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

During this side event, moderated by Li Junfeng, Director-General, NCSC, panelists from international think tanks explored the interactions between bilateral and international processes, focusing on the potential to reach an agreement on climate in Paris in 2015.

Opening remarks were delivered by Xie Zhenhua, Vice-Chairman, National Development and Reform Commission, and Head of the China delegation, who warned that climate change currently constitutes the world’s greatest challenge. He noted China will adhere to its common but differentiated responsibility (CBDR) approach, and urged for the principle to be embedded in a post-2015 agreement.

Nicholas Stern, Chair, CCCEP, cautioned that the prospect of having 70% of the world’s population living in cities, and increasing the human race by a projected two billion by 2050, requires enormous structural change and energy transformation. He commended China for its rapid growth path and for announcing its intention to find a more sustainable roadmap with less congested cities and clean air.

In a keynote address, Zou Ji, Deputy Director-General, NCSC, noted the different interpretations by delegations of the 5th IPCC report, which complicates determining the correct measures to take, and connecting the science to appropriate policies. He invited panelists to present their views on: the perspectives of the 2015 agreement as seen through the lens of developing countries, the EU and US; China-US cooperation and its potential contribution to the development of a multilateral agreement; and the challenges to achieving post-2015 targets for these countries.

Martin Khor, President, South Centre, described the astonishing growth in China as the “greatest experiment in social development,” noting the country is on the verge of embarking on a path of sustainable development that could become the new economic model. He raised concerns about the possibility for developing countries to avoid being locked into coal and gas systems with a looming debt profile of US$3 trillion to undergo the infrastructural changes needed, and called on governments to approach equitable access to sustainable development holistically.

Robert Stavins, Harvard University, presented on the origins and significance of the recent China-US bilateral announcement, observing that true cooperation results from focusing not on “what makes us different,” but on “what we share.” On the commonalities, he listed similar annual CO2 emissions, having huge coal and gas reserves with their resultant impacts on health, and having sub-national cap-and-trade policies. Stavins noted a foundation in the context of the Durban Platform for Enhanced Action (ADP) as the most significant factor in the collaboration.

Teresa Ribera, President, International Institute for Sustainable Development and International Relationships (IDDRI), emphasized the need to address the legal and implementation aspects of an agreement that goes beyond 2015, as well as enduring collaboration. She said that climate change extends beyond issues of the environment and climate policies, touching upon health and social aspects.

Jennifer Morgan, Global Director, World Resources Institute, reported on the function of the US-China agreement and highlighted, inter alia: sending a clear signal to governments that the low-carbon economy is inevitable; conveying the urgency of linking science and policy; and demonstrating fairness and equity in climate actions.

Moderated by Kunihiko Shimada, Japan, this high level event convened on “Gender Day” under the theme “Men and Women Taking Action on Gender Equality and Climate Change: How Far Have We Come?”

Manuel Pulgar-Vidal, COP20/CMP10 President, lauded the Lima Work Programme for Gender, approved by the Subsidiary Body for Implementation and to be considered by the high-level segment of the COP, underscoring the need to recognize women in decision-making processes and their capacity to pass on information on resilience and adaptation to climate change.

Reminding participants of the upcoming twentieth anniversary of the Beijing Platform for Action, Mary Robinson, UN Special Envoy on Climate Change, underscored continued vigilance in the fight for gender equality and women’s empowerment. She acknowledged that women’s representation at climate conferences is just one “piece of the puzzle,” and underscored the role of women as powerful change agents. Robinson called for the creation of an enabling environment for women to participate in decision making in order to spur more successful climate action.

Alina Saba, UNFCCC Women and Gender Constituency, stressed the complementarity between climate action and gender equality, calling for policies to empower women in building resilience, and for ensuring their engagement in the decision-making process. On the Beijing Platform for Action, she called for greater accountability in implementation in order to achieve progress.

Highlighting her organization’s belief that “what you don’t measure does not count,” Susan McDade, Deputy Assistant Administrator, UN Development Programme (UNDP), underlined the importance of: incorporating gender disaggregated data in national development plans; including women at the policy-making table; and supporting women as agents of change to assist communities to build resilience.

Pa Ousman Jarju, Minister of Environment, Climate Change, Water Resources, Parks and Wildlife, the Gambia, highlighted efforts in least developed countries to provide action plans and budgetary allocations for gender-related development activities, including in water and energy management. Underlining the importance of gender in the post-2015 agreement, he called on countries to commit to legally-binding gender equality policies that are integrated into national development plans.

Noting that the world is still a long way from achieving women’s equality, Klever Descarpontriez Rojas, Earth in Brackets and UNFCCC Constituency for Youth NGOs, proposed a financial package, delinked from conditionalities, to help women adapt to climate change, and suggested comprehensive agrarian reform and a clean energy system governed by the principle of equity as successful gender-responsive climate actions.

Highlighting the fact that millions of women and girls are on the “climate change frontlines,” Lakshmi Puri, Deputy Executive Director, UN Women, reiterated the need for a global solidarity movement to effect a change in the mindset on gender equality, noting that campaigns like #HeForShe are essential in engaging men and boys in gender conversations.

María del Carmen Omonte, Minister of Women and Vulnerable Populations, Peru, highlighted her country’s efforts to raise the status of women, noting various challenges including: higher illiteracy levels in women, gender differences in control of land and water, and lack of participation at the decision-making level.

This event, moderated by Carolina España, Director for Institutional Funding, CAF, brought together public and private sector leaders to discuss how to scale up innovative financial mechanisms for low-carbon investments.

In opening remarks, Naoko Ishii, CEO and Chairperson, the GEF, noted that in recent years the GEF has been working directly with the private sector to share the risk of investing in transformational change. Introducing the session, Espana mentioned the launch of the GEF’s US$110 million non-grant pilot to attract proposals from public and private sector stakeholders to demonstrate innovative financing mechanisms. She called on panelists to discuss examples of financial innovations that have led to replicable investments, as well as insights into gaps and opportunities for future green innovations.

Christian del Valle, Founder and Managing Partner, Althelia Ecosphere, noted the company’s portfolio focuses on investing in degraded landscapes in developing countries, highlighting a €9 million investment for the long-term conservation of natural forest in Madre de Dios, Peru. He said that the project has created an “economic buffer” around the reserve to enable smallholder farmers to intensify farming practices and earn higher market prices for cocoa and other agroforestry products, while meeting broader conservation goals. He noted that the project is now ready to feed into the national REDD+ programme.

Josué Tanaka, Managing Director, Financial Strategy and Business Planning, EBRD, discussed the Bank’s experience in leveraging private sector funding for environmental projects. Noting that innovation is a misleading concept as “many of the instruments we are talking about are not new,” he said that if the real objective is scaling up the focus, even established instruments such as bonds can create impact, and lauded the GEF’s record in leveraging such funding.

Vikram Widge, Head of Climate Finance and Policy at the IFC, discussed how public finance can be used in a catalytic way, citing the Momentum for Change company that has developed a scalable business model for the commercial diffusion of solar technology, and the China Energy Efficiency Project, which leveraged US$20 billion in GEF funding to raise more than US$800 billion in private equity for energy efficiency projects.

Kenneth Lay, Managing Director, Rock Creek Group, highlighted challenges in meeting strict fiduciary requirements of institutional investors such as pension funds. He advised using reputable multilateral mechanisms such as the IFC and the EBRD to do the “heavy lifting” needed to “match those who need the money and make them fit those who have the money to invest.” 

During discussions, one participant noted the low response to the UN Principles for Sustainable Investment, attributing it to the strict regulatory environment. Referring to strategies for raising adaptation finance, such as climate-smart agriculture, one speaker proposed identifying “who is avoiding the cost and what they would pay now to avoid that cost in the future,” citing as an example the self-interest of large supermarkets to invest in a secure food supply chain. Among specific proposals to make green projects more attractive to investors, participants noted, inter alia, the need to: aggregate successful projects to lower operational costs; bring together investors and multilateral institutions to map a green financing pipeline ahead of the Paris Climate Conference; and explore less “risk averse” options such as impact investing, public procurement models, and resilience and catastrophe risk bonds.

This side event, moderated by Helena Molin Valdés, CCAC Secretariat, provided the latest scientific information pertaining to the short-lived climate pollutants (SLCPs), and an overview of the CCAC work in the brick-production sector and the Heavy-Duty Diesel Initiative, with a focus on black-carbon (BC) emissions.

Mariano Castro Sánchez-Moreno, Vice Minister of Environment, Peru, highlighted the importance of the CCAC, focusing on its four objectives, namely to: raise awareness of SLCP impacts and mitigation strategies; enhance and develop new national and regional actions; promote best practices; and improve scientific understanding. He described efforts in Peru to address the problem of SLCPs, including: diagnostic activities in brick production, particularly artisanal bricks; diesel desulfurization by 2019; utilization of Diesel Particle Filters on buses; public awareness campaigns; and the formation of a national action plan to reduce SCLP emissions.

On the Chilean experience, Pablo Badenier, Minister of Environment, Chile, noted that the country has been managing pollutants for 20 years, and while it has succeeded in diminishing them by two-thirds, they are still above standards. Noting the need to address contamination in a more holistic way and utilize more creative approaches, he focused on the first green tax imposed in Chile. Badenier underscored that while the actual amount of US$5 per tonne of carbon is small, it signals the country’s ambition to move towards a greener future.

Drew Shindell, CCAC Scientific Advisory Panel, provided a brief overview of the nature of SLCPs, and their sectorial and geographical sources. He underscored that reducing SLCPs is important to those already affected by climate change, and will help prevent biodiversity loss, provide additional time for adaptation, and realize the associated health and agricultural benefits.

Focusing on the Brick Initiative that aims to eliminate BC and other pollutants from brick production, Jon Bickel, Swisscontact, said that brick production involves: high environmental impact; high emissions of SLCPs; health impacts; inefficient use of energy; low return on investment; and poor, informal and unrecognized producers, especially in Latin America. He underscored lessons learned so far, inter alia, the need for: a market analysis to understand barriers; a baseline to analyze the informal sector; promotion of validated technologies with a real return of investment; and South-South cooperation.

Maheswar Rupakheti, IASS, drew from the Himalayan experience to note that the solution to address SLCPs must be rooted in science while being customized to local specificities and integrated in national development goals. He underscored brick production as a major source of air pollution in the region. 

Gianni López, Mario Molina Center, Chile, underlined: technical and political groundwork that will enable global BC emission reductions from new and in-use vehicles; addressing harmonized low-sulfur standards; diesel quality and standards; and next steps to extend their activities to other Latin American countries, as well as Central America and the Caribbean.

Noting that being a member of CCAC “feels like being part of the action,” Hakima El Haite, Minister of Energy, Mining, Water and Environment, Morocco, referred to mitigation strategies to address SLCPs in Morocco, including the formation of a national strategy to produce a national action plan.

María Amparo Martínez Arroyo, National Institute for Ecology and Climate Change (INECC), Mexico, addressed the new inventory of greenhouse gas emissions, which includes SLCPs, noting it makes it possible to set goals in a clearer way and monitor policies more effectively.

Sandro Fuzzi, Ev-K2-CNR, shared results from the highest observatory in the world in the Himalayas, highlighting alarming concentrations of BC at high altitudes, with health and environmental effects. He stressed that air quality and climate change are dealt with separately at the moment, calling for an integrated approach.

At this event, moderated by Yunus Arikan, ICLEI, panelists presented local-level climate actions, and pledged their support for the Lima Communiqué to be presented to the High-level Segment of the COP.

David Cadman, President, ICLEI, read the Lima Communiqué, which includes calls for an inclusive and ambitious post-2015 climate regime, and the inclusion of local-level actions in the formulation of national adaptation programmes of action and national adaptation plans. The Communiqué also commits mayors and local-level leaders to accelerate global advocacy and raise climate ambitions.

Noting that the stakes are high for the UNFCCC to deliver a strong climate agreement, Saber Chowdhury, President, IPU, stressed that failure is not an option. He underscored the need to act quickly on climate change, and called for strong partnerships and collaboration to pool resources for climate action at the local level.

Geraldo Júlio, Mayor, Recife, Brazil, shared his city’s experience in developing green spaces, and mentioned drainage plans and plans for the reuse of water and solid waste as next steps for the city. He stressed that without local government involvement, there would be greater challenges in reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, and underlined the participation of cities in the climate change debate.

Naoko Ishii, Global Environment Facility (GEF) CEO and Chairperson, highlighted that cities are key in the transformational change to a low-carbon economy, noting that they are responsible for 70% of global GHG emissions. She described the GEF’s sustainable cities programme, which focuses on. inter alia, creating an experience-sharing platform for local-level leaders, and offering tools to assist mayors in designing sustainable cities.

Seth Schultz, C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group, announced the Global Protocol on Community-Scale GHG Emissions Inventories (GPC), noting that it empowers mayors to take more action on climate change.

Carl Pope, Senior Advisor, Bloomberg Philanthropies, spoke on progress on new options of climate finance for cities, noting the work of the Cities Climate Urban Leadership Alliance on ensuring credit worthy cities.

Robert Kehew, UN-Habitat, gave an update on the Climate Summit 2014, noting the launch of the Global Compact of Mayors that committed to disclose progress on climate actions taken; and highlighted other city initiatives such as, inter alia, the resilient cities accelerator and the urban electric mobility initiative.

Ronan Dantec, United Cities and Local Governments, spoke on creating synergies with the post-2015 development agenda, calling on cities to come up with innovative ways to use climate funds to reduce emissions and increase energy efficiency.

Panelists from various cities around the world then shared their experiences. A representative from Bogota stressed the need to shift to regional and city scales in order to address climate change, and proposed a United Cities organization, working with the UN, to ensure that cities are included in climate change decision-making processes.

A representative from Paris noted climate actions in her city including the retrofitting of buildings, the operationalization of an electric car system, and the implementation of green electricity throughout the city. A representative from Durban highlighted his city’s efforts towards sustainability, including, among others, the development of a rapid bus transit system to be operational by 2017; the growth of rooftop gardens; and the establishment of green hub to provide education and raise awareness on waste management.

A representative from Mexico City spoke on the city’s climate action programme which includes pillars on, inter alia, containing urban sprawl, sustainable management of natural resources and biodiversity, construction of a more resilient city, and education and awareness raising. A representative from Seoul noted with concern the national government’s plans to continue building nuclear power plants, highlighting that after a 2012 “one-less nuclear power plant” campaign in Seoul, GHG emissions decreased substantially.

Representatives from national governments then shared their perspectives. South Africa spoke on an energy efficiency programme involving local governments and finance institutions, focusing on 1000 buildings in the country, noting the programme’s capacity-building component. Mexico noted that local governments from his country have direct access to COP negotiations, and stressed the importance of local governments, indigenous peoples and women in climate change negotiations.

This event, facilitated by Pablo Badenier, Minister of Environment, Chile, discussed experiences of the four Latin American countries participating in the Mitigation Action Plans and Scenarios (MAPS) South-South collaboration: Brazil, Chile, Colombia and Peru, which built on South Africa's experience in conducting structured research-processes to develop long-term scenarios, and provide input to their Intended Nationally Determined Contributions (INDCs).

Bruno Oberle, State Secretary, Swiss Federal Office for the Environment, one of the funders of the MAPS project, and Gabriel Quijandría, Vice Minister of Environment, Peru, made opening statements.

Emilio la Rovere, Brazil, underscored the importance of avoiding mainstream orthodox models, noting that ultimately, policy makers want to know the socio-economic impacts of mitigation measures, including income distribution and inequality. He highlighted differentiated discount rates and impact on local communities as some of the approaches being discussed within the scenario team to ensure a reflection of diverse local contexts and social circumstances.

José Manuel Sandoval, Colombia, noted the need for a long-term perspective that can survive changes in political leadership, and emphasized the role of science in creating a strong evidence base to guide decision making.

Speaking on the challenges of ensuring a participatory research process, Lupe Guinand, Peru, highlighted the use of both technical facilitation processes involving sectoral experts, and political facilitation targeting political leaders. She noted that the team aimed for a transparent, flexible, inclusive and stimulating process, and ensured that all involved understood the “rules of the game” in the dialogue process.

With regard to how MAPS teams tackled data gaps and human capacity constraints, Hernán Blanco, Chile, highlighted the role of the multisectoral coordinating committee in mobilizing additional information from the seven participating ministries. Maria-Elena Gutiérrez, Peru, noted that the MAPS team brought together 400 experts in 46 meetings to provide additional information to fill in gaps. She noted that this collaboration led to the creation of a multi-sectoral platform to coordinate different sectoral inventories. Speaking on how the project teams evolved during the course of the project, Barbara Oliveira, described Brazil as an interesting case because of the existing capacity in environmental and scientific policymaking. She noted this led the MAPS team to tackle the question “why is change not happening?” and to keep challenging themselves to ensure their work would have an impact.

Speaking on how the MAPS project teams managed institutional modalities and public scrutiny of their recommendations, La Roveze noted that the involvement of the Brazilian Presidency in the broad-based national climate change forum helped lend the project “credibility, legitimacy and usefulness.” Gutierrez highlighted the importance of building broad local ownership through capacity building of researchers within participating ministries. Commenting on the challenges researchers face working in a policy environment, Guinand described the “shock” she experienced when the minister phoned her to ask about one of the 77 Nationally Appropriate Mitigation Actions (NAMAs) proposed following the modeling exercise. Noting that the MAPS facilitators had agreed “not to be defensive, but simply listen and use the suggestions to improve the work,” she said this experience increases the value of the MAPS process in handling the diverse expectations and demands of stakeholders.

On links between the MAPS process and the INDCs, Sandoval and Gutierrez noted that the process has helped their respective countries in developing a workable approach for calculating national contributions. As a challenge, Sandoval noted that the INDCs need to be developed at the whole economy level, while MAPS were based on scenario building at the sector level. Rodrigo Palma, Chile, noted that to develop their 2030 projections, the team used the scientific basis in the MAPS approach to help steer the discussion based on evidence, noting that this approach has had positive results.

During a lively exchange with participants, speakers highlighted, inter alia, how to: integrate the NAMA process with the longer-term INDC planning framework; ensure that the research process contributes to structured capacity building; scale up mitigation ambition by further elaborating additional commitments that would be needed if the MAPS scenarios are adopted; and decentralize the planning process to the subnational level.

Concluding the session, Stefan Raubenheimer, UCT and MAPS International, outlined some of the work underway to develop an international academy network to build on the experience so far, noting many African countries, as well as a second group of Latin American countries, have shown interest in the process.