UNEP Responses to Climate Change

Climate Change: the defining challenge of our age

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● It is no longer relevant to discuss whether our climate is changing, but ratherhow fast changes will occur (IPCC 4th AR)

● Economic costs to limit emissions will be significant, but lower compared to costs of inaction (AR 4, Stern Report) – CC worse than financial crisis!

● Effective actions to address CC will need to include adaptation (prepare society to the changes introduced by CC) and mitigation (reduce future CO2 emissions)

● UNEP’s strategy and climate change programme don’t prejudge current CC negotiations. UNEP will adapt its programme 2010–11 reflecting future climate agreements

Emilio Ereza | age fotostock

UNEP’s long-term commitment to climate change

. UNEP has more than twenty years of work on CC

It established the IPCC with the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) in 1980s

Concentrates efforts on reducing emissions by:

supporting science and legal mechanisms

promoting renewable energy & energy efficiency

spurring development of a carbon market

Promoting technology transfer

Supports governments, private sector, and civil society

UNEP’s CC Programme cuts accross all its divisions and pulls toghether funds from multiple sources – CC is a priority

● UNEP complements its CC activities by cooperating with other UN agencies

● Examples of cooperation:

UNFCCC Secretariat – UNEP provides substantive work that helps inform and support negotiation processes

UNDP – UNEP pilots new and innovative approaches, develops guidelines and blueprints, while UNDP “upscales” these initiatives

UNICEF – UNEP provides information about youth and CC

World Bank – UNEP plays an active role in the Forest Carbon Partnership Facility and the Climate Investment Funds

FAO-UNDP-UNEP – A collaborative partnership on REDD

Work with the IPCC Secretariat is two-fold, with UNEP serving in supporting and implementation roles

Partnerships © G

loria Ip Tung / 14 years / C

hina

• Theme 1:

Adaptation: adapting by building resilience to a changing climate

• Theme 2:

Mitigation: Facilitating a transition towards low carbon societies

• Theme 3:

Science: improving understanding of CC science

• Theme 4:

Awareness raising: communicating and raising awareness

UNEP’s responses: the climate change strategy

© Paul Glendell / Still Pictures

● UNEP’s work focuses on:

Assessing vulnerabilities and adaptation services of ecosystems

Helping to integrate those findings into national decision-making and

development planning (i.e. national strategies for poverty reduction)

Helping to strengthen national institutional capacities on adaptation

Providing technical, analytical and policy support to major CC financing mechanisms

● Examples:

Global Climate Change Adaptation Network

Project to assess CC vulnerabilities in African countries & NAPAs

Poverty & Environment Initiative (with UNDP in Africa, Asia, Latin America & Europe)

Adapting by building resilience to a changing climate (1)Adaptation

Riparian Forest Programme / Government of Paraná / Brazil

● UNEP’s work focuses on:

Supporting countries to undertake technical and economic renewable energy & efficiency assessments to support their decisions

Promote markets for cleaner energy technologies through supporting development of national climate technology plans

Establishing and supporting knowledge networks to inform and support key stakeholders

Promoting the use of macro-economic and sectoral analysis of costs and benefits of different energy policy options

Developing sustainability criteria for different types of biofuels

Promoting public/private partnerships

● Example:

Green Buildings Initiative (with private sector)

Global Network on Energy for Sustainable Development

Energy efficiency assessments in Brazil, China and South Africa

Project to phase-out inefficient lighting technologies (with UNDP)

Global biofuels partnership

Facilitating a transition towards low carbon societies (1)Mitigation technology

© Joerg Boethling / Still Pictures

● UNEP’s work focuses on:

Assisting countries in mapping and assessing land use change, biodiversity, forest loss and carbon stocks

Developing and testing tools for examining and modeling GHG emissions and carbon stocks from deforestation, land use change, forest and land cover degradation

Helping countries to strengthen legal, regulatory and institutional frameworks governing land use and forestry

Organizing and facilitating major groups work in this field

● Example:

Reducing emissions from deforestation and degradation (UN-REDD) with FAO and UNDP – Global activities

Mitigating by building resilience to a changing climate (2)Land-use change and REDD

© Jim Zuckerman / Corbis

● UNEP’s work focuses on:

Helping developing countries access the CDM

Assist removing barriers to financing clean energy technologies through technical and economic analyses – change mind sets

Help financiers (public/private) create clean energy funds and advise them about lending programmes for renewable energy – green investment

Create professional networks and related initiatives for banks, insurers, pension funds and other financial institutions interested in supporting low-GHG investments

● Example:

Indian Solar Loan Programme, Solar Water Heater Promotio (MEDREP, BALREP)

Technical support to African countries in the identification and design of CDM projects

Facilitating a transition towards low carbon societies (2)Mitigation finance

© Joerg Boethling / Still Pictures

● UNEP’s work focuses on:

Undertaking science-based assessments to increase awareness of CC, its impacts and promoting integration of CC into policy-making

Implementing capacity building programmes to help countries customize CC data and scenarios to their needs

Providing technical support and training for CC negotiators and stakeholders

Providing advisory and support services to major groups to demonstrate how CC can be integrated into their activities

● Example:

Global Glacier Changes: Facts and Figures (with World Glacier Monitoring Service, 2008)

Capacity building for developing country negotiators towards Copenhagen – ongoing now!

Improving understanding of CC science

● UNEP has been given the UN system lead for climate change outreach

● UNEP’s work focuses on:

Develop strategic communications with the UNFCCC to convey a sense of urgency in dealing with CC

Use media and outreach activities to help deliver key messages on CC to the media and other target groups

Help communicate successful CC programmes to key stakeholders to promote replication of best practices

Conduct awareness raising, outreach, education and training for Major Groups to promote climate awareness

● Examples:

Targeted campaigns and events: Unite to Combat CC, Billion Tree Campaign, Climate Neutral Network, World Environment Day, Paint for the Planet

Publications: Kick the Habit: A UN Guide to Climate Neutrality (2008); for children: Ting and the Possible Futures (2008 )

Communicating and raising awarenessInformation

The international negotiations: from Copenhagen to Cancun

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Copenhagen Accord- Key elements

• COP15 was supposed to be the end of a two year process started in 2007 in Bali.

• COP15 resulted in a “Copenhagen Accord” a political deal. The COP took note on the Accord. It provides for the continuation of the work under the two negotiations tracks (AWG-LCA and AWC-KP) and through the Copenhagen Accord.

• However, it does not set global-mid term or long term reduction targets and it not a legally binding Agreement.

• The Accord recognizes the need to limit the rise in global temperatures to 2 degrees.

• It include the commitment to list developed country economy-wide emission reduction targets, and to list mitigation action by developing countries for 2020.

• In terms of finance, the Accord proposes to rise $30 billion for immediate action through 2012 and $100 billion to be mobilized annually by 2020. It envisages setting up a Copenhagen Green Climate Fund and a Technology Mechanism.

• It provides for the immediate establishment of mechanisms to support and mobilize

resources for technology transfer and REDD+.

The path to COP 16 in Cancun, Mexico

.• May (31) – June (11) 2010: Bonn, Germany Climate Change

Talks

• August 2010: 2-6 AWG-KP(13), AWG-LA (11) sessions in Bonn

• October 2010: 4-9 AWG sessions in Tianjin, China

• Cancun, Mexico, 29 Nov -10 Dec 201016th Conference of the Parties of the UNFCCC (COP 16)6th COP Serving as the Meeting of the Parties to the Kyoto Protocol (CMP 6)

Progress Towards Cancun: Status of negotiations:

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President (Mexico) - negotiating text as basis for agreement.

Other Parties - text unwieldy and process moving backwards.

UNFCCC Sec.: "package of decisions” successful outcome

Areas of Potential Agreement:

Adaptation Financing (Green Fund) Technology REDD + readiness

Areas of Potential Disagreement:

KP future (and emerging architecture) Mitigation targets (both Annex 1 and non Annex 1)Measurement, Reporting and Verification of actions and finance (source, scale of funds, the secretariat or trustee)

Divergent regional positions

United Nations Environment ProgrammeP.O. Box 30552 Nairobi, 00100 Kenya

Tel: (254 20) 7621234 - E-mail: uneppub@unep.org

UNEP’s Climate Change Websitehttp://www.unep.org/themes/climatechange/

To order or download UNEP’s Climate Change Strategy brochure please go to: http://www.unep.org/pdf/UNEP_CC_STRATEGY_web.pdf

UNEP’s Climate Neutral Networkhttp://www.unep.org/climateneutral

Unite to Combat Climate Changewww.unep.org/UNite

Further readings:UNEP and Partners: United to Combat Climate Changehttp://www.unep.org/pdf/081127_POZNANBKL_web.pdf

Global Glacier Changes: Facts and Figureshttp://www.grid.unep.ch/glaciers/pdfs/glaciers.pdf

All UNEP publications can be found under:http://www.unep.org/publications/

United Nations Environment ProgrammeP.O. Box 30552 Nairobi, 00100 Kenya

Tel: (254 20) 7621234 - E-mail: uneppub@unep.org

THANK YOU!

Jimena FernándezJimena.fernandez@unep.org