Jenna Jadin, US Agency for International Development (USAID), moderated the event and introduced the speakers.

Ron Benioff, National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), introduced the CESC, and its goals to: serve as a first stop clearing house for clean energy resources; share best practice; promote dialogue; and enable expert assistance and learning. Benioff highlighted several interactive services, including “Ask an Expert,” a group of 30 experts providing free advice to global partners on smart grids, renewable energy, energy access, energy efficiency, transportation and utility regulations, as well as trainings and peer-to-peer learning, such as webinars and online training resources.

Mark Radka, UN Environment Programme (UNEP), described the Climate Technology Centre and Network (CTCN), a partnership between 11 partner organizations, including NREL, UNEP and UN Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO). Emphasizing that the CTCN is a “creation of the COP process,” he stated its mission is defined by the parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). He highlighted several functions of the CTCN, including fostering collaboration, strengthening partnerships, building capacity, and focusing on mitigation and adaptation technologies, while remarking that the CTCN is not about financing, but about removing barriers.

Benioff then explained the Renewable Energy Policy Advice Network (REPAN) as a collaboration between the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) and CESC focused on facilitating renewable energy into the grid.

The ensuing discussion focused on: possible overlap between different initiatives and organizations and the creation of a shared vision; criteria for new network members to the CTCN; and work with partner organizations to facilitate continuation of renewable energy initiatives.

Moderator Markku Kanninen, University of Helsinki, Finland, said mitigation and adaptation have historically been on separate negotiating tracks, but that building synergies between them is important, particularly at the local level as those who do and are affected by mitigation and adaptation actions are essentially the same people.

Bruno Locatelli, CIRAD-CIFOR, and Giacomo Fedele, CIFOR, presented on adaptation-mitigation synergies in forest and agricultural landscapes. Locatelli described the results on a study how mitigation and adaptation synergies in landscapes that: conducted a systematic literature review; analyzed local initiatives; and analyzed funders. Among results, he underscored: a gap in knowledge on the social aspects of synergies; more mitigation projects explicitly consider adaptation in project design than vice versa; perceived barriers to integration include different rationales, agendas and budgets, and complexity and transaction costs.

Panelists then presented case studies. Discussing the Congo Basin, Anne-Marie Tiani, CIFOR, said international interest in REDD+ and the perception of forests as mitigation opportunities have limited the integration of adaptation into forest projects. Barriers she identified include: unclear land and forest tenure; political instability; competition between actors; and lack of capacity and knowledge. She said work has shown that deforestation in the region cannot be achieved without reducing the vulnerability of forest populations, which requires integrated implementation of mitigation and adaptation.

Pak Heru Prasetyo, Deputy Head, President’s Delivery Unit for Development Monitoring and Oversight, Indonesia, said in Indonesia REDD+ is a presidential agenda. He emphasized learning demonstrates that adaptation and mitigation have to be accomplished synergistically on the ground.

Susil Perera, IFRC Secretariat, discussed mangrove-planting projects in Viet Nam, saying these projects aimed to reduce the vulnerability of coastal communities from typhoons. He noted the mitigation benefits of the mangrove projects, while stressing the original purpose of the project was to produce disaster risk reduction (DRR).

Shaban Mawanda, Uganda Red Cross, and Julie Arrighi, American Red Cross, described a cook-stoves project in Uganda. Mawanda highlighted the mitigation benefits of energy-saving cook stoves through reduced charcoal and firewood consumption, and their health co-benefits. Arrighi stressed that some of the most vulnerable are also the most capable. She said social mobilization of volunteers can lead to more holistic approaches to adaptation and mitigation, and called for ensuring projects meet the needs of local communities.

Emily Williams, California Student Sustainability Coalition, moderated the session. She introduced the panelists and then invited delegates to watch a movie produced by the Brazilian Youth Delegation, followed by a flash mob.

Nathan Niedermeier, Young Friends of the Earth Germany, said young people are well organized, educated, and come with solutions to address the climate crisis, stating that youth are interested to come not only to “fight against something, but to fight for something.” He highlighted that youth are eager to attend the climate conferences, because decisions taken influence their future.

Sylvia Yirenkyi, World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts (WAGGGS), expressed frustration, while emphasizing the importance of “holding onto dreams” and confirmed that the youth will not give up.

Ahmad Alhendawi, UN Secretary-General's Envoy on Youth, encouraged youth delegates to remember that changes do happen, but that they take time, stressing the need to focus on the long-term. He stressed that youth should translate their energy into action, to challenge their government’s climate positions back in their home countries.

Speaking as a woman and a mother, Christiana Figueres, UNFCCC Executive Secretary, addressed delegates, pointing to her children as her primary reason to dedicate her life’s work to climate change. She acknowledged that the climate negotiations can be a frustrating process, but urged youth to see addressing climate change as a marathon, not a sprint. She emphasized that youth should “put the pressure on” their national governments and their friends who are less concerned with climate change. She underscored that there are different roles to play, but with a common cause.

Jacques Lapouge, Climate Ambassador, France, stated that since the 2009 Climate Conference in Copenhagen, the French negotiation team has included youth inside its delegation. He stated that addressing climate change is not only about burden sharing, but solution sharing.

The ensuing discussion included: the provision of a political space for youth engagement within the UNFCCC and related UN processes; the recognition of youth delegates who lost their accreditation; the role of media; whether the two degree target is sufficient to address climate change; and recognition of “dreams and long-term visions” to address climate change.

This side event focused on the NAMA partnership, which was formed to enhance collaboration and complementarity among its members, and accelerate support for developing nations in preparing and implementing NAMAs. Yamide Dagnet, World Resources Institute (WRI), moderated the session, introduced the NAMA partnership platform and its website and provided an overview of the structure of the presentations.

Karen Holm Olsen, UNEP Risø Centre, addressed NAMAs contribution to national sustainable development goals and impacts. She presented the Working Group’s on Sustainable Development (WG-SD) partners, namely the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD), UN Development Programme (UNDP) and UNEP, as well as UNEP Risø, and their NAMA related activities. She categorized five stages in applying for NAMAs: identification of national sustainable development objectives; design of NAMAs, including sustainable development indicators; finance of NAMAs; measurement, reporting and verification (MRV) of an integrated approach; and certification of sustainable development impacts of credited NAMAs, potentially to be traded under a new market mechanism (NMM).

Focusing on the Working Group on MRV (WG-MRV), Daniel Bongardt, Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ), utilized examples from the transport sector and a project on urban transport in Beijing, China. He underscored that in order to help ready the sector for MRV: a joint approach to develop an overall framework for MRV of transport NAMAs should be encouraged; “roadmaps for MRV” for countries should be developed; and countries and organizations should be involved in transport NAMA development.

Addressing finance, Juichiro Sahara, Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), stressed that comprehensive NAMAs support by JICA accounts for most of Japan’s bilateral climate related aid. He pointed to technical cooperation, loan aid and grant aid as the main JICA tools to support NAMAs and used examples of support projects around the globe.

Sebastian Hach, KfW, presented the way development banks can finance the implementation of NAMAs. He concluded, inter alia, that there is a need to: improve the predictability of eligibility criteria; consider bankability in early stage NAMA development; strive for simplicity; and develop a flexible and cost-effective framework for monitoring and evaluation.

During discussions, participants raised several issues, inter alia: NMMs in relation to NAMAs; inclusion of sustainable development educational projects; gender aspects; relations between NAMAs and the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM); connections of local level MRV to the national level; and finance of NAMAs preparation.

This session, moderated by Murray Simpson, University of Oxford and INTASAVE-CARIBSAVE, addressed work across the global South and the Hindu Kush Himalayas (HKH) region, and discussed issues related to climate change adaptation.

Eklabya Sharma, ICIMOD, said that the major issues in the HKH region include: poverty prevalence; lack of mountain specific policies; transboundary and common regional issues; and knowledge gaps. He addressed the Himalayan Climate Change Adaptation Programme (HICAP), which aims at contributing to enhanced resilience of mountain communities.

Rebecca Nadin, Adapting to Climate Change in China (ACCC), presented challenges and opportunities rising from working across sectors for adaptation policy and planning in China. She stressed that conducting climate change vulnerability and risk assessments requires, among others, strong interdisciplinary research collaboration, and shared and clear definition of vulnerability and risk.

Addressing ecosystem-based adaptation (EBA) in coastal communities in the Caribbean, Owen Day, INTASAVE-CARIBSAVE, talked about the Caribbean Fish Sanctuaries Partnership Initiative. He identified three key stages in EBA, namely: good scientific understanding of ecological and social systems; appropriate policy frameworks and planning; and incentives for the realization of the objectives.

Li Ting, Tsinghua University, China, offered the Chinese perspective, underscoring that China: highlights the importance of adaptation; is committed in a strong and clear way to South-South cooperation; and is formulating a strategy for comprehensive South-South cooperation.

Lawrence Hislop, GRID-Arendal, Norway, focused on the role of women in adaptation as a component of HICAP and presented a video trailer under preparation on the need for women leaders in mountain areas.

Kari Hauge Riisoen, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Norway, approached poverty and climate change as the challenges of our era, noting that they have to be tackled together. Addressing the HICAP project, she noted that it focuses on adapting to changes and connects to food security. She underscored the important role of women as agents of change, calling for further focus.

Nand Kishor Agrawal, ICIMOD, provided a preview of the 2014 HICAP report. He addressed regional and global challenges related to mountain farming and additional burdens of climate change in the HKH. He stressed that future policies should focus, inter alia, on supporting small-scale farmers and offering climate-smart extension services.

Ziad Abu Ghararah, Secretary General, PERSGA, moderated the session.

Atef Al-Jameeli, Kuwait Petroleum Corporation (KPC), outlined the dependence of Kuwait’s economy on oil, while noting elements of Kuwait’s greenhouse gas (GHG) management including use of offsets and development of sinks. As a corporation, he said KPC has a strategy to reduce GHG emissions highlighting its benefits, including better air quality and lower pollution.

Ahmed Aleidan, Saudi Aramco, said carbon management should be driven by technology. He stressed Saudi Aramco has a long history of environmental awareness and protection, including through energy management, flair reduction and carbon management.

Solaiman Al-Rifai, Dubai Carbon Centre of Excellence, described their GHG inventory for Dubai, highlighting that the process identified inefficiencies and demonstrated the need for an MRV platform. He also described the development of an aviation sector State Action Plan and the “State of Energy Report, Dubai 2013.”

Ahmed Khalil, PERSGA, outlined the blue carbon ecosystems in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden, saying they are a rich combination of salt marshes, mangroves and sea grass, with high potential as carbon sinks. He discussed regional initiatives to conserve mangroves and seagrass.

Axel Michaelowa, Perspectives Climate Change, presented a study on the carbon sink potential of coastal ecosystems. He said crucial elements for policy include legal regimes for coastal zone land management and engagement of municipalities, provinces and private landowners. He concluded that a wide range of policy options are available but require good data availability.

Nagmeldin Goutbi, Higher Council for Environment and Natural Resources, Sudan, outlined Sudan’s National Adaptation Plan (NAP). He said the NAP uses EBA approaches in coastal zones, highlighting adaptation options, including protection of critical areas and restoration of degraded areas.

Ismail Elgizouli, Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Vice Chair, discussed the 2013 Supplement to the “2006 IPCC Guidelines for National GHG Inventories,” focusing on wetlands.

Discussions addressed: carbon markets and their current failure; climate co-benefits of local and regional actions related to air quality and waste management; renewable energy potential in the region; and the role of CCS in achieving targets.