Negotiating Bloc

Central and Eastern Europe

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Daily report for 20 November 2019

23rd Meeting of the CBD Subsidiary Body on Scientific, Technical, and Technological Advice (SBSTTA 23) and 11th Meeting of the Ad Hoc Open-ended Working Group on Article 8(j) and Related Provisions (WG8J 11)

ENB Daily report

Summary report 1–4 October 2019

3rd Meeting of the Intersessional Process Considering the Strategic Approach and the Sound Management of Chemicals and Waste Beyond 2020 (IP3)

ENB Summary report

Curtain raiser

14th Session of the Conference of the Parties to the UNCCD (COP 14)

Curtain raiser

Highlights and images for 30 August 2019

1st Meeting of the Open-ended Working Group on the Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework

Highlights for Friday, 30 August 2019 Working Group Co-Chairs Francis Ogwal, Uganda, and Basile van Havre, Canada, gavel the meeting to a close at 7:43 pm. The first meeting of the Working Group on Post-2020 resumed for its final day of deliberations on Friday. Delegates completed discussions on the conclusions of the meeting based on a Co-Chairs’ draft that included annexes on the outcomes of the meeting, and a preliminary list of intersessional meetings relevant for the development of the post-2020 global biodiversity framework (GBF).During lunch, participants attended an information session on global strategic plans and linkages with other international instruments and processes. Neville Ash, Director, UN Environment Programme World Conservation Monitoring Centre (UNEP-WCMC), presented an overview of strategic plans and indicators across multilateral environmental agreements, and highlighted options for synergies and alignment with the GBF. Participants also heard from: Ludgarde Coppens, UNEP, on 26 indicators of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and efforts to build data-related methodology and capacity at national and regional levels; Elizabeth Mrema, on behalf of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), on its Strategic Vision 2021-2030 that promotes transformative change and sustainable use; Olivier Rukundo, International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture (ITPGRFA), on cooperation with the Convention in supporting states in access and benefit-sharing; and Frederic Perron-Welch, United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, on biotrade, including incentive measures, private sector engagement, and sustainable use. During the closing session, Christiana Paşca Palmer, CBD Executive Secretary, remarked on the good energy in the room and great amount of work done, noting the need to respond to the calls for action from the public on biodiversity issues. Providing regional statements: The African Group urged that the GBF ensure regional and thematic balance; Asia and Pacific said the 2050 Vision “living in harmony with nature” has played an important role in galvanizing action and should remain prominent; The EU welcomed the broad understanding of the need for transformative change, and using Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Result-Oriented, and Time-limited (SMART) targets; The Group of Latin America and the Caribbean (GRULAC) emphasized using science to identify causes and solutions and to seek co-benefits; and Central and Eastern Europe stressed the need for active participation of all parties and stakeholders to ensure well-formulated goals and targets. The meeting was gaveled to a close at 7:43 pm.The final day of the meeting saw delegates continuing to get their heads around their four days of labor based on draft conclusions of the meeting. The meeting, some agreed, has been a week of patience, as delegates put their negotiator’s hats down in favor of what some referred to as “a listening exercise.” One element that many agreed remains uncertain is whether to have an over-arching apex target. In spite of an almost equal number of proponents and opponents for this, most agreed that it would require a stroke of genius to come up with one target that is adequately inspiring, global, and encapsulates the complexity of the 2050 Vision of “living in harmony with nature.” Before parting, one delegate remarked, “Although it all seems rather topsy-turvy right now, once we are done packaging the zero draft, it will all come together pretty nicely.” IISD Reporting Services, through its ENB Meeting Coverage, provided daily web coverage from the 1st Meeting of the Open-ended Working Group on the Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework. In addition, IISD Reporting Services has published a summary and analysis report which is now available in HTML and PDF. Photos by IISD/ENB | Diego Noguera For photo reprint permissions, please follow instructions at our Attribution Regulations for Meeting Photo Usage Page Delegates during the morning discussions on the potential elements and scope of the framework Dilovarsho Dustov, Tajikistan Norbert Bärlocher, Switzerland Georgina Catacora-Vargas, Bolivia Hesiquio Benítez Díaz, Mexico L-R: Stig Johansson and Stefan Leiner, EU; Alexander Shestakov, CBD Secretariat; and Gabriele Obermayr, Austria Carolina Díaz, Colombia Joaquín Salzberg, Argentina Wadzanayi Patience Mandivenyi, South Africa Gaute Voigt-Hanssen, Norway Luciana Melchert, Brazil A group of Friends of the Chair meets during plenary David Cooper, CBD Secretariat Tia Stevens, Australia Musonda Mumba, UNEP María Alejandra Guerra, Chile CBD Executive Secretary Cristiana Pașca Palmer Delegates during Friday’s proceedings L-R: Musonda Mumba, UNEP; Alfred Oteng-Yeboah, Ghana; Alex Owusu-Biney, UNEP; Doris Richter and Eric Okoree, Ghana Ludgarde Coppens (left), UNEP, addresses participants during the lunch event on Global Strategic Plans in other National Instruments and Processes L-R: Working Group Co-Chairs Basile van Havre, Canada; Francis Ogwal, Uganda; CBD Executive Secretary Cristiana Pașca Palmer; Jyoti Mathur-Filipp, David Cooper, and Catalina Santamaría, CBD Secretariat L-R: Janice Weatherley-Singh and Alfred DeGemmis, Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS), and Noëlle Kümpel, BirdLife International L-R: Kimberly Chan, Canada; Brooke Hynes, Jaime Grubb, Georgina Newton, and Tia Stevens, Australia Ivan Feys, Belgium, and Neville Ash, Director, UNEP-WCMC L-R: Jamila Janna, Wildlands Conservation Trust; Yuriko Shimada, Japan Youth Biodiversity Network; and Alphonce Muia, Catholic Youth Network for Environmental Sustainability in Africa Amandine John-Herpin and Barbara Petersen, Germany Working Group Co-Chair Basile van Havre, Canada, and Abdulghani A.M. Al-Bokwali, Yemen UNEP visitors at the meeting A view of UNEP Headquarters
Daily Highlights

Highlights and images for 5 July 2019

41st Meeting of the Open-Ended Working Group of the Parties to the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer (OEWG 41)

Highlights for Friday, 5 July 2019 OEWG 41 Co-Chairs Laura-Juliana Arciniegas, Colombia, and Alain Wilmart, Belgium, congratulate each other on a successful OEWG. OEWG 41 convened for its final day on Friday, 5 July 2019, in Bangkok, Thailand.Delegates met in the morning for contact and informal groups on the terms of reference (ToR) for Multilateral Fund (MLF) 2021-2023 Replenishment study; unexpected emissions of CFC-11; ongoing reported emissions of carbon tetrachloride (CTC); stocks of methyl bromide; and the ToR for the composition of the Technology and Economic Assessment Panel (TEAP).All of the groups concluded their discussions, with deliberations set to resume at the 31st Meeting of the Parties (MOP 31) to be held in Rome, Italy in November 2019. Highlights of the contact and informal group discussions include: how to improve licensing systems to achieve compliance; reporting systems under the Vienna Convention and the Montreal Protocol not replacing national-level obligations; the need for the TEAP to take preparations for hydrofluorocarbon (HFC) phase-down plans into account as part of the MLF Replenishment Study ToR; and how to define stocks in response to a proposed draft decision inviting parties to submit information, voluntarily, on methyl bromide stocks. Two side events were held: ‘Cooling without warming the planet: Opportunities to converge business and sustainability goals’ presented by the Council on Energy, Environment and Water (CEEW), and ‘A roadmap for sustainable cooling-what will it take?’ presented by the World Bank. Closing plenary resumed in the late afternoon. The Co-Chairs thanked delegates for their participation during the OEWG, saying a better understanding had been reached on items that are crucial to the progress for the Protocol. The meeting closed at 5:54 pm.As the meeting closed and delegates left the conference centre, there was a sense of completion and satisfaction as delegates had reached a point in deliberations where they felt comfortable forwarding issues to MOP 31. Saying goodbye, one delegate remarked that the big issues weren’t insurmountable at OEWG 41 as parties generally found a way forward, expressing hope that this would continue at MOP 31. IISD Reporting Services, through its Earth Negotiations Bulletin (ENB) meeting coverage, is providing daily web coverage from OEWG 41. In addition, IISD Reporting Services has published a summary and analysis from the meeting, which is available in HTML and PDF. Photos by IISD/ENB | Sean Wu For photo reprint permissions, please follow instructions at our Attribution Regulations for Meeting Photo Usage Page Contact Group on CFC-11 issues Philip Owen, EU Martin Sirois, Canada Contact Group on CTC Co-facilitators Patrick McInerney, Australia, and Leslie Smith, Grenada Henry Wohrnschimmel, Switzerland Informal Group on Stocks of Methyl Bromide View of the room during the informal group Cornelius Rhein (right), EU, consulting with Niccolò Costantini, EU; Ole-Kristian Kvissel, Norway; and Henry Wohrnschimmel, Switzerland Informal Group on the Review of the TEAP ToR Participants during the informal group The dais during the informal group Plenary OEWG 41 Co-Chair Alain Wilmart, Belgium Agnieszka Tomaszewska and Janusz Kozakiewicz, Poland Özge Tümöz Gündüz and Ülkü Fusün Ertürk, Turkey; and Youssef Hammami, Tunisia Yawo Dandjesso, Togo Mario Francisco Correia Ximenes, Timor-Leste Philippe Chemouny, Canada, speaking with Helen Walter-Terrinoni and Helen Tope, TEAP Co-Chairs Osvaldo Patricio Álvarez Pérez, Chile, gives a warm hug to Ozone Secretariat Executive Secretary Tina Birmpili View of the dais during the afternoon plenary Gene Smilansky, US OEWG 41 Co-Chair Laura-Juliana Arciniegas, Colombia, giving closing remarks John Thompson, US, speaking informally with Ozone Secretariat Executive Secretary Tina Birmpili after the closing plenary OEWG 41 Co-Chairs Laura-Juliana Arciniegas, Colombia, and Alain Wilmart, Belgium, with members of the Ozone Secretariat Around the Venue Ozone Secretariat posing for a family photo Suely Machado Carvalho, Marco González, Bella Maranion, TEAP; and Cecilia Mercado, Multilateral Fund Secretariat
Daily Highlights