the document is useful somewhere”

Answering the questions collectively, H.E Maite Nkoana-Mashabane stated that the document sent by the youth constituency had been received and that the suggestions and the recommendations will be taken into account.
“The document has been received. We have appointed a senior government official to listen to the civil society needs. The Ambassador of South Africa will be working with the civil society till we appoint a new team.”
“Why am I not responding? I will be cheating if I sit here and start drafting outcomes.. I have to take your inputs to the that plenary..so that that outcomes what come from Durban will be influenced in making those decisions.”

“Globally women are a majority in all of the populations” but she added that the inclusion of women “is a struggle that we need to keep fighting for. No society strives by only using one hand. a society that needs to be dynamic needs to use both hands.” She also stressed on the role of youth in ensuring that there be accountability and inclusion of all parties in the delegations.

If KP fails..” these delegates, the leadership here needs to take the responsibility..what I hear from the delegates is that KP alone is not a solution to the problems we have, we need to work on the future framework.”

“CDMs are linked to the KP. There are many other elements that have developed with KP. We cannot be talking about KP and KP alone. We need to look at how we can advance this.. we need to work on elevating the ambition against of mitigating against climate change.”

She also added “because we are here..I am taking photos of you guys for memory”

“On the female negotiations I agree with you. We don’t need female only delegations but it needs to be balanced. And the language in the process makes it difficult for people to relate to the day to day realities.”

“We have no delegation saying that the Green Climate Fund should not happen. By the time the Ministers and Presidents arrive they will see that our negotiators have made a lot of progress. I must say that I have been quite heartened by the progress the negotiators are making. It has been difficult but there has been progress”

“There is no one saying that it must not happen now. We want to start hearing commitments..even with the global economic meltdown..how do we start pledging..I have had some delegations say that we should be up and about and running..we should start talking about the sources of funding..what we are trying to do is not to put cart before the horse.”

“The more we get more overwhelmed the more we get into darker alleys we do not know. We need to provide leadership in action..We should be finding solutions through green mechanisms and CDMs and those that do not undermine our future”

To conclude she added “I know and I prey that we should start getting pledges, and by March if things go well we should start housing this green climate fund..in this gloomy financial situation this leadership in Durban has a responsibility to provide leadership in action.”

Photo credits : Thishya Weragoda

A VERY brief Summary of the AWG- KP at UNFCCC, Bangkok 6th April 2011

07 Thursday Apr 2011

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Having been unable to find myself a seat due to the large number of people within the conference room, and having to rush out of it a few times thanks to the lag of plug points that facilitate the civil society connections to the outside world, I am able to put up a blog with the limited statements I was able to get a hearing of.

I make my daily entrance to the conference room, and thus commences my recital of what goes inside those UNFCCC discussions..

It’s Tuvalu taking the floor, which is a common occurrence, in many of these negotiations. It is a good thing unlike many states that stay mum at what is happening around them, some countries do take a stand and do voice their opinions. (hint hint!) The negotiator of Tuvalu went on to highlight that “once we establish the political commitment the technical issues will fall in place” and stated that “some parties see the outcomes of this process is contingent on the LCA process, we do not see that. We think it’s important that the Kyoto protocol continues. I would encourage us to consider how we are going to establish that political commitment this period. I think we have to elevate the political significance of our discussion. It is pointless to go into endless technical issues without political commitment.”

The speaker for the AOSIS group expressed that all left Cancun with a fundamental issue and that there is need to clarity. “It’s not possible to work on LULUCF rules…Once we have clarity on the second commitment period then the rest of the questions can be addressed…To get the technical issues to be resolved the political issues need to be resolved.” The negotiator also highlighted that the need for political clarity by June which would be a valuable focus for this session of discussions.

Switzerland in their turn highlighted the need to be committed to what was decided in Cancun and went on to state “we should not try to undo Cancun…This group should aim to complete the work on Kyoto”. The speaker continued “we have to understand what the numbers mean and we cannot agree to numbers without knowing what they are..We cannot look at the cancun agreement in isolation”

Marshall Islands in their expression stated that “no doubt that Cancun was a step forward but a very dangerous one with regards to emission..We need much more clarity..Once there is clarity then we can finalise rules” They also requested the possibility of enhancing the discussion with Q&A session.

The Ugandan negotiator for his part stated , “we will talk about the numbers for ages, I can assure you. I am convinced that we cannot progress in this process talking about taking a second commitment without us making a bold decision” and requested the others to “take a little bit of courage”. He also added when people “see us gathering here frequently more and more of those vulnerable people are dying and we are here saying that we need to decide rules!”

Egypt highlighted that two ingredients for successfully moving forward are clarity and sense of urgency and provided that they support the idea of a political process based on the documents tabled. Added that the outcome of this process should be adopted.

Saudi Arabia in their speech supported the statement of the G77 and mentioned that there is need for clarity as to the work here on Kyoto Protocol. Also added that if there is the political will that lot of things can be achieved. “The willingness to commit will help us move forward” and added that Saudi Arabia supports a “real” political willingness for giving clarity.

The speaker for the European Union stated “I have a feeling this debate we have had several times” but added that “there is always room for improvement to make things better” He questioned the parties “what’s the reason we are sitting here?” The EU provided that they “have the intention to continue with Kyoto and not to have a gap.” And also added that he does not think that the discussions were “going around in circles” He quoted a statement made earlier in the discussion “someone told that we have beaten those questions to death..Yes everyone has told what his or her opinion on those question is..But we have not found a compromise..I have been hearing the same questions from the new faces to which i have answered to the old faces…I think we need to find real compromises…What I would hope for during the last days of these sessions is to take these technical discussions forward and explain to the new comers what we have been doing over the years” and concluded that the EU “want to come to a conclusion by Durban”.

Venezuela stated “we think there is a way to deal with climate change and that is the Kyoto protocol. We wish to see all countries state loud and clear that they are committed to a second commitment period. Without a political decision we cannot move forward…this is otherwise a waste of time and resources of all the people of the countries who are paying for us to be here…We need to make a decision because otherwise it is because of you that we have failed.”

Bolivia speaking “we are not really addressing the real question..We cannot play hide and seek!” (I think this negotiator has a way of putting things into words. Some might hate him, I do not believe I am one of them) He further added “If we want to move ahead, let’s put all the numbers on the table…We need to clarify rules but we don’t want rules to turn into loopholes..Let’s come to an agreement where we want the strongest rules to achieve the 2 C margin” But I think the best statement of the day was “at the end of the day we cannot play around with nature”. He also stressed that “if there is no second commitment by Durban then what we are going to have is nothing”

Gambia in their speech stated “we cannot work on rules that would be used for another process” and India in a very brief and possibly a somewhat nervous statement expressed their support towards the statement of Brazil and emphasised the need to ensure no gap in the Kyoto Protocol’s commitment periods.

With those words from the South Asian State, my lap top shifts to non active mode. A possible reaction of the development of artificial intelligence?

UNFCCC Opening Plenary – Bangkok COP 17

05 Tuesday Apr 2011

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So here I am, at another opening ceremony of the UNFCCC. Though I have been following the negotiations for a while, I have never been able to attend one of these, where people welcome those who come in  to negotiate the others’ future (that being, the general public, who does not have much of a say in the negotiations which are pregnant with policies and political agendas)

For the last two days, I have met people who felt sorry for me every time I stated that I am from Sri Lanka, undoubtedly their thoughts running to the World Cup Cricket. I tell them that it is quite okay, and that we must be the only nation around which offers standing ovations to the winners in our local pubs despite having lost the nail biting final.

Well keeping aside the cricket fever, now time to move into some “proper” negotiations. It seems that we are to expect “fireworks” in the KP plenary as well as the AWG-LCA. Fingers crossed for what ever they may be!

I sign off for the moment with the hope of being able to locate the official delegation of Sri Lanka!