Archives for June 2008

Bonn Climate Change Talks Conclude as Attention Turns to Accra

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13 June

2008: Four parallel meetings took place between 2-13 June 2008, in Bonn,

Germany, under the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and Kyoto

Protocol. The second session of the Ad Hoc Working Group on Long-term

Cooperative Action under the Convention (AWG-LCA), which was launched in Bali,

started its substantive work in Bonn, while the resumed fifth session of the Ad

Hoc Working Group on Further Commitments for Annex I Parties under the

Kyoto Protocol (AWG-KP) began the process of listing issues for further

negotiation, particularly on the Kyoto Protocol’s market-based mechanisms and

on carbon sinks.  

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World Bank President Zoellick Presents New Climate Investment Funds at G8 Finance Ministers Meeting

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13

June 2008: Speaking on the sidelines of the meeting of finance ministers for

the Group of Eight (G8), held in Osaka, Japan, World

Bank President Robert B.

Zoellick presented two new climate investment funds built to support the

UNFCCC’s efforts to address the effects of, and mitigate, climate change.

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FAO Director-General addresses Challenges of African Agriculture from Climate Change and Soaring Food Prices

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19

June 2008: Speaking at the twenty-fifth African Regional Conference,

Director-General of the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), Jacques

Diouf, underlined the challenges of climate change and the recent rise in food

prices for African agriculture.

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ILO identifies climate change as a strategic challenge ahead

13 June

2008: The International Labour Organization’s (ILO) Conference convened for its

ninety-seventh session from 28 May-3 June in Geneva, Switzerland. In a report

submitted to the Conference entitled

“Decent Work, Some Strategic Challenges Ahead,” ILO Director-General Juan Somavia recognizes that, although the

organization does not have a mandate on climate change per se, the changes in the economy will impact employment.

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UNCCD Global Mechanism Highlights Development Programming at Country Level Supported by Effective International Policy Making Processes

17 June 2008: On the occasion of 2008 World Day to Combat

Desertification and Drought, celebrated on 17 June, the Global Mechanism (GM)

of the UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) emphasized that “the

current strategy and policy debates around climate resilience, sustainable

agriculture and food security point to the conclusion that none of these global

challenges and threats to human well-being should be tackled in isolation, but

as part and

parcel of development programming at country level, supported

by effective

international policy making processes.”

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ICAO Releases Carbon Emissions Calculator

19 June 2008: As part of its efforts to support the UN

Climate Neutral Initiative, the UN International Civil Aviation Organization

(ICAO) has released a web-based tool that identifies the carbon dioxide

emissions from a given flight.

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On the Way to Copenhagen

Ban_kimoonlBy UN  Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon

It is a particular pleasure to have this opportunity to share some of

my thoughts through the inaugural edition of this bulletin – which I

hope will become a vibrant medium of communication and exchange in the

period ahead – as we each do our part to keep the promise we made in

Bali and to realize success in Poznań and then Copenhagen.

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Climate Forecast

Richardpeter

By Richard Sherman and Peter Doran, IISDRS

While the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change

(UNFCCC) process is the official ‘home’ for climate policy

negotiations, the road to Copenhagen will increasingly witness the

acceleration of initiatives across the United Nations system and the

intergovernmental sphere. System-wide initiatives on climate change

reflect a commitment across the UN family to support the UN

Secretary-General’s commitment to play a leadership role in supporting

the international community’s current efforts to address climate

change, using the Bali Action Plan and Roadmap, and to ensure that all

parts of the UN contribute to a solution.

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Guest Article #1: On the Way to Copenhagen

It is a particular pleasure to have this opportunity to share some of my thoughts through the inaugural edition of this bulletin – which I hope will become a vibrant medium of communication and exchange in the period ahead – as we each do our part to keep the promise we made in Bali and to realize success in Poznań and then Copenhagen.

read more »

G8 Finance Ministers Support Climate Investment Funds

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14 June 2008: G8 Finance Ministers, meeting

in preparation for the Summit of the G8 Heads of State and Government in

Hokkaido-Toyako, met from 13-14 June 2008, in Osaka, Japan, and agreed to the “G8

Action Plan for Climate Change to Enhance the Engagement of Private and Public

Financial Institutions.” In their final statement, Ministers supported the

launch of new Climate Investment Funds (CIFs) by the World Bank, which will

complement existing bilateral and multilateral efforts, until a post-2012

framework under the UNFCCC is implemented.

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