Issue #9 ENB on the side – UNFCCC COP-8 PUBLISHED BY THE INTERNATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT (IISD) in cooperation with UNFCCC Written by: Fiona Koza Charlotte Salpin Hugh Wilkins Managing Director: Langston James Goree VI "Kimo" Issue #9 Saturday, 02 November 2002 The WWW version of ENB on the side (with photos), can be found at http://enb.iisd.org/climate/cop8/enbots/ Events convened on Friday, 01 November 2002 Title: Climate justice, equity and ecological debt Presented by Friends of the Earth International Douglas Brown, Friends of the Earth Ghana, stressed that climate change impacts heavily on African countries, and noted that these countries are least resilient to climate change. He urged the climate process to provide avenues for capacity building and technology transfer and additional, predictable financial resources, to enable African countries to adapt to climate change. Bruce Thompson, Friends of the Earth Australia, noted that the Australian Government is actively campaigning against asylum seekers in that country. He underscored that there will be an increasing number of refugees in the future due to climate change impacts such as rising sea levels and extreme weather events. Rajendra Ravi, National Alliance of People’s Movement, India, stated that although the United Nations was established to provide equity and justice, it is a “puppet” for certain developed countries. He underscored that corporations have considerable influence over the international climate change process, but environmental non-governmental organizations do not. He stressed that farmers, the poor, and indigenous people suffer as a result of inaction on climate change, and highlighted climate change impacts in India, including floods, droughts and mass migrations. Amit Srivastava, Corporate Watch, noted the deaths of children resulting from drought in India, and stressed that South Asia is one of the most impacted regions of the world from climate change. He said the international climate change process excludes the majority of the world’s population, including those who are most affected by climate change, and underscored that the process has been “hijacked” by special interest groups. He highlighted that a Climate Justice Forum was organized in parallel to COP-8 and was well attended. Kate Hampton, Friends of the Earth International, said by ignoring the views of the marginalized, the climate change process is missing an opportunity to find solutions to climate change adaptation and mitigation problems. More information: http://www.foe.org Contact: Bruce Thompson Kate Hampton Title: Results and recommendations of the Asian Regional Research Programme in Energy, Environment and Climate: A synthesis of power, transport, and biomass studies Presented by the Asian Institute of Technology (AIT) / Asian Regional Research Programme in Energy, Environment and Climate (ARRPEEC) S.C. Bhattacharya, AIT, introduced the aims and functions of ARRPEEC to: mobilize the capacities of Asian national research institutes; produce policy-oriented research results on emission mitigation; and disseminate the results to concerned individuals and policy makers. Ram Shrestha, AIT, reviewed the work and results of ARRPEEC in relation to technology and policy options for the mitigation of emissions from the power sector in selected Asian countries. He summarized the marginal abatement costs under various emission reduction targets for different technologies and concluded that there are wide variations in the attractiveness of clean and renewable technologies for Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) projects. He emphasized that if the demand for emissions reductions increases, the market for credits will expand and more CDM projects will be viable. C. Visvanathan, AIT, reviewed the technology and policy options for selected small and medium-scale industries in Asia. He reported that: the greenhouse gas emission impacts from small and medium-scale industries are individually small, but collectively high; most of the examined industries had low energy efficiency; government polices are rarely specific to small and medium-scale industries; and there is insufficient information on the adaptation of technologies. He noted that the project: established national energy consumption and pollution loads for the countries studied; ascertained data on energy and environment issues related to small and medium-scale industries; identified options for the improvement of energy and environment standards for small and medium-scale industries; increased awareness of technology and policy options for selected small and medium-scale industries; and created wider business interest in energy and environment issues. Nazrul Islam, AIT, reviewed the technology and policy options for reducing emissions from urban transportation systems in selected Asian cities. He analyzed present and projected demands for transportation services and associated emissions, identified technological options that could mitigate emissions, and described the barriers to implementing these options. S.C. Bhattacharya, AIT, discussed the technology and policy options for the use of biomass energy in Asia, assessing sustainable biomass resource potential, the cost of emissions abatement through the substitution of fossil fuels and traditional biomass, and barriers to the use of biomass energy sources. He said: the availability of both plantation and non-plantation sources can significantly increase the use of biomass; biomass is recognized as a means to meet growing energy demand in Asia, particularly in remote and rural areas; and the use of biomass for cookstoves and electricity are key areas for growth. He noted that barriers to the use of biomass include technical, financial, institutional, and policy hurdles. More information: http://www.ait.ac.th http://www.arrpeec.ait.ac.th http://www.som.ait.th Contact: S.C. Bhattacharya Ram M. Shrestha C. Visvanathan Nazrul Islam 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. This issue has been written by Fiona Koza , Charlotte Salpin , and Hugh Wilkins . The Digital Editor is David Fernau , the photographers are David Fernau and Leila Mead , the online assistant is Diego Noguera . Funding for publication of ENB on the side at UNFCCC COP-8 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 . 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