Highlights and images for 28 June 2018

Highlights for Thursday, 28 June 2018

The sixth Assembly of the Global Environment Facility (GEF) convened for its last day on Thursday, 28 June 2018, in Da Nang, Viet Nam.In the morning, participants convened in seven parallel roundtable discussions on: sustainable forest management; preventing a toxic legacy: transforming the chemicals industry; wildlife; gender and the environment; innovation in clean energy; conservation finance; and sustainable drylands.In the afternoon, an interactive panel discussion moderated by Jan Piotrowski, Environment Correspondent, The Economist, reported back from the high-level roundtable dialogues. On ways to deliver transformational change to safeguard the global commons, panelists suggested, inter alia: communicating effectively; delivering quantified data on environmental externalities to enable better investment decisions by governments; and creating a diverse platform with actors from different stakeholder groups that empowers these to push forward transformations.Participants then heard a keynote address from the President of Guyana David Granger, in which he called for enhanced financial and technical assistance, and capacity building as part of a grand global transformative agenda to address environmental challenges.In a message from civil society, Priscilla Achakpa, Women Environmental Programme, Nigeria, highlighted recommendations to the GEF Secretariat and the wider Partnership from 538 CSOs in the wider GEF-CSO network, including on the need to recognize that partnerships between the GEF and the civil society are key to achieve transformational change.The Assembly took note of the:

The Report on the GEF-7 Replenishment included a summary of negotiations, programming directions and resource allocation, and policy recommendations for GEF-7, along with a draft GEF-7 replenishment resolution for approval by the World Bank Executive Directors.Expressing gratitude to the Government of Viet Nam, the city of Da Nang, the GEF Secretariat, volunteers and participants for their contributions to the Assembly, GEF CEO and Chairperson Naoko Ishii reiterated her belief that the GEF can play an extremely useful role in catalyzing the change needed to address environmental challenges.GEF Assembly Chair Trần Hồng Hà, Minister of Natural Resources and Environment, Viet Nam, noted that he had been inspired by the Assembly’s commitment to addressing the pressing issues related to marine plastics, biodiversity loss, and the blue economy, and closed the meeting at 4:33 pm.On Friday, 29 June 2018, participants visited GEF-funded projects in and around Da Nang.

IISD Reporting Services, through its ENB+ Meeting Coverage, is providing daily photo and video coverage, and will produce a summary report from the GEF Council Consultation Meeting with CSOs, 54th GEF Council Meeting, 24th Meeting of the LDCF/SCCF Council, and 6th GEF Assembly.

Photos by IISD/ENB | Sean Wu

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High-Level Round Tables

Roundtable discussions on 'sustainable landscapes in the Amazon and Congo Basin'

Avecita Chicchón, Program Director, Andes-Amazon, Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation

Roundtable discussions on 'preventing a toxic legacy:
transforming the chemicals industry'

Rolph Payet, Executive Secretary, Basel, Rotterdam and Stockholm Conventions

Gertrud Sahler, Director-General, Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety, Germany

Baskut Tuncak, UN Special Rapporteur on human rights and hazardous substances

Izabella Teixeira, Co-Chair, International Resource Panel

Roundtable discussions on 'wildlife'

Judy Garber, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary, Department of State, US

Kaddu K. Sebunya, President, African Wildlife Foundation

Roundtable discussions on 'gender and the environment'

Fiame Naomi Mata’afa, Deputy Prime Minister, Samoa

Maria-Helena Semedo, Deputy Director-General for Natural Resources, Food and Agricultural Organization of the UN

Roundtable discussions on 'conservation finance'

Kruskaia Sierra-Escalante, Manager, Blended Finance and Partnerships, International Finance Corporation

Lorenzo Bernasconi, Senior Associate Director, The Rockefeller Foundation

Bey Soo Khiang, APRIL Chairman and RGE Vice Chairman

Roundtable discussions on ‘innovation in clean energy’

Josué Tanaka, Managing Director, Energy Efficiency and Climate Change Department, European Bank for Reconstruction and Development

Mark Lister, Acting Head of Programme, Copenhagen Centre on Energy Efficiency

Sarquis J. B. Sarquis, Vice President and Chief Risk Officer, New Development Bank

Kevin Braithwaite, Vice President of Global Programs, Cleantech Open

Atchara Poomee, Founder and Managing Director, PAC Corporation, Thailand

Roundtable discussions on 'sustainable drylands'

Joy Tukahirwa, Uganda Landcare Network

Paula Coelho, Minister of Environment, Angola

Closing Plenary Sessions

GEF CEO and Chairperson Naoko Ishii giving a speech at the closing plenary of the sixth GEF Assembly

The panel during the roundtable wrap-up session

Jan Piotrowski, Environment Correspondent, The Economist

Gale Rigobert, Minister of Education, Innovation, Gender Relations and Sustainable Development, Saint Lucia

Paticipants during the closing plenary

H.R.H. Princess Abze Djigma, Burkina Faso

Kristian Teleki, Director, Sustainable Ocean Initiative, World Resources Institute (WRI)

GEF Secretariat

Closing Ceremony

President David Granger, Guyana

Chair Trần Hồng Hà, Minister of Natural Resources and Environment, Viet Nam

Participants applaud the close of the sixth GEF Assembly

Site Visit

Around the Venue

IISD RS Team (L-R) Mari Luomi, Dina Hestad, Tallash Kantai, Sean Wu, Chen Qian, and H.R.H. Princess Abze Djigma, Burkina Faso