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Events convened on Saturday, 21 July and Sunday, 22 July 2001 |
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Finance,
capacity building and technology transfer
Presented by Environmental Development Action in the Third World (ENDA)
Ogunlade
Davidson, University of Cape Town, stressed the need for technology
needs assessments to be conducted by the countries concerned.
He noted that "climate friendly" technology transfer
is distinctive from other types of technology transfer and
requires additional effort. He emphasized the importance of
national systems of innovation to facilitate technology transfer,
and queried whether the Global Environment Facility (GEF)
should facilitate the creation of more national systems of
innovation in developing countries. Holger Liptow, Deutsche Gesellschaft für Technische Zusammenarbeit (GTZ), described GTZ's cooperation with developing countries on climate change projects involving technology transfer and capacity building. He noted that Germany is cooperating with China on clean coal technology, and with South Africa on a solar cooking field test.
Atiq
Rahman, Climate Action Network South Asia, noted that governments
need to build capacity in monitoring, negotiation skills,
and projects involving adaptation and mitigation. Private
companies in developing countries also need to build capacity
to participate in international negotiations. He emphasized
that existing capacity, such as developing country research
groups and think tanks, should be used and sustained. Fabio
Feldmann, Fórum Brasileiro de Mundanças Climáticas,
noted that many Brazilians are unaware of international climate
negotiations, and stressed the need to engage civil society
in the process. He noted that progress will require not only
technological changes but also behavioral changes. He highlighted
the importance of South-South technology transfer. Youba
Sokona, ENDA, addressed the importance of financial assistance
for technology transfer and capacity building. He noted that
finances are generally available for organizing conferences,
but not for implementing actual projects in developing countries.
Discussion: Participants highlighted: fostering South-South cooperation; creating institutions to train people to initiate projects in their own countries; cooperating with civil society to develop national strategies and action plans; reforming the incremental cost concept of the GEF; identifying key stakeholders in capacity building and technology transfer; changing patterns of consumption; and transferring privately owned versus publicly owned technologies. More
information: Contact: Please visit the UNFCCC's "On Demand" webcast page for RealVideo coverage of this event |
Listen
to Davidson's presentation
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A
strategy for energy efficiency
Projects in the planning stages include reconstruction and conversion of boilers from crude oil to natural gas in several factories, a school and a clinic, conversion of public buses from oil to natural gas, installment of patent steam condensation systems, and replacement of crude oil with biomass in a stock holding company. Avramovski highlighted the Ministry's establishment of a national center for cleaner production as a means to build institutional capacities for project realization. Its activities include organizing a training course on energy efficiency and providing licenses to trainers for energy efficiency. Departments of energy efficiency and research are being established within the framework of the center. The center is also planning to establish an agency of energy savings, which will educate staff, cooperate with the Ministry of Environment as well as Czech institutions and experts, and prepare a strategy for energy savings. More
information: Contact:
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Business opportunities in Russia: Making the most of the flexible mechanisms Presented by the Wuppertal Institute for Climate, Environment and Energy and the Moscow Chamber of Commerce
Senator Vladimir Platonov, Russian Federation Council, highlighted rapidly developing relations between legislators and the private sector in the Russian Federation. He stressed that legislation provides the key framework for private sector use of the Kyoto mechanisms. Sergei Roginko, Moscow Chamber of Commerce, said that "hot air" trading presents a key opportunity for the Russian Federation. He spoke about Russia's Green Initiative, which recommends that credits for "hot air" be recycled into green investment. He suggested that this could ease the "hot air" problem on an international scale. Alluding to the vast number of outdated industrial facilities, he noted that the Russian Federation is ready and willing to establish joint implementation (JI) projects that could offer low-price carbon trading. However, he stressed that investors, prior to investing in JI projects, should carefully consider scale, sector, range of profitability, and other institutional constraints. He also advised that investors undertake careful pre-market feasibility studies.
Marina Martynova, Unified Energy Systems of Russia, spoke about business opportunities in the energy sector, and emphasized that risks associated with JI projects in the Russian Federation are primarily political. She added that the Russian Federation is currently in the process of developing legislation to assist implementation of the flexible mechanisms. Alexander Khanykov, Unified Energy Systems of Russia, described potential systems for emissions trading in the Russian Federation, including emissions sectors, a JI energy carbon fund, and a green re-investment fund. More
information: Contact:
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Permanent Court of Arbitration: Optional rules for arbitration of disputes relating to natural resources and/or the environment Presented by the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA)
Dane Ratliff, PCA, presented a proposal for a set of "Optional Rules" for the settlement of disputes that aim to address fundamental lacunae in environmental dispute resolution. He recommended the adoption of these arbitration rules as the annex called for in UNFCCC Article 14(2)(b). He noted the absence of a forum to which intergovernmental organizations, NGOs, multinational corporations, and private parties have recourse when seeking resolution of controversies over natural resources and the environment. Ratliff
emphasized that disputes concerning the environment often
involve multiple parties, and the rules proposed allow for
greater flexibility in the nature and number of parties. Parties
using the rules will have access to two expert panels nominated
by Member States and/or the Secretary-General of the PCA.
He added that the rules could either be set up as a tribunal
under the UNFCCC Secretariat or on an ad hoc basis.
Under the Secretariat, agreements for arbitration rules would
resemble the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea.
He stressed that the rules would not be controversial for
the UNFCCC as they follow the UN Commission on International
Trade Law model. He said that adopting viable rules for dispute
settlement is necessary in offering the security needed to
ensure a complete compliance regime. These rules, he added,
ensure equity and provide least developed countries or countries
with economies in transition with possible financial assistance
for arbitration. More
information: Contact:
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Kyoto Protocol ratification: View of Russian Parliamentarians Presented by the Center for Preparation and Implementation of International Projects on Technical Assistance (CPPI)
Vladimir Berdin, CPPI, noted that Parliamentary hearings on legislative maintenance of the UNFCCC and the Kyoto Protocol had taken place in June 2001. The hearings fostered a common understanding between the executive and legislative branches of government, industry and NGOs to promote the process. The hearings resulted in several recommendations: to the President, to issue a decree on preparation for implementation of the international cooperation mechanism in accordance with the UNFCCC; to the Government, to prepare draft laws to operationalize implementation of the Convention and Protocol in the Russian Federation; and to the State Duma, to develop a work plan to develop these draft laws, and to introduce an initiative to organize Parliamentary roundtables at COPs, beginning at COP-6 Part II. Alexander
Averchenkov, CPPI, announced that CPPI has commenced a strategic
environmental assessment of Protocol ratification by the Russian
Federation, to provide a basis for assessment of policy alternatives
and focus on the environmental consequences of strategic decisions
regarding the Protocol. The assessment analyzed three scenarios
for the Russian Federation's participation in the Kyoto mechanisms,
and considered several alternatives for ratification. The
assessment's preliminary conclusions highlight the need to
develop an effective policy of preparation for Protocol ratification
and application of its mechanisms. More
information: Contact:
Please visit the UNFCCC's "On Demand" webcast page for RealVideo coverage of this event |
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The Earth Negotiations Bulletin (ENB) on the side is a special publication of the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) in cooperation with the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) Secretariat. The Editor of ENB on the side is Kira Schmidt <kira@iisd.org>. This issue has been written by Emily Boyd <emily@iisd.org>, Fiona Koza <fiona@iisd.org> and Kira Schmidt <kira@iisd.org>. The Digital Editors are Andrei Henry <andrei@iisd.org> and Kenneth Tong <ken@iisd.org>. Photos by Leila Mead <leila@iisd.org>. Funding for publication of ENB on the side at COP-6 Part II is provided by the UNFCCC Secretariat. The opinions expressed in ENB on the side are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of IISD and funders. Excerpts from ENB on the side may be used in non-commercial publications only and only with appropriate academic citation. For permission to use this material in commercial publications, contact the Managing Editor at <kimo@iisd.org>. Electronic versions of these issues of ENB on the side from COP-6 Part II can be found on the Linkages WWW server at http://enb.iisd.org/climate/cop6bis/enbots/. |
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