Coalition for Rainforest Nations

Highlights for Monday, 2 December 2019 Teresa Ribera, Minister for the Ecological Transition, Spain; IPCC Chair Hoesung Lee; Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, Spain; Carolina Schmidt, COP 25 President, Chile; UN Secretary-General António Guterres; and UNFCCC Executive Secretary Patricia Espinosa, welcome delegates to the offical opening of COP 25. The Chile/Madrid Climate Change Conference opened under the glare of camera lenses and flashes: the fast-paced atmosphere inevitably created when Heads of State and Government arrive. Roughly 50 world leaders gathered to hear UN Secretary-General António Guterres somberly declare that the “point of no return is in sight.”As these dignitaries shared experiences on raising climate ambition in their countries, many emphasized that enhanced action is a moral imperative. Notably, several speakers spoke of a “climate crisis” and paid tribute to youth movements for holding decision makers accountable for increasing ambition. Another message that resonated across statements was the need to support the most vulnerable, with the Dominican Republic emphasizing the importance of public services, especially regarding education and health, and Luxembourg announcing national plans to make public transportation free for all. The EU highlighted its plan to become the first climate neutral continent by 2050.COP 25 President Carolina Schmidt, Chile, underscored the need to reinvigorate multilateralism and ensure that negotiations spur the just and inclusive transition which is urgently needed to address the reality of vulnerable communities around the world.Throughout the day, delegates met in plenary to launch the work of all five UNFCCC bodies. Much of the morning involved discussions on the agendas of the Conference of the Parties (COP) and Conference of the Parties serving as the meeting of the Parties to the Paris Agreement (CMA). Various parties and groups had proposed several new agenda items. Some of the items to be taken forward include: Privileges and immunities to the Green Climate Fund (GCF) will be considered with other GCF-related issues on the COP agenda; The special needs and circumstances of African and Latin American countries will not be on the CMA agenda, but the special circumstances of Africa will be discussed informally; and The report of the Adaptation Committee will be added to the CMA agenda, and parties will discuss the global goal on adaptation in an informal meeting. Some delegates worried if the disagreements over the agendas, and the means to resolve some of them, had eroded trust among negotiators. Others disagreed and looked forward to a more “normal” pace of work tomorrow.For more details on the day’s negotiations and to hear what delegates said in the corridors, see our daily Earth Negotiations Bulletin (ENB). IISD Reporting Services, through its Earth Negotiations Bulletin (ENB) meeting coverage, provided daily web coverage, daily reports, and a summary and analysis report from the 2019 Climate Change Conference. The summary and analysis report is now available in HTML and PDF. Photos by IISD/ENB | Kiara Worth For photo reprint permissions, please follow instructions at our Attribution Regulations for Meeting Photo Usage Page Formal Opening of COP 25 Delegates gather in plenary for the opening of COP 25. Michał Kurtyka, COP 24 President, Poland Carolina Schmidt, COP 25 President, Chile Michał Kurtyka, COP 24 President, Poland, welcomes Carolina Schmidt, COP 25 President, Chile, to the podium to take over the presidency. Delegates congratulate Carolina Schmidt, COP 25 President, Chile, on her election. Ayşin Turpanci, Turkey Ayman Shasly, Saudi Arabia Dmytro Matiuschenku, Ukraine, calls a point of order during the session. Ceremonial Opening of COP 25 View of the dais during the ceremonial opening of COP 25. IPCC Chair Hoesung Lee Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, Spain UN Secretary-General António Guterres High-Level Roundtable The high-level roundtable was convened to discuss aggregate efforts to address climate change and share views on how, in the run up to 2020, the gap in ambition could be bridged through new or updated nationally determined contributions (NDCs). Prime Minister Erna Solberg, Norway Henri, Grand Duke of Luxembourg President Alexander Van der Bellen, Austria Prime Minister Édouard Philippe, France Prime Minister Henry Puna, Cook Islands Subsidiary Body for Implementation (SBI) Plenary View of the dais during the opening of the SBI plenary. SBI Chair Emmanuel Dlamini, eSwatini Outi Honkatukia, EU María del Pilar Bueno, Argentina, Co-Chair of the Adaptation Committee Chizuru Aoki, the Global Environment Facility (GEF) Subsidiary Body for Scientific and Technological Advice (SBSTA) Plenary The “Warming Stripes” by Ed Hawkins are projected in plenary as the SBSTA opens. Pasang Dolma Sherpa, Local Communities and Indigenous Peoples Platform (LCIPP) Facilitative Working Group Jörg Schulz, European Organisation for the Exploitation of Meteorological Satellites (EUMETSAT) Elena Manaenkova, World Meteorological Organization (WMO) SBSTA Chair Paul Watkinson, France Joint Plenary for Statements View of the dais during the joint plenary for statements. Adalah Atteereh, Palestine, speaking on behalf of the G-77/China Mohamed Nasr, Egypt, speaking on behalf of the African Group Franz Perrez, Switzerland, speaking on behalf of the Environmental Integrity Group (EIG) Ruel Yamuna, Papua New Guinea, speaking on behalf of the Coalition for Rainforest Nations (CfRN) Lois Young, Belize, speaking on behalf of the Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS) Zakir Hossain, Farmers Antonia Zambra, Women and Gender Mariano Sanz and Natalia Carrav, Trade Union NGOs Action for Survival: Vulnerable Nations COP 25 Partners Leaders Event Delegates during the high-level event. President Juan Orlando Hernández, Honduras UN Secretary-General António Guterres Nancy Pelosi, Speaker of the House of Representatives, US Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, Bangladesh Dignitaries Attending COP 25 Dignitaries gather in the VIP lounge before the start of the opening ceremony. President Denis Sassou Nguesso, Republic of the Congo President Carlos Alvarado Quesada, Costa Rica Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, with Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, Spain Sergio Bergman, Minister of Environment and Sustainable Development, Argentina (center), and President Mauricio Macri, Argentina (right) Family photo of the presidents, prime ministers, and other high-level dignitaries attending COP 25. Around the Venue UN Secretary-General António Guterres arrives at the venue. Ovais Sarmad, UNFCCC Deputy Executive Secretary, and UNFCCC Executive Secretary Patricia Espinosa Carole Dieschbourg, Minister of the Environment, Luxembourg Helmut Hojesky, Austria Members of the African Group speak informally. Delegates from Liechtenstein. Artwork on display as part of the 'Armazón Exhibition' that connects the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to the fight against climate change.

Highlights for Thursday, 27 June 2019 On the last day of the Bonn Climate Change Conference, many countries, including those most vulnerable to climate change, remind delegates that 'science is not negotiable.' The last day of the Bonn Climate Change Conference started slow, to allow parties to work through difficult issues, and ended smoothly, as parties adopted the outcomes of the meetings.In a much-awaited decision on the Special Report on 1.5°C of Global Warming (SR1.5), the SBSTA “expressed its appreciation and gratitude to the IPCC and the scientific community for responding to the invitation of the Conference of the Parties (COP) and providing the SR1.5, which reflects the best available science.” The decision reflected a razor-thin compromise between the many parties who wanted to celebrate the scientific achievements of the report and the few who expressed concerns with the report.Groups of developing countries that are vulnerable to climate change defended the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change's (IPCC) SR1.5, saying “listening to science not a choice, but a duty.” Wearing t-shirts that exemplify their message, the Environmental Integrity Group, declared “Science is not negotiable.”Parties agreed to several outcomes, including: Koronivia Joint Work on Agriculture: New Zealand will host an intersessional workshop on sustainable land and water management, and strategies and modalities to scale up practices and technologies to increase resilience and sustainable production; The terms of reference for the review of the Warsaw International Mechanism on Loss and Damage associated with climate change impacts was adopted. This sets out the scope of the review of the WIM to take place at the Santiago Climate Change Conference in December 2019. Nairobi Work Programme: The Programme will prioritize thematic areas in its work on adaptation and vulnerability to climate change, namely: extreme weather events, drought, forests and grasslands, oceans, and agriculture and food security. Article 6 (markets and non-market approaches): Countries brought together their work from Katowice to forge a path forward. They agreed to proceed on the basis of texts put together by the Co-Facilitators. As decision looms in Santiago, countries will arrive with an agreed basis for negotiations. The meeting was gavelled to a close at 10:07 pm.The next meeting of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) is in December in Santiago, Chile. IISD Reporting Services, through its ENB Meeting Coverage, provided daily web coverage, daily reports, and a summary and analysis report from the Bonn Climate Change Conference - June 2019, which is now available in HTML and PDF. Photos by IISD/ENB | Kiara Worth For photo reprint permissions, please follow instructions at our Attribution Regulations for Meeting Photo Usage Page Consultations throughout the Day The room is filled to capacity during the SBSTA Chair's consultations with Heads of Delegations. SBI informal consultations on administrative, financial and institutional matters: Programme budget for the biennium 2020–2021. Co-Facilitators and the Secretariat of the SBI/SBSTA informal consultations on the terms of reference for the 2019 review of the Warsaw International Mechanism for Loss and Damage associated with Climate Change Impacts (WIM) share a moment as the session concludes. Family photo of the SBSTA contact group on matters relating to Article 6 of the Paris Agreement. Delegates huddle informally in the corridors. SBI Closing Plenary SBI Chair Emmanuel Dlamini, eSwatini, closes the SBI plenary. Abdullah Tawlah, Saudi Arabia Ammar Hijazi, Palestine, speaking on behalf of the G-77/China SBSTA Closing Plenary After a week-long heatwave across Europe, SBSTA Chair Paul Watkinson, France, closes the SBSTA plenary with the same image that he showed at the opening plenary: the Keeling Curve, a graph of the accumulation of carbon dioxide in the Earth’s atmosphere. Ana Villalobos, Costa Rica, speaking on behalf of the Independent Association of Latin America and the Caribbean (AILAC) Lois Young, Belize, speaking on behalf of the Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS) Franz Perrez, Switzerland, speaking on behalf of the Environmental Integrity Group (EIG) Ian Fry, Tuvalu, speaking on behalf of the Least Developed Countries (LDCs) Ovais Sarmad, UNFCCC Deputy Executive Secretary Stella Gama, SBSTA Rapporteur SBSTA family photo. Joint Closing Plenary View of the dais during the closing plenary. Ion Cîmpeanu, EU Kunzang, Bhutan, speaking on behalf of the LDCs Majid Shafiepour, Iran, speaking on behalf of the Like-minded Developing Countries (LMDCs) Martine Badibanga Kamunga, Democratic Republic of the Congo, speaking on behalf of the Coalition for Rainforest Nations (CfRN) Sandra Leticia Guzman Luna, Mexico, speaking on behalf of the EIG Mohamed Nasr, Egypt, speaking on behalf of the African Group Gareth Williams, Australia, speaking on behalf of the Umbrella Group Felipe Andres Gutierrez, Climate Justice Now!, and Paula Tassara, Climate Action Network (CAN), speaking on behalf of the Environmental NGOs (ENGOs) Jisun Hwang, Local Government and Municipal Authorities (LGMA), and Juan Carlos Jintiach, Indigenous Peoples Organizations Dolphine Atieno Magero and Tomasz Ferenz, Youth NGOs (YOUNGOs) Around the Venue Delegates meet informally in the corridors as they wait for the closing plenary to begin. Delegates read the draft conclusions. Ayman Shasly, Saudi Arabia, speaks with his delegation. Representatives of the EIG wear shirts saying "science is not negotiable." Representatives from AOSIS working on loss and damage, and adaptation. YOUNGOs family photo. SBI Family Photo: Katia Simeonova, SBI Coordinator; SBI Chair Emmanuel Dlamini, Laurence Pollier, UNFCCC Secretariat; and Vanessa Matarazzi, UNFCCC Secretariat Ana Villalobos, Costa Rica, and SBSTA Chair Paul Watkinson, France Katia Simeonova, SBI Coordinator Federica Fricano, Italy, speaks with a delegate. Ulrik Lenaerts, Belgium Vladimir Uskov, Russian Federation Delegates between sessions The International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) Earth Negotiations Bulletin (ENB) team covering the Bonn Climate Change Conference: Rishikesh Ram Bhandary, Nepal; Nancy Williams, US; Jen Allan, Canada/UK; Bernard Soubry, Canada; Beate Antonich, Germany; and Kiara Worth, South Africa

Highlights for Saturday, 8 December 2018 Delegates huddle during the SBSTA closing plenary Posted by IISD Reporting Services on Sunday, 9 December 2018 The Katowice Climate Change Conference concluded its first week on Saturday. Each of the subsidiary bodies held their closing plenaries and forwarded work related to the Paris Agreement Work Programme (PAWP) to the COP for further work during the second week of the conference.Decisions for several other issues were finalized and sent for adoption by the COP, CMP, and CMA, including a decision on the Local Communities and Indigenous Peoples’ Platform, which establishes a Facilitative Working Group, with equal representation of parties and indigenous peoples.On the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s Special Report on Global Warming of 1.5°C, delegates were unable to agree whether they “welcomed” or “noted” the report. Many countries called attention to how the Special Report outlined the impacts of climate change, and supported the work of the IPCC, urging welcoming the report.As the subsidiary bodies finished their work, Sarah Baashan, Co-Chair of the Ad Hoc Working Group for the Paris Agreement (APA) said: "We have seen how a small group of people can achieve a great difference in the fight against global change."Next week, discussions will continue, and many expect the ministers to help make political choices that can unlock persistent disagreements in the PAWP.For more details on the day's events and to hear what delegates said in the corridors, see our daily Earth Negotiations Bulletin (ENB). IISD Reporting Services, through its ENB Meeting Coverage, provided daily reports, daily web coverage, and a summary and analysis from the Katowice Climate Change Conference – December 2018. Photos by IISD/ENB | Kiara Worth For photo reprint permissions, please follow instructions at our Attribution Regulations for Meeting Photo Usage Page APA Contact Group Delegates during the APA contact group Beth Lavender, Canada, Co-Facilitator for APA agenda item 4 - adaptation communication Andrew Rakestraw, US, Co-Facilitator for APA agenda item 5 - transparency framework Outi Honkatukia, Finland, Co-Facilitator for APA agenda item 6 - global stocktake Sin Liang Cheah, Singapore, Co-Facilitator for APA agenda item 3 - mitigation APA Co-Chairs Sarah Baashan, Saudi Arabia, and Jo Tyndall, New Zealand María del Pilar Bueno, Argentina, Co-Facilitator for APA agenda item 8 - further matters, Adaptation Fund Janine Coye-Felson, Belize, Co-Facilitator for APA agenda item 7 - committee to facilitate implementation and promote compliance The draft APA conclusions are distributed in plenary Delegates read the draft APA conclusions The final APA family photo Informal Consultations throughout the Day Informal consultations on further matters - Adaptation Fund (APA item 8) Contact group on matters relating to the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) (CMP agenda item 4) Family photo of Article 6 of the Paris Agreement SBI Closing Plenary SBI Chair Emmanuel Dlamini, eSwatini, convenes the SBI closing plenary SBI Chair Emmanuel Dlamini, eSwatini Ovais Sarmad, UNFCCC Deputy Executive Secretary SBSTA Closing Plenary SBSTA Chair Paul Watkinson, France, convenes the SBSTA closing plenary SBSTA Chair Paul Watkinson, France Catherine Stewart, Canada Ayman Shasly, Saudi Arabia Delegates huddle during the meeting UNFCCC Executive Secretary Patricia Espinosa and members of the UNFCCC Secretariat Delegates from Saudi Arabia and the Russian Federation Delegates huddle UNFCCC Executive Secretary Patricia Espinosa Francois Paulette, Indigenous Peoples Ian Fry, Tuvalu Representatives of the Indigenous Peoples sing at the conclusion of the SBSTA closing plenary Joint Plenary of SBI, SBSTA, and APA View of the dais during plenary Gebru Jember Endalew, Ethiopia, speaking on behalf of the Least Developed Countries (LDCs) Amjad Abdulla, Maldives, speaking on behalf of the Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS) Patrick Suckling, Australia, speaking on behalf of the Umbrella Group Jacob Werksman, EU Wael Aboulmagd, Egypt, speaking on behalf of the G-77/China Martine Badibang Kamunga, Democratic Republic of the Congo, speaking on behalf of the Coalition for Rainforest Nations (CfRN) Laura Juliana Arciniegas Rojas, Colombia, speaking on behalf of the Independent Association of Latin America and the Caribbean (AILAC) APA Co-Chairs Sarah Baashan, Saudi Arabia, and Jo Tyndall, New Zealand, gavel the APA to a close for the last time The 'Fabulous Four' - SBSTA Chair Paul Watkinson, France, SBI Chair Emmanuel Dlamini, eSwatini, and APA Co-Chairs Sarah Baashan, Saudi Arabia, and Jo Tyndall, New Zealand COP Plenary View of the dais during the COP Plenary Civil Society Climate Change Protest in Katowice Security presence outside the COP 24 venue Approximately 3,000 demonstrators take to the streets of Katowice to demand political actions that prevent temperatures rising by more than 1.5°C Around the Venue UNFCCC Executive Secretary Patricia Espinosa and Michał Kurtyka, COP 24 President, walk through the venue Marcela Main Sancha, Secretary to the COP Patrick Suckling, Australia, speaks with delegates Stella Gama, Malawi, speaks with delegates from Saudi Arabia Yungratna Srivastava, Youth NGOs (YOUNGOs), speaks with Trigg Talley, US APA Co-Chair Jo Tyndall, New Zealand Delegates from Fiji Xiang Gao, China Delegates from Europe Seyni Nafo, Mali, during an interview UNFCCC Executive Secretary Patricia Espinosa, Michał Kurtyka, COP 24 President, and Alex Saier, UNFCCC Secretariat, during a press conference Around the Japanese Pavilion

On Monday, parties at the Bonn Climate Change Conference focused on launching substantive work by establishing negotiating groups. Plenary meetings of the three main negotiating bodies, the Subsidiary Body for Implementation (SBI), the Subsidiary Body for Scientific and Technological Advice (SBSTA) and the Ad Hoc Working Group on the Paris Agreement (APA) made good progress, with each body working through its agenda without major disagreements. In the evening, the three bodies held a joint plenary to hear statements from parties and observer organizations. In the afternoon, several of the negotiating groups held their first meetings and started substantive negotiations on issues such as agriculture, technology, finance, market and non-market mechanisms, and adaptation. Throughout the day, a training workshop also took place to consider economic modelling tools related to the work programme on response measures. Its aim was to understand and quantify the cross-border impacts of climate-related policies (i.e., response measures). For extensive details on the day’s negotiations and to hear what delegates said in the corridors, see our daily Earth Negotiations Bulletin. IISD Reporting Services, through its Earth Negotiations Bulletin (ENB) Meeting Coverage, provided daily digital coverage, daily reports, daily videos, and a summary and analysis report from the Bonn Climate Change Conference - April/May 2018. The summary and analysis report is now available in HTML and PDF. Photos by IISD/ENB | Kiara Worth For photo reprint permissions, please follow instructions at our Attribution Regulations for Meeting Photo Usage Page SBSTA Opening Plenary View of the dais during the SBSTA opening plenary SBSTA Chair Paul Watkinson, France UNFCCC Executive Secretary Patricia Espinosa Ian Fry, Tuvalu Chen Zhihua, China Abdalah Mokssit, Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Delegates during the SBSTA opening plenary SBI Opening Plenary View of the dais during the SBI opening plenary SBI Chair Emmanuel Dlamini, Swaziland Ovais Sarmad, UNFCCC Deputy Executive Secretary Thiago de Araújo Mendes, Chair of the Consultative Group of Experts on National Communications for Non-Annex I Parties (CGE) Aderito Manuel Fernandes Santana, São Tomé and Príncipe Adão Soares Barbosa, Timor-Leste APA Opening Plenary View of the dais during the APA opening plenary APA Co-Chairs Jo Tyndall, New Zealand, and Sarah Baashan, Saudi Arabia UNFCCC Executive Secretary Patricia Espinosa speaks with APA Co-Chairs Jo Tyndall and Sarah Baashan, and Sergey Kononov, APA Coordinator Joint Session for Statements View of the dais during the joint session for statements Wael Aboulmagd, Egypt, speaking on behalf of the G-77/China Boriana Kamenova, EU Mohamed Nasr, Gabon, speaking on behalf of the African Group Franz Perrez, Switzerland, speaking on behalf of the Environmental Integrity Group (EIG) Patrick Suckling, Australia, speaking on behalf of the Umbrella Group Majid Shafie-Pour, Iran, speaking on behalf of the Like-minded Developing Countries (LMDCs) Gebru Jember, Ethiopia, speaking on behalf of the Least Developed Countries (LDCs) Tosi Mpanu-Mpanu, Democratic Republic of the Congo, speaking on behalf of the Coalition for Rainforest Nations (CfRN) Amjad Abdulla, Maldives, speaking on behalf of the Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS) Isabel Di Carlo Quero, Venezuela, speaking on behalf of the Bolivarian Alliance for the Peoples of Our America (ALBA) SBI/SBSTA In-forum Training Workshop SBI/SBSTA in-forum training workshop on the use of economic modelling tools related to the areas of the work programme on response measures Alicia Bagasra, New Zealand Bert Saveyn, EU Morgenie Pillay, South Africa Co-Facilitator Andrei Marcu, Panama Ama Essel, Ghana Contact Groups and Informal Sessions Throughout the Day SBSTA contact group on matters relating to Article 6 of the Paris Agreement SBSTA informal consultations on the Nairobi Work Programme (NWP) Informal consultations on Koronivia joint work on agriculture Around the Venue Members of the UNFCCC Secretariat gather on the podium SBSTA Chair Paul Watkinson, France, speaks with Kishan Kumarsingh, Trinidad and Tobago Delegates speak informally Delegates read the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) Earth Negotiations Bulletin (ENB) curtain raiser to prepare for the start of the meeting Delegates between sessions Delegates speak informally