Coverage of Selected Side Events at the
Lima Climate Change Conference - December 2014

This side event highlighted successful investment initiatives undertaken by the IADB in Latin American countries in adapting to, and mitigating, climate change. The session was moderated by Mávila Huertas, Peruvian television anchor.

UNFCCC Executive Secretary Christiana Figueres said the Latin American continent, with its high number of middle-income citizens, has specific challenges to address rapid urbanization patterns, but these also present many opportunities in the form of developing “green” transport and renewable energy systems. She noted that although the continent does not have the political and economic weight of other “bigger players,” it has the resources and institutional strength to determine a sustainable path for the future of development.

Luis Alberto Moreno, IADB President, shared the Bank’s experiences on investing in sustainable development projects, noting that 25% of its portfolio is allocated to sustainable development. He cautioned against addressing climate change in isolation, saying it will require a comprehensive set of actions across all sectors and regions. Moreno said success should be measured in terms of transformation over decades, and declared that many of IADB’s investments will only yield results over 15 to 20 years.

Thomas Lovejoy, George Mason University, applauded the IADB’s position as the first bank to have an environmental policy, and reported on new initiatives in the region to develop sustainably without compromising biodiversity, including the Camisea Gas Project and Peru’s intention to curb deforestation by 2020.

Amal-Lee Amin, Third Generation Environmentalism (E3G), noted that IADB acts as a strong partner to governments and the private sector in Latin America, and its greatest value lies in the expertise acquired over decades. She stressed that the Green Climate Fund needs to be at the heart of climate-fund developments, and underscored the need for financing small and medium enterprises to facilitate the necessary transitions to green economic developments.

Manuel Pulgar-Vidal, Minister of the Environment, Peru, and COP 20 President, warned that although Latin America supports the greatest diversity of ecosystems, it is also the most vulnerable to climate change. Calling for Lima to accelerate its transition to a healthier and safer transport system, he urged addressing all sources that contribute to climate change, including land use change, deforestation, and destructive mining. Pulgar-Vidal stressed the role of development banks in changing the current development paradigm.

Moderated by Sara Baeshem, Ministry of Petroleum and Mineral Resources, Saudi Arabia, this event provided an opportunity to discuss economic diversification through renewable energy research and investment in Saudi Arabia.

Baeshem noted the challenges and opportunities for developing countries in finding sustainable pathways to development, without increasing their emissions, saying that policy design should meet country-specific requirements.

Highlighting that the Middle East is the largest market for desalination globally, Zaid Al Otaibi, National Center for Solar Energy Technology, KACST, Saudi Arabia, spoke on the Saudi Arabia Initiative for Solar Water Desalination. He said that the Initiative uses reverse-osmosis technology and solar energy, explaining that desalination costs using this technology have decreased rapidly. He highlighted that the Initiative, to be completed by 2016, will provide employment opportunities, further noting that the solar panels to be used will be manufactured in-country.

Suzan Katamoura, K.A.CARE, presented the Renewable Resources Atlas in Saudi Arabia, describing it as an online, user-friendly system that provides maps and graphs of annual, monthly, weekly and daily solar and wind averages. She noted that it is designed to incorporate waste and geothermal data when available, and includes relevant information from electric grids and roads. She highlighted the requisite 77 solar stations and 40 wind stations for the Atlas to be fully operational are scheduled to be completed in 2015, expressing hope that the Atlas will provide a more risk-free investment climate, industry diversification and employment opportunities.

Mohammed Altamimi, Leader, Thermal Energy Research Group, K.A.CARE, spoke on renewable desalination in Saudi Arabia, describing two K.A.CARE desalination projects in his country that will be powered by solar power and wind. He described the phases to implementation, noting the study, tendering and execution phases.

This side event, co-moderated by Marina Flevotomas and Juan Jesús Vázquez Milling, brought together youth delegates from around the world with high-level delegates to discuss the role and importance of young people in the UNFCCC process.

The event started with the song “Hombre de Papel” (Man of Paper) performed by Angela Valenzuela and Augustin Martz, Earth in Brackets.

René Gonzalo Orellana Halkyer, Chair of the G-77/China, noted that market and economic considerations dominate the agenda, while concepts of life, happiness, and living in harmony with Mother Earth are not included and often laughed at.

Israel Maldonado, General Coordinator of the tenth Conference of Youth (COY10), addressed the main messages from COY10, including its declaration, and called for raising public awareness on climate change.

Communicating the main messages of the forthcoming COY11, Leslie Tourneville, Organizer Team COY11, stressed solidarity, inclusiveness and intergenerational action as factors for change.

Nhattan Nguyen, World Organization of the Scout Movement, spoke about the movement’s responsibility to strengthen youth participation in the UN system, identifying key roles that the constituency system plays in delivering youth engagement.

Raquel Rosenberg, Engajamundo, Brazil, stressed that a just climate agreement would include: a fight to limit global warming to the 1.5˚C target; at least 80% of fossil fuel left underground; 100% renewable energy by 2050; zero deforestation rate; and ancestral territories respected and not merchandized.

Scott Fisher, Children’s Environment Research Group, underscored the role of youth, women and children as actors in community governance, drawing attention to networking and collaboration between groups.

Focusing on the global dimension of climate change, Ties Mouwen, Dutch National Youth Council, said that due to exponential population growth, half of the population worldwide is under the age of 25, rendering 3.5 billion people as potential agents of change. He underlined the right of young generations to be heard and noted that without drastic change there will be no Earth to live on.

Mariano Castro Sánchez-Moreno, Vice-Minister of Environment, Peru, stressed that the youth declaration shows the level of maturity they possess, “and the path to translate youth social necessities into political demands.” He underscored that although the youth are better informed than in the past, information overflow should not divert focus, as specific measures, due dates and strategies are needed.

Paul Watkinson, Head of the French delegation, urged youth to keep using different ways to communicate as formal negotiations often “get stuck in legal points and use strange language.” He invited the youth to Paris next year, requesting them to bring ideas and solutions, mobilize, participate and challenge negotiators.

This UN System-wide event, moderated by Daniel Shepard, UN Department for Public Information (UN DPI), was structured as a conversation with representatives from different UN agencies involved in data collection, analysis and knowledge management.

Pradeep Monga, Director of Energy and Climate Change, UNIDO, highlighted how knowledge partnerships are catalyzing new ways of harnessing climate information to enrich broader sustainability discussions.

Daniel Schensul, UNFPA, said integrating climate models with socio-economic data can enhance local solutions that strengthen resilience.

Responding to a question of how to interpret big data for decision making and action, Ilaria Firmian, IFAD, highlighted a climate vulnerability study in Mali that examined 10 dimensions of people’s livelihoods, noting it helped to inform decision making at the project level.

Koko Warner, UN University, highlighted the need for research to: understand who is affected by climate and how; understand what drives people’s behavior and decisions in relation to climate events; and make sure that data “makes sense” in real-life situations. She gave examples of “good” data in this context as providing early-warning information directly to vulnerable communities using mobile apps.

Phillip Williamson, Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission of the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (IOC-UNESCO) provided some insights on why it has taken so long to acquire and use good data on ocean acidification. He noted as one key constraint the issue of national sovereignty over ocean research, saying this calls for a UN-led drive to promote open-data policies on basic environmental data.

Satya Tripathi, UNORCID, discussed the coordination work of UNORCID as an institutional innovation in its own right. He highlighted how a recent study, which showed that forest ecosystems account for 76% of livelihoods, helped convince policy makers of the importance of biodiversity conservation.

Discussing the work of the UNFCCC’s Climate Technology Centre and Network (CTCN), Jukka Uosukainen, CTCN, said that in its first year the Centre has received almost 30 requests from countries on issues ranging from how to construct climate-friendly waste systems in cities to developing national indicators for adaptation. He announced the launch of the CTCN portal at COP20, which will facilitate access to climate information from diverse sources.

Kishan Khoday, UN Development Programme (UNDP), noted the extensive reservoir of data that has been built up from working with national partners and explained that UNDP’s support for national capacity building is increasingly focused on integrating development planning with climate change mitigation and adaptation.

During discussions, participants highlighted a range of issues relating to improving the quality of data and knowledge sharing. One speaker stressed the need to ensure that the global data revolution does not contribute to greater inequality, emphasizing that knowledge partnerships should focus on finding who is “lost” in the data in order to understand their vulnerability and make them part of the solution. Other speakers highlighted: the need to focus on concrete problems as this will motivate collaborations among business, research, civil society and governments; ensuring that data collection results in actual projects that are “bankable and implementable”; the importance of social tagging and knowledge brokering to enhance the searchability of data; and incorporating provisions for consumer protection when using crowd-sourced data.

Moderated by Benoit Lefevre, World Resources Institute, this event first explored new technological insights into the mitigation potential of the transport sector. This was followed by responses from policymakers on how these insights can support the further development of Intended Nationally Determined Contributions (INDCs) and Nationally Appropriate Mitigation Actions (NAMAs) under the UNFCCC.

Cédric Philibert, IEA, noted that a transformation of the transport sector is critical in achieving the 2°C scenario.  He noted that a combination of “avoid and shift” and “improve” measures are needed to ensure the switch to cleaner transport options while addressing urban mobility and energy needs.

Presenting new projections for urban mobility in China, India, and Latin America, Aimée Aguilar Jaber, International Transport Forum (ITF), highlighted some relevant messages for the further development of NAMAs and INDCs, including: the importance of undertaking mitigation actions in developing cities; the recognition that “avoid-shift” is a powerful element in a low carbon urban future; the need to understand the context, drivers and effects of chosen policies in order to attain desired results; and ensuring that NAMAs are developed as part of a wider urban sustainable transport strategy.

Michael Replogle, Managing Director for Policy and Founder, ITDP, presented a joint study with the University of California at Davis and IEA that explored how investment and policy choices shape vehicle ownership. He said that a “high shift” model developed by the study would cut car travel in cities by half by 2050 in order to achieve a 2°C scenario, compared to the IEA’s baseline 4°C scenario. He further noted that the first ever model to consider equity impacts of low carbon transport, developed by the study, had shown it would result in a tripling of public transport mobility for the poorest 20% of the world’s population.

Shewangizaw Kifle, Ethiopian Railways Corporation, discussed climate finance for light-rail transit development in Addis Ababa to meet the country’s aspiration of becoming a carbon-neutral green economy by 2025. He noted that the funding secured so far through the Clean Development Mechanism has increased operational revenues and helped to co-fund supportive infrastructural development, and that preparation of a NAMA framework to access future climate finance is underway.

Rodrigo Alejandro Nieto Enríquez, Under Secretary for Urban Development and Housing, Mexico, said the real challenge is transforming consumption patterns and social attitudes towards transport. Noting that public transport is in the hands of municipal governments, which raises the issue of institutional capacity at local government level, he said NAMAs can help generate resources and technical support. He called for exploring innovative approaches, such as “housing exchange” to cut down commuting distances for urban workers.

Cornie Huizenga, Secretary General, Partnership on Sustainable, Low Carbon Transport (SLoCaT) called for a “reality check” in the green transport debate, observing that a focus on zero-emission cars will merely lead to “clean congestion.” Stressing that policy makers do not base their decisions on climate considerations alone, he urged focusing on country-level modelling and capacity building in order to generate more policy-relevant data.

During discussions, several participants highlighted a broad range of issues including the need for: going beyond “the usual suspects” in transport studies, for example by carrying out studies of people who are less mobile; improving coordination of funds generated through NAMAs; accepting that high up-front investment costs will be needed before efficiency gains and cost savings from green transport can be realized; investigating safety aspects of encouraging non-motorized transport options; learning from successful anti-smoking campaigns to change behavior; and first testing expensive and risky investments, such as the new generation biofuels, in developed countries.

Moderated by Jason Spensley, CTCN, this event showcased the value of climate change knowledge networks, specifically the SEAN-CC, and the Regional Gateway for Technology Transfer and Climate Change Action in Latin America and the Caribbean (REGATTA).

Amanda Katili Niode, National Council on Climate Change, Indonesia, opened the session, describing the Indonesia Pavilion at COP 20 as a knowledge sharing platform.

Merlyn Van Voore, UNEP, highlighted the importance of climate knowledge networks in enhancing South-South cooperation, knowledge and technology transfer, noting that these networks are evidence of country-ownership and commitment.

Matti Nummelin, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Finland, called for the replication of best practices from the Montreal Protocol to strengthen the engagement of regional networks dealing with climate change. He stressed the importance of these networks to enhance trust building and collaboration in the regions.

Maria Charmaine Guevara, Department of Foreign Affairs, the Philippines, lauded UNEP’s work in organizing workshops on issues including loss and damage to prepare participants from Southeast Asia for COP 20.

Pham Van Than, Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, Viet Nam, highlighted a regional workshop on monitoring, verification and reporting (MRV), where over 60 participants shared their experiences, stressing that lessons learned have been instrumental in the preparation of Viet Nam’s own MRV framework.

Jacqueline Melgar, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, El Salvador, spoke on a diploma course on climate finance in her country, facilitated by REGATTA. She noted that over 70 diplomas were awarded to practitioners trained to identify the opportunities for climate finance in Latin America and the Caribbean.

Sum Thy, Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, Cambodia, noted that the success of the SEAN-CC network lies in the strength of the institutional connections created at the national and regional levels. Noting that the country is in the early stages of developing its Nationally Appropriate Mitigation Actions (NAMAs), he called for implementation support from SEAN-CC and other partners.

This side event, moderated by Soscha de la Fuente, Dutch Youth Representative on Sustainable Development, covered a range of proposals to address important issues for the negotiations, such as how to achieve intergenerational equity and how to conduct an effective treaty with or without US ratification.

Timothy Damon, SustainUS, introduced the concept of intergenerational equity, saying it is drawn from a long tradition of moral and legal philosophy that includes the “chain of obligation” principle. He addressed legal precedents for the sentiment behind intergenerational equity, including the Stockholm and Rio Declarations, as well as Article 3 of the UNFCCC (Principles). Damon focused on the utilization of social discount rates, explaining its economic rationale and presenting the main areas of criticism. He underscored specific proposals for a 2015 agreement, including the recognition of intergenerational equity as a principle, the incorporation of social discount rate material into the Intended Nationally Determined Contributions, and the role of intergenerational education for youth empowerment.

Federico Brocchieri, Youth Section National Coordinator, Italian Climate Network, addressed proposals to operationalize the principle of intergenerational equity in different fields, namely: governance, where he called for decentralized cooperation, co-decision making and capacity building; promoting youth participation through official youth delegates; education through including environmental content in curricula; energy through protected areas for renewable energy exploitation; and agriculture via vertical farms.

Focusing on the legal aspects of the Italian proposals, Francesca Mingrone, Youth Section, Italian Climate Network, highlighted proposals to: provide legal rights to future generations; create an international court to address similar considerations; and enhance the role of national constitutions regarding the principle of intergenerational equity.

Ian Lieblich, Global Voices, Australia, said that the youth is the closest link to future generations and focused on the operationalization of intergenerational equity. He highlighted the establishment of a network of existing organizations to build momentum on an online forum, so that a powerful platform can achieve the goal of including intergenerational equity in the text of the agreement in Paris.

Luke Kemp, ANU, addressed the importance of US ratification, noting that the “politically toxic” climate in the US makes ratifications of ambitious agreements unlikely. He focused on executive agreements and section 115 of the Clean Air Act on International Air Pollution to conclude that opt-out protocols have a higher degree of ratification. Kemp stressed that a more incremental approach that proposed step-by-step efforts may foster agreement in the US.

In the ensuing discussion, participants addressed, inter alia: the feasibility of the shift towards renewables; carbon pricing; and the leverage point for youth.