Climate change in the news
Issue 17 – 10th May, 2011
Recent Agriculture and Forestry Articles/ Publications
1. World Bank: East Asia and Pacific Economic Update 2011, Volume 1
2. CARE releases new Food Security Brief
3. International Potato Centre Describes Success of Improved Potato Varieties
REDD+
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
REDD-plus and Biodiversity e-Newsletter - Vol.14 - March 2011
FAO Publishes Booklet on Forests and Climate Change in Asia
REDD-plus Benefits: Biodiversity and Livelihoods
UN-REDD Programme March-April Newsletter is now out!
FAO Releases Publications on Forestry in Asia-Pacific Region
World Bank Institute, FCPF Launch Tool on Opportunity Costs of REDD+
CBD Monthly Bulletin Highlights Asia-Pacific Regional Consultation on REDD+
Options for voluntary REDD+ certification
Nested Approaches to REDD+: An Overview of Issues and Options
General
1. The Clean Development Mechanism: A Review of the First International Offset Program
Prepared for the Pew Centre on Global Climate Change
2. World Bank Releases Report on Mitigating Climate Change through Wetlands Restoration
3. [PACNews] Nauru will use UN spotlight to confront developed world over climate change
4. UNDP Supports Climate Finance Meeting for Pacific Island Countries
5. PG Diploma in Climate Change - Courses being offered in 2nd Semester 2011
Opportunities and Events
1.
2.
3.
4.
GEF Project to Stimulate Samoa’s Climate Resilience
OECD Releases Statistical Overview of Climate Change Aid
ITU Launches Green ICT Application Challenge
Asia-Pacific Adaptation Information Needs: Ecosystems & Vulnerable Societies
5. Call for submission of interest for the Asia Pacific Adaptation Network (APAN) Sub regional
node/thematic node
6. Adaptation Fund Board Invites Comments on Project Proposals
7. UNDP, SPREP and SPC Hold Pacific Workshop on Climate Change Impacts in Agriculture
World Bank: East Asia and Pacific Economic Update 2011, Volume 1
April 2011: The World Bank held a high-level forum for policy debate on East Asia's development
challenges and opportunities, from 21-22 March 2011, in Singapore. The role and future of "green
growth" for the region were among the topics and themes of the forum. During the meeting, the
World Bank launched a special edition of its half-yearly report, the "East Asia and Pacific Economic
Update."
Opening the meeting, Andrew Steer, World Bank Special Envoy for Climate Change, emphasized the importance of
the region's efforts in the "battle for green growth."
The report addresses a number of economic issues, and includes a section on energy security, environmental
sustainability and climate change looking at energy efficiency, low-carbon cities and low-carbon technologies. The
report also includes a country page on the challenge of climate change adaptation in Kiribati. Three thematic
sessions address regional integration as an engine of development, skills and education, and the future of green
growth. [Website of Conference] [Publication: World Bank: East Asia and Pacific Economic Update 2011: Securing
the Present, Shaping the Future (Volume 1)]
CARE releases new Food Security Brief
Food insecurity is a growing concern throughout the developing world, particularly for poor women and children.
We understand that achieving food security for all will require a coordinated effort that incorporates preventive,
promotional, protective and transformative measures. To learn more about CARE understands of the challenge
and our response, please download our Adaptation & Food Security Brief.
http://www.careclimatechange.org/files/CARE_docs/CARE_Food_Security_Brief_2011.pdf
CARE Toolkit for Integrating Climate Change into Development Projects:
www.careclimatechange.org/tk/integration/es. The toolkit provides practical assistance for adapting design,
implementation, monitoring & evaluation to the challenges posed by climate change. Its step-by-step structure
helps users design climate-resilient interventions with sustainable impacts. The Toolkit also includes simple
checklists to ensure that activities don't inadvertently increase people's vulnerability to climate change. See all our
adaptation toolkits at www.careclimatechange.org/toolkits.
To keep informed of all our CARE & Climate Change publications when they are released, join us on Facebook and
Twitter.
International Potato Centre Describes Success of Improved Potato
Varieties
13 April 2011: The International Potato Centre (CIP) has released a news release that outlines
improved food security due in part to late blight resistant potato varieties, Pallay Poncho and Puka
Lliclla, developed by CIP.
The release notes the success of these two varieties following an outbreak of late blight disease in JanuaryFebruary 2010. The development of the potato varieties began with a participatory varietal selection in 2003
following an outbreak in a high altitude community, and fears that climate change would increase the spread of
the disease across the country. After five years of selection and trials, the two new varieties were released by the
Peruvian National Institute of Agrarian Innovation. The improved varieties are grown alongside local varieties and
act as insurance in the event of disease outbreak.
CIP is a member of the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR). [CIP Press Release]
REDD-plus and Biodiversity e-Newsletter - Vol.14 - March 2011
The Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity has just released Vol. 14 of its REDD-plus and Biodiversity
e-Newsletter. It is available at: http://www.cbd.int/forest/newsletters/redd-14.htm
For more information on the REDD-plus and Biodiversity e-Newsletter and on how to subscribe, or to view
previous issues, please visit: http://www.cbd.int/forest/redd/newsletters/
FAO Publishes Booklet on Forests and Climate Change in Asia
March 2011: The UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the Centre for People and Forests
(RECOFTC) have published a booklet on the Asia-Pacific perspective on forests and climate change
after the Cancun Climate Change Conference, held in December 2010.
The booklet, which is titled "Forests and climate change after Cancun - An Asia-Pacific
perspective," was the result of an expert consultation on the topic, held in February 2011, in Chiang Mai, Thailand.
The booklet covers three areas: reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation, and the role of
conservation, sustainable management of forests and enhancement of carbon stocks (REDD+); land use, land-use
change and forestry (LULUCF); and the Green Climate Fund.
It provides information on several key topics: progress on REDD+ at the Cancun negotiations and why a decision on
REDD+ financing was deferred; progress since the Copenhagen negotiations in 2009; next steps in REDD+
negotiations; the lack of binding commitments for REDD+; LULUCF in Asia-Pacific; the Green Climate Fund and the
Asia-Pacific forestry sector; REDD+ costs and safeguards; REDD+, participation and livelihood benefits; and
challenges to REDD+ in the Asia-Pacific. [Publication: Forests and Climate Change after Cancun: An Asia-Pacific
Perspective]
REDD-plus Benefits: Biodiversity and Livelihoods
New: Publication by the Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) and Deutsche Gesellschaft für
International Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) now available in English, French and Spanish!
English
“REDD-plus Benefits: Biodiversity and Livelihoods”
This brochure is available online at: http://www.cbd.int/forest/publications.shtml. Hard copies can be ordered free
of charge by sending a request to: [email protected]
Français
« Biodiversité et moyens de subsistance : les avantages REDD-plus »
Cette brochure est disponible sur Internet à : http://www.cbd.int/forest/publications.shtml. Des copies papier
peuvent être commandées sans frais en faisant une demande à l’adresse suivante: [email protected]
Español
“La Diversidad Biológica y los Medios de Vida: Beneficios de REDD-plus”
Esta publicación está disponible en línea en: http://www.cbd.int/forest/publications.shtml
Copias impresas de esta publicación se pueden pedir sin costo a la siguiente dirección: [email protected]
UN-REDD Programme March-April Newsletter is now out!
The UN-REDD Programme’s March/April 2010 newsletter is now out!
In the UN-REDD Programme’s March-April newsletter, readers hear from partner countries, civil society organizations and
donors about their evolving commitment to REDD+ and UN-REDD; Ecuador highlights the country's next steps in developing
and implementing their national REDD+ strategy; and readers get an overview of the UN-REDD Programme’s draft Social and
Environmental Principles and Criteria, presented recently at the Programme's Policy Board meeting in Viet Nam.
Read the March/April issue of the UN-REDD Programme newsletter online.
Engage with us on these and any other news on the UN-REDD Programme blog.
FAO Releases Publications on Forestry in Asia-Pacific Region
April 2011: The Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO) has released reports on forests and
forestry in the Asia-Pacific region, looking forward to 2020, and including subregional reports and
analyses for Southeast Asia, East Asia, the Pacific and the Greater Mekong. An additional report
examines "Forest policies, legislation and institutions in Asia and the Pacific. Trends and emerging
needs for 2020."
In "Asia-Pacific forests and forestry to 2020," the FAO follows up on the 1998 Asia-Pacific Forestry Sector Outlook
Study. The report synthesizes findings from almost 50 country reports and analyzes factors driving changes,
following three trajectories for: "Boom," "Bust," and "Green Economy." The report was developed through the
open contribution of data from countries. It notes an increased interest in forest-derived ecosystem services, but
states that willingness to pay for services have not yet delivered. The report examines both opportunities from and
potential limitations of REDD+ (reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation in developing
countries, as well as conservation, sustainable management of forests and enhancement of carbon stocks). It
underscores the critical impact of societal changes on forests, particularly demographic changes, globalization and
increasing demand for food, fiber and fuel. The report suggests that use of wood as a source of energy is likely to
decrease and that improved governance will be central to the success.
In "Southeast Asian Forests and Forestry to 2020," the FAO highlights the changing economies and forest trends
across the sub region, particularly the growing concern over trade legality and sustainable resource management
in major markets. The report notes the possibilities from participation in a REDD+ mechanism, but suggests that
reductions in deforestation and degradation will be hard won. The report suggests that national priorities should
center on economic production and biodiversity protection, but that these can only be effective with improved
governance.
In "Forest policies, legislation and institutions in Asia and the Pacific: Trends and emerging needs for 2020," the
authors describe the current status and key trends in illegal logging and governance, institutional arrangements,
forest policy and forest legislation. It underscores that international REDD+ efforts and Forest Law Enforcement
and Governance and Trade (FLEGT) programmes have the potential to provide support to efforts to increase and
sustain forests, and highlights the need for consensus on the role of forestry in national development.
[Publication: Forest policies, legislation and institutions in Asia and the Pacific. Trends and emerging needs for
2020] [Publication: Asia-Pacific forests and forestry to 2020] [Publication: Southeast Asian Forests and Forestry to
2020] [FAO Website for Forestry Sector Outlook Studies]
World Bank Institute, FCPF Launch Tool on Opportunity Costs of REDD+
8 April 2011: The World Bank Institute and Forest Carbon Partnership Facility (FCPF) have published
a training manual that shares hands-on experience from field programmes and presents the
essential practical and theoretical steps, methods and tools to estimate the opportunity costs of
reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation in developing countries, as well as
conservation, sustainable management of forests and enhancement of carbon stocks (REDD+).
The manual addresses the calculation of costs and benefits of the various land use alternatives in relation to their
carbon stocks and the identification of economic trade-offs involved in REDD+ activities. As required data are
generally not readily available, the manual also includes information on data collection, analysis and evaluation
techniques.
The new training manual was launched and piloted at a recent workshop organized with the UN-REDD Programme
in Arusha, Tanzania, in November 2010, attended by eight countries. Other workshops in 2011 will target South
and Southeast Asia, and Latin America. [Publication: Estimating the Opportunity Costs of REDD+]
CBD Monthly Bulletin Highlights Asia-Pacific Regional Consultation on
REDD+
26 April 2011: In the March issue of its Monthly Bulletin of Activities, the Secretariat
of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) highlights several recent meetings
and activities, including the opening for signature of the Nagoya-Kuala Lumpur
Supplementary Protocol on Liability and Redress to the Cartagena Protocol on Bio
safety and the Asia-Pacific Regional Consultation on Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest
Degradation in Developing Countries, including on relevant biodiversity safeguards.
The Nagoya-Kuala Lumpur Supplementary Protocol on Liability and Redress to the Cartagena Protocol on Bio safety
was opened for signature by parties to the Bio safety Protocol on 7 March 2011, at UN Headquarters in New York,
US.
The Asia-Pacific Regional Consultation and Capacity-building Workshop on REDD+ (reducing emissions from
deforestation and forest degradation in developing countries, as well as conservation, sustainable management of
forests and enhancement of carbon stocks) including on relevant biodiversity safeguards was held from 15-18
March 2011, in Singapore. The workshop developed advice on REDD+ and relevant biodiversity safeguards, on
possible indicators to assess the contribution of REDD+ to achieving the CBD objectives and on potential
mechanisms to monitor impacts of REDD+ on biodiversity.
The Bulletin further includes reports on, inter alia: a workshop on the UN Decade on Biodiversity held in Hanoi,
Viet Nam; the regional workshop for southern Africa on updating National Biodiversity Strategies and Action Plans
held in Kasane, Botswana; the Latin American and Caribbean indigenous and local community capacity-building
workshop on the CBD, including issues relevant to Article 8(j), traditional knowledge and access and benefitsharing held in Georgetown, Guyana; the CBD review workshop for Carpathian countries on the programme of
work on protected areas, held in Wolkersdorf, Austria; and the Eastern Europe regional workshop on biodiversity
and finance held in Kiev, Ukraine. [Publication: Monthly Bulletin of Activities of the Convention on Biological
Diversity Issue No. 3/2011]
Options for voluntary REDD+ certification
For your information a newly published article assessing the options of voluntary REDD+ certification. The article
analyses ten different forest carbon standards and gives practical recommendations on their application.
It can be downloaded from the following link:
http://www.mdpi.com/1999-4907/2/2/550/
Nested Approaches to REDD+: An Overview of Issues and Options
Interest in “nested” approaches to REDD+ has grown steadily as policy makers, practitioners and investors seek to
reconcile approaches to reducing, and rewarding, emissions reductions at different scales – national, subnational
and project. The 16th session of the Conference of the Parties to the UNFCCC in Cancun marked the UNFCCC’s
formal acknowledgement of subnational approaches to REDD+ accounting and monitoring. National “readiness”
processes for REDD+ in many countries explicitly seek to incorporate nested projects or demonstration activities,
as do state or provincial mechanisms under the Governors´ Task Force on Climate and Forests.
For developing country policymakers, putting nesting into practice represents a series of complex decisions at a
time when policy and market conditions are still very much in flux. While many countries and international
institutions recognize the relevance of nested approaches, relatively little progress has been made in establishing
regulatory and accounting systems that explicitly support nesting.
This report, targeted to parties engaged in on-the-ground decisions about how to address REDD+, discusses the
main issues and options that need to be considered in developing nested frameworks for harmonizing emission
reductions at the jurisdictional and project scales. The report focuses on mechanisms for recognition of projectlevel activities within national or subnational programs as a means to mobilize private investment and nongovernmental action on REDD+. This report draws on input from an international workshop on Nested
Approaches to REDD+ convened by Forest Trends in March 2011, with participants from a dozen countries.
We believe that this report is an important milestone in moving on-the-ground REDD+ activities forward and
strengthening policymakers’ understanding of options for putting nested approaches into practice.
The report, “Nested Approaches to REDD+: An Overview of Issues and Options” is available for download at
http://www.forest-trends.org/publication_details.php?publicationID=2762.
The Clean Development Mechanism: A Review of the First International
Offset Program Prepared for the Pew Centre on Global Climate Change
By Michael Gillenwater and Stephen Seres
Click Here To Download The Paper or visit http://www.pewclimate.org/publications/clean-developmentmechanism-review-first-international-offset-program
This paper compares and evaluates the CDM against standard criteria for high-quality offsets and reviews lessons
learned, institutional changes that have been made, and ongoing challenges.
The Clean Development Mechanism (CDM), established under the Kyoto Protocol, is the primary international
offset program in existence today, and while not perfect, it has helped to establish a global market for greenhouse
gas (GHG) emission reductions. It generates offsets through investments in GHG reduction, avoidance, and
sequestration projects in developing countries. The United States is not party to the Kyoto Protocol, but was
instrumental in negotiating the treaty and championing market mechanisms as a way to achieve the targeted
reductions at lower cost. The CDM has managed to establish—in its relatively short eight years of existence—a
credible, internationally-recognized, $2.7 billion carbon offset market with participation from a large number of
developing countries and private investors. It has also created processes and methodologies that other programs
are already emulating.
Learn more at www.pewclimate.org.
World Bank Releases Report on Mitigating Climate Change through
Wetlands Restoration
March 2011: The World Bank has released a report titled "Mitigating Climate Change through
Restoration and Management of Coastal Wetlands and Near-shore Marine Ecosystems," which finds
that drainage and degradation of coastal wetlands emit significant amounts of carbon dioxide
directly into the atmosphere and lead to decreased carbon sequestration.
The report, written in partnership with the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and wetland
specialists ESA PWA, underscored the need for: protecting coastal wetlands; creating incentives for avoiding their
degradation and improving their restoration; and including the protection of these ecosystems in carbon emission
reduction strategies and in climate negotiations.
The report highlights that the current rates of degradation and loss of coastal wetlands and destruction of about
20% of the worlds’ mangroves has led to the release of centuries of accumulated carbon. This has also disturbed
the natural protection against storm surges and other extreme weather events. Of the 15 coastal deltas studied in
the report, seven were found to have released more than 500 million tons of carbon dioxide each since the
wetlands were drained, mostly in the past 100 years.
Mangroves, tidal marshes and sea-grassy meadows remove carbon from the atmosphere and lock it into the soil,
where it can stay for millenniums. Unlike terrestrial forests, these marine ecosystems are continuously building
carbon pools, storing huge amounts of “blue carbon” in the sediment below them. When these systems are
degraded due to drainage or conversion for agriculture and aquaculture, they emit large and continuous amounts
of carbon dioxide to the atmosphere.
According to the report, managing coastal ecosystems for the range of services they provide can complement
existing approaches to nature-based solutions to reduce the effects of climate change. Such investments have the
potential to link to REDD+ (reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation in developing countries,
as well as conservation, sustainable management of forests and enhancement of carbon stocks ) and other carbon
financing mechanisms, provided that protocols on accounting, verification and reporting of net carbon uptake can
be agreed. [Publication: Mitigating Climate Change through Restoration and Management of Coastal Wetlands and
Near-shore Marine Ecosystems]
PACNEWS DIGEST
The views expressed in PACNEWS are those of agencies contributing articles and do not necessarily those of PINA and/or PACNEWS
Nauru will use UN spotlight to confront developed world over climate
change
27 APRIL 2011 NEW YORK (THE GUARDIAN) ---- The smallest nation in the UN is about to take the AOSIS chair at a
time when low-lying coastal countries are gravely threatened
Last month I returned to Nauru, the smallest member of the United Nations and my home. The island is located in
the Pacific Ocean close to the equator, about halfway between Hawaii and Australia. Our nearest neighbour is
Banaba Island, 300 kilometres to the east. It is one of the most remote places in the world.
I took the opportunity to talk to my community about some of the environmental changes taking place there, and
it was a very troubling discussion. The sea around us is getting warmer, droughts have become commonplace, and
the coastal erosion is as bad as anyone can remember.
Similar trends are occurring across the Pacific and they have grave implications for the fish stocks we depend on
for food, our freshwater supplies, and the very land we live on. Scientists have warned us that the situation will get
much worse unless the greenhouse gas pollution responsible for global warming is dramatically reduced.
Thus my government is acutely aware of the responsibility we face when we assume the Chair of the Alliance of
Small Island States (AOSIS), as the endorsed Pacific candidate when the Chair rotates to our region late this year.
AOSIS is a coalition of 43 islands and low-lying coastal countries from around the world that share similar
sustainable development challenges and environmental concerns. The most urgent crisis we face today is climate
change.
Under Grenada's leadership, AOSIS has consistently called on the developed world to cut emissions to levels that
the science says will give all of our nations the best chance for survival.
This is essential, not just because we are running out of time to take the action needed to avert catastrophe, but
because, frankly, there has been a crisis of leadership among the world's biggest economies in addressing the
problem they are most responsible for creating.
For example, some countries have still failed to commit to cutting emissions, while others have threatened not to
renew their obligations at the end of 2012 when the first commitment period for emission reductions in the Kyoto
protocol expires.
It may seem ironic that the countries least responsible for climate change, and the ones most vulnerable to it,
would be left to uphold standards of scientific integrity. However, the history of environmental conservation is
replete with stories about people who drew a line in the sand against corporations and countries far more wealthy
and powerful than them. AOSIS has taken such a stand when it has called for action based on what is necessary,
not politically expedient. This will continue when Nauru is chair next year.
In the meantime, the international community must make progress in the following areas, lest the crisis run away
from us all.
First, there must be a second commitment period for the Kyoto protocol. The agreement is the best available legal
framework to address a global problem as complex and severe as climate change.
Second, the targets set for reducing greenhouse gas emissions are not nearly ambitious enough to mitigate the
worst impacts of climate change. In fact, new research shows that faster-than-expected loss of polar ice sheets
could mean sea levels rise by more than a metre, which would put cities like New York and London at risk for
severe flooding and inundate many of the islands in our region.
Third, developed countries should establish readily accessible sources of climate funding once and for all. The
agreement reached last year in Cancun included pledges of $100bn a year by 2020 to help the developing world
adapt to climate impacts and adopt clean sources of energy. That sounds like a lot of money, but to put it in
perspective, it's about one-third of the revenue of the world's largest oil company in 2010. The World Bank
estimates at least that much will be needed for developing countries to cope with droughts, floods, sea level rise,
and other climate impacts – and it is still not clear exactly how the money promised will be spent.
Our ability to find a solution to climate change will depend on the choices we make and the values we prioritise. It
also depends on who we prioritise – the rich or the poor, the secure or the vulnerable, present generations or
future ones.
These decisions will determine whether the future sees a destructive scramble for the world's remaining resources
or an equitable sharing of steadily increasing prosperity. Because in the end, we all live on the same island, and
how we treat it and each other will settle the fate of humanity......PNS (ENDS)
• Ambassador Marlene Moses is the permanent representative to the UN for the Republic of Nauru. She lives in
New York.
UNDP Supports Climate Finance Meeting for Pacific Island Countries
15 April 2011: The UN Development Programme (UNDP) organized a Pacific National Stakeholders Meeting
on Climate Financing on 14-15 April 2011, in Koror, Palau. The two-day meeting brought
together representatives of ten Pacific countries to discuss means of increasing their access to climate
funds and using them sustainably, and options available to Pacific Island countries to access and effectively
deliver climate change adaptation initiatives.
The meeting aimed to better equip Pacific Island countries with the required knowledge of innovative countrylevel solutions, adaptation approaches in the Pacific, best practices, as well as international gaps that prevent
better access to, and optimum utilization of, climate finance, including multi-donor climate funds.
The meeting was opened by Kerai Mariur, Vice President and Minister of Finance, Palau, who highlighted the
region’s vulnerability to climate change and emphasized the importance of relating international discourse on
climate change and climate finance to the realities of Pacific countries. Toily Kurbanov, UNDP Deputy
Representative, stated that the meeting provided an opportunity to engage with Pacific Island countries and better
understand their concerns and priorities on climate-related issues. He noted that strengthening national
institutions is key to stronger and more sustainable results in any area of development, including climate change
adaptation and climate financing.
The meeting included senior government officials from Fiji, the Federated States of Micronesia, Kiribati, Marshall
Islands, Palau, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Tonga and Vanuatu, as well as representatives of regional agencies
and civil society organizations. [UNDP Fiji Multi-Country Office Press Release]
Postgraduate Diploma in Climate Change - Courses being offered in 2nd
Semester 2011
The Pacific Centre for Environment and Sustainable Development (PACE-SD) at the University of the South Pacific is
a Centre of Excellence for teaching, training and research based capacity building for environment and sustainable
development in the Pacific Island region. In recognition of the need to strengthen the capacity of Pacific Island
Countries (PICs) to deal with and adapt to the impacts of hydro-meteorological disasters and climate change,
PACE-SD has developed a series of semester long online teaching courses that will lead to a Post-Graduate Diploma
in Climate Change. The first batch of 8 PG Diploma students graduated early this year and we are expecting at least
20 more to complete their diploma by the end of 2011(see the attached news clippings).
PACE-SD will offer three online courses (see attachment “PACE-SD Ad 7 May”) in the second semester of 2011
(the course EV424 - Disaster Risk Assessment and Management is being offered for the first time at USP and is
designed to familiarize the learners with the causes and effects of disasters and provide comprehensive knowledge
on disasters, disaster preparedness, mitigation and rehabilitation as well as enable learners to carry out risk
assessment and vulnerability analysis. It will also provide guidance to learners to strengthen institutional
mechanisms for community mobilization and participation in disaster management). These courses could be of
interest for you and/or your colleagues.
ENCOURAGING THE PACIFIC REGION TO REGISTER FOR THESE COURSES & BECOME FUTURE CLIMATE LEADER OF
THE SOUTH PACIFIC
For further information on Entry Qualification, Deadlines and Application Procedure, contact Ms. Aliti Koroi (Email:
[email protected]) or Phone: (679) 3232 676
GEF Project to Stimulate Samoa’s Climate Resilience
8 April 2011: The Global Environment Facility (GEF) recently approved a project to
integrate climate change risks and resilience into forestry management in Samoa, thus
contributing to food security, increased yields and crop variety, and health benefits.
The project will cover approximately 10,000 hectares of native forest areas and at least 20,000 hectares of lowland
Agroforestry areas and will be funded by US$2.6 million from the Kyoto Protocol's Least Developed Countries Fund
(LDCF), and implemented by the UN Development Programme (UNDP). It aims to increase resilience to climate
change of 26 villages in three different areas of the country, focusing on activities to: build stakeholder capacity to
increase resilience against and identify options to address climate change risks; enhance community capabilities to
develop and implement response strategies and measures to respond to the adverse effects of climate change;
and improve local awareness and understanding of communities and other key stakeholders about the necessity
and benefits of preparedness for climate change risks
The project will cover approximately 10,000 Ha of native forestry areas (NPs and customary upland areas), and at
least 20,000 Ha lowland Agroforestry areas, involving directly 26 villages in 3 different areas of the country, 2 of on
the island of Upolu and 1 on Savaii. It is expected that, as a result of the combined policy, climate-resilient agroforestry practices and knowledge management activities, food security in the target areas will be significantly
enhanced. The integrated watershed level land use and forestry measures will contribute to enhancing water
supply for both agricultural and domestic use. The increased yields and variety of crops, as well as the use of them
for food processing, fodder, or construction material will contribute to livelihood diversification and alternative
income opportunities. The enhanced food and water supply will also contribute to health benefits. . [GEF Press
Release]
OECD Releases Statistical Overview of Climate Change Aid
March 2011: The Organisation of Economic Co-operation and Development
(OECD) have prepared a brief titled "Tracking Aid in Support of Climate
Change Mitigation and Adaptation in Developing Countries."
The OECD's Development Assistance Committee (DAC) helps to monitor
the implementation of the commitments under the UNFCCC, including those reached at COP 15 in Copenhagen in
2009, through which developed countries agreed to provide "new and additional resources" for adaptation and
mitigation "approaching US$30 billion for the period 2010-12," and to reach "a goal of mobilising jointly US$100
billion dollars a year by 2020 to address the needs of developing countries" through a "wide variety of sources,
public and private, bilateral and multilateral, including alternative sources of finance."
This brief indicates that, in 2008-2009, members of the OECD’s DAC provided on average US$9.3 billion per year in
bilateral official development assistance (ODA) to help developing countries reduce emissions, enhance
greenhouse gas sinks or integrate climate change concerns in their development objectives. The overview
indicates that this represented 7.1% of their total bilateral ODA commitments during this period. It also notes that,
in addition to undertaking bilateral aid activities, DAC members also contribute to multilateral agencies active in
the field of climate, although it is necessary to estimate the share of these contributions that can be counted as
addressing climate change concerns and the DAC Secretariat is still working with the World Bank and other
multilateral agencies on climate change markers.
The "Rio marker" on climate change mitigation was established by the DAC in collaboration with the UNFCCC
Secretariat to track aid flows in support of developing countries’ efforts to implement the Convention. In
December 2009, DAC members approved a new marker for aid in support of climate change adaptation, and
first data on this new marker will become available on 2010 aid flows. [Publication: Tracking Aid in Support of
Climate Change Mitigation and Adaptation in Developing Countries] [OECD webpage on Rio Markers]
ITU Launches Green ICT Application Challenge
12 April 2011: The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) has launched a
Green Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Application Challenge,
which aims at identifying the best and most innovative concept for an application
that would help combat climate change. The challenge is open until 17 June 2011.
The applications may be any kind of software tool or game for the web, a personal computer or a mobile device.
The best and most innovative concept will receive US$10,000 and the winning entrant will be invited to present
his/her concept at the ITU Green Standards Week to be held in Rome, Italy, on 6 September 2011. The winning
application may also be developed and showcased during a side event to be held at the 17th session of the
Conference of the Parties (COP 17) to the UNFCCC to be held in Durban, South Africa, at the end of 2011.
Topics of interest for the challenge include, but are not limited to: mitigation of climate change through energy
efficiency in sectors such as smart buildings, intelligent transportation systems and smart homes; community
engagement; eco-design; monitoring climate change; measurement of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions; and
adaptation to climate change, for example, through the use of applications for emergency telecommunications
and alerting systems for disaster relief. Contestants are asked to submit a detailed concept paper describing their
idea and explaining how it will help to combat climate change and provide an ICT solution to environmental or
sustainability issues. [Green ICT Application Challenge] [ITU Press Release]
Asia-Pacific Adaptation Information Needs: Ecosystems & Vulnerable
Societies
Conservation International (CI) and the Centre for International Forestry Research (CIFOR) are currently working
towards supporting the information needs of decision-makers and practitioners working in the Asia-Pacific region,
that are interested in the relationship between climate change, ecosystems and vulnerable societies.
In order to ensure that the products generated target the needs of Asia-Pacific stakeholders, a short survey has
been developed to help guide the development of a toolkit highlighting different approaches to adaptation. The
toolkit will aim to support decision-making processes related to ecosystems and vulnerable communities and
sectors.
We would greatly appreciate that if you are currently working in the Asia-Pacific region in areas related to climate
change, development and ecosystems, you would share your views and information needs through the short
survey accessible via the link: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/adaptneeds
The survey consists of 17 questions and should take no more than 10 minutes to complete. Survey results will be
disseminated to all interested respondents.
Emilia Pramova
Centre for International Forestry Research (CIFOR)
Terry Hills
Conservation International (CI)
Call for submission of interest for the Asia Pacific Adaptation Network
(APAN) Sub regional node/thematic node
The Asia Pacific Adaptation Network (APAN) is a key regional initiative to
help vulnerable countries in Asia and the Pacific enhance their adaptive
capacity to respond to the increasing impacts of climate change, by
mobilizing knowledge and technology.
APAN is now calling for submission of interest for its Sub regional nodes and thematic nodes.
Sub regional nodes will lead the implementation of the sub-regional activities of APAN in collaboration with the
Regional Hub, national governments and other institutes.
APPLICATION DEADLINE: 16 May 2011
- For details, please visit the GES website. http://www.iges.or.jp/en/ )
Adaptation Fund Board Invites Comments on Project Proposals
26 April 2011: The Adaptation Fund Board (AFB) has posted 13 project proposals on its website for
comment from civil society. The proposals come from Argentina, Djibouti, Fiji, Guatemala,
Madagascar, Maldives, Mali, Mongolia, Papua New Guinea, Seychelles, Tanzania and Turkmenistan.
Jamaica also submitted a proposal through the direct access mechanism, which allows developing countries to
access funds from the fund directly without the intermediation of multilateral development institutions. The fund
is inviting comments particularly from local communities and organizations close to the areas where the proposals
are expected to be executed.
The projects include: Increasing Climate Resilience and Enhancing Sustainable Land Management in the Southwest
of the Buenos Aires Province in Argentina; Developing Agro-Pastoral Shade Gardens as an Adaptation Strategy for
Poor Rural Communities in Djibouti; Enhancing Resilience of Rural Communities to Flood and Drought-Related
Climate Change and Disaster Risks in the Ba Catchment Area in Fiji; Climate Change Resilient Production
Landscapes and Socio-economic network advanced in Guatemala; Enhancing the Resilience of the Agriculture
Sector and Coastal Areas to Protect Livelihoods and Improve Food Security in Jamaica; Promoting Climate
Resilience in the Rice Sector in Madagascar; Increasing Climate Resilience through an Integrated Water Resource
Management Programme in the Maldives; Promoting a Community Based Approach to Building Resilience to the
Food Security Impacts of Climate Change in the Faguibine System in Mali; Ecosystem Based Adaptation Approach
to Maintaining Water Security in Critical Water Catchments in Mongolia; Enhancing Adaptive Capacity of
Communities to Climate Change Related Floods in Papua New Guinea; Ecosystem Based Adaptation to Climate
Change in Seychelles; Implementation of Concrete Adaptation Measures to Reduce Vulnerability Livelihood and
Economy of Coastal Communities in Tanzania; and Addressing Climate Change Risk to Farming Systems in
Turkmenistan at National and Community Level.
The Adaptation Fund Board will consider the proposals at upcoming meetings. The 14th meeting of the Board will
take place in Bonn, Germany, on 21-22 June 2011. [Adaptation Fund Press Release] [Country Proposals to the
Adaptation Fund]
UNDP, SPREP and SPC Hold Pacific Workshop on Climate Change Impacts
in Agriculture
2 May 2011: The UN Development Programme (UNDP) Pacific
Centre, in collaboration with the South Pacific Regional
Environmental Programme (SPREP) and the Secretariat of the
Pacific Community (SPC), and with support from the Nadi
Meteorology Service, is hosting a three-week workshop, from 220 May 2011, in Nadi, Fiji, on Assessment of Climate Change
Impacts in Agriculture for agricultural and meteorological experts.
Workshop participants will address, inter alia, climate change scenarios and modeling, climate change impact
assessments, weather and climate forecasts for agriculture and the models that determine crop production based
on climate change. The workshop aims to build the capacity of experts to better support the farming community
through the dissemination of weather changing patterns and climate information for better planning their planting
season and for protecting them from weather-related losses.
The workshop is organized under the UNDP’s Project on ‘South-South Cooperation between Pacific and Caribbean
Small Islands Developing States (SIDS) on Climate Change Adaptation and Disaster Risk Management.' The project
is funded by UNDP’s Special Unit for South-South Cooperation and the UNDP-Japan Partnership Fund, with support
from UNDP Pacific Centre. Participants are from Cook Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, Kiribati,
Marshall Islands, Nauru, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu and Vanuatu, as well as
representatives from East Timor and the Maldives. [UNDP Pacific Centre Press Release]