Archives
51st Session of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC-51)
The Special Report on the Ocean and Cryosphere in a Changing Climate (SROCC) has some alarming messages in its assessment of the latest scientific knowledge about the physical science basis for, and impacts of, climate change on ocean, coastal, polar, and mountain ecosystems, and the human communities that depend on them. It also evaluates their vulnerabilities and adaptation capacity, as well as options for achieving climate-resilient development pathways.
14th Session of the Conference of the Parties to the UNCCD (COP 14)
The Conference of the Parties ended on a note of optimism that there is a growing alignment of the land, climate, and biodiversity agendas, and, with its sharpened focus on land restoration, the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification can offer cost-effective and sustainable solutions to some of the most entrenched global challenges today.
1st Meeting of the Open-ended Working Group on the Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework
The adopted conclusions of the meeting include agreement on: a non-paper on possible elements of the Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF); the dates of and venue of the second and third meetings of the Working Group, to be held in February 2020 in China and in July 2020 in Colombia; and a zero draft text of GBF will be provided six weeks before the February 2020 meeting.
31st UN-Water Meeting
The 31st UN-Water Meeting discussed progress on and next steps for joint initiatives that UN-Water Members and Partners have undertaken to ensure that the UN is “delivering as one” to address global water challenges. Many of the initiatives discussed during this meeting, which took place immediately prior to World Water Week 2019, will contribute to implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, with particular emphasis on Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 6 (clean water and sanitation).
3rd Session of the Intergovernmental Conference (IGC) on the Conservation and Sustainable Use of Marine Biodiversity of Areas Beyond National Jurisdiction
Delegates delved, for the first time, into textual negotiations on the basis of a “zero draft” containing treaty text developed by Conference President Rena Lee (Singapore). Deliberations were productive but there is still much work to be done with the fourth and final mandated session scheduled for March 2020.
Latin America and Caribbean Climate Week 2019
Like other Climate Weeks held in various regions, the event is envisioned as a stepping stone to the UN 2019 Climate Summit where UN Secretary-General António Guterres has encouraged countries to announce new, more ambitious nationally determined contributions.
18th Meeting of the Conference of the Parties of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES CoP18)
COP18 highlighted the increasing pressures on CITES as an instrument to counter the rising scale of biodiversity loss, as parties struggled to address stresses other than trade on wildlife populations, including habitat loss, disease outbreaks, and human-wildlife conflict. These are issues CITES is not designed to regulate but must consider when considering what “sustainable use” of endangered species means.
50th Session of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC-50)
The 50th session of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change adopted the Summary for Policymakers of the Special Report on Climate Change and Land (SRCCL) and accepted the underlying report. The SRCCL represents the first ever comprehensive look at the whole land-climate system, addressing land as a critical resource, desertification and land degradation, food security, and land and climate change responses. This is the first IPCC report in which most of the authors are from developing countries, with women accounting for 40% of Coordinating Lead Authors.