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Highlights for Tuesday, 7 May 2019 Members of civil society demonstrate outside the venue, calling for chrysotile asbestos to be included in Annex III of the Rotterdam Convention so it can only be traded with 'prior informed consent' Tuesday’s agenda at the 2019 meetings of the Conferences of the Parties to the Basel, Rotterdam and Stockholm Convention (BRS COPs) was full, with delegates meeting in plenary to address a wide range of issues related to either the Basel or Rotterdam Conventions.In the morning, delegates dealt with initial discussions of two challenging and related issues under the Rotterdam Convention: non-compliance and evaluating the effectiveness of this Convention. While Article 17 of the Convention requires parties to develop and approve procedures and mechanisms for determining non-compliance “as soon as is practicable,” to date, consensus on this issue has been elusive. Previous meetings of the COPs have come close to agreement, and there is widespread support for creating a facilitative, non-punitive mechanism that will promote parties’ work to implement the Convention. However, exactly what this mechanism will look like is still subject to debate. For now, this discussion will take place in a newly-created Friends of the President group which will report back to plenary on Wednesday.Debates on effectiveness evaluation were equally challenging, with delegates discussing proposed amendments to the Convention that would, respectively, change decision-making rules to allow for voting, and mandate provision of financial and technical assistance for developing countries. The former amendment is designed to address a growing problem for the Convention: chemicals for which the COP has agreed all listing criteria are met, but consensus to list them in Annex III has not been reached. To date, four chemicals fall into this category, and demand is growing among delegates keen to ensure that the Rotterdam Convention is able to meet its objective to serve as a mechanism for information exchange. A contact group to tackle this and other aspects of effectiveness met throughout the day, and will report to plenary on Wednesday.For more details on the day's events and to hear what delegates said in the corridors, see our Earth Negotiations Bulletin. 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 Meetings of the Conferences of the Parties to the Basel, Rotterdam and Stockholm Conventions. The summary and analysis report is 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. Plenary: Rotterdam Convention Delegates during the Rotterdam Convention plenary Claudia Sorina Dumitru, EU Xuezhi Xiao, China Maricela Muñoz, Costa Rica Frank Molaletsi, Botswana Yadira González Columbié, Cuba Hege Jordbakke, Norway Christian Tebila Kiaku, Democratic Republic of the Congo Ana Berejiani, Georgia Andrew Clark, US Ali Mohamed, Sudan Contact Groups Contact Group on Plastics Contact Group on Programme of Work and Budget Friends of the President on Rotterdam Convention Compliance Civil Society Demonstration Civil society representatives from India, Indonesia, Hong Kong, Australia, and Switzerland call for chrysotile asbestos to be included in Annex III of the Rotterdam Convention Paul Rose, Explorer and TV presenter, covers the demonstration Omana George, Asia-Ban Asbestos Network, and Subono, asbestos victim, share their stories White roses are laid on the floor in rememberance of the estimated 222,000 asbestos disease victims who die every year Plenary: Rotterdam Convention The BRS Conventions Secretariat and Basel Convention COP14 President consult on the dais Aoudou Joswa, Cameroon Flavius Ardelean Motoc, EU Momodou Jama Suwareh, the Gambia, consults with the EU David Ogden, BRS Conventions Secretariat, consults with delegates from India Delegates from Ethiopia and the EU consult Delegates applaud the adoption of various decisions Around the Venue Members of the BRS Conventions Secretariat, the Rotterdam Convention COP9 President, and the Chemical Review Committee (CRC) Chair, consult on the dais Franz Perrez, Switzerland Osvaldo Álvarez-Pérez, Rotterdam Convention COP9 President, with Noluzuko 'Zukie' Gwayi, CRC Chair Delegates from Canada Students from the Seychelles visit the BRS COPs to gain an understanding about the importance of chemicals management Delegates from Equatorial Guinea and El Salvador Delegates representing various industries The Earth Negotiations Bulletin (ENB) team make themselves at home at the BRS COPs The chrysotile booth in the Information Hub The Norwegian booth in the display area Postcards sent from different delegations showing their support for the BRS Conventions

Highlights for Monday, 6 May 2019 UNFF14 participants observing a moment of silence in honor of the victims of the plane crash in Ethiopia The fourteenth session of the UN Forum on Forests (UNFF14) opened on Monday, 6 May 2019, at UN Headquarters in New York. In the morning, delegates approved the agenda, but requested discussions on the impacts of UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UN DESA) reforms on the UNFF Secretariat be brought forward from Thursday to Wednesday. The Bureau agreed to consider the change.The Forum then heard opening statements. Inga Rhonda King President, UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), urged the Forum to present a strong message to the 2019 High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (HLPF) on the importance of forests for the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Maria-Francesca Spatolisano, Assistant-Secretary-General for Policy Coordination and Inter-Agency Affairs, noted the crucial role forests play in climate mitigation and thanked countries for their contribution to the UNFF Trust Fund.This was followed by general discussions on the implementation of the UN Strategic Plan for Forests 2017-2030, with several countries announcing voluntary national contributions. In the afternoon, delegates participated in two thematic technical panel discussions on forests and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) under review by the HLPF 2019: Forests and Climate Change, which focused on forests in the context of SDG 13 (climate action) and 17 (partnerships); and the objectives of the Paris Agreement on climate change, and Forests, Inclusive and Sustainable Economic Growth and Employment, which focused on links between forests and SDG 8 (decent work and economic growth) and 17 (partnerships). For the second year running, the Forum proceedings are haunted by the question of whether all the recent progress UNFF has made on raising the profile of forests in sustainable development and the momentum created in collaborative global cooperation to achieve the full benefits of sustainable forest management might be impeded, lost or submerged as a result of UN DESA reform. IISD Reporting Services, through its Earth Negotiations Bulletin (ENB) meeting coverage, has provided daily web coverage and a summary and analysis report from UNFF14, which is available in HTML and PDF. Photos by IISD/ENB | Franz Dejon For photo reprint permissions, please follow instructions at our Attribution Regulations for Meeting Photo Usage Page Boris Greguška, Slovakia, UNFF14 Chair Inga Rhonda King, President of ECOSOC Hossein Moeini Meybodi, UNFF Secretariat Maria-Francesca Spatolisano, Assistant Secretary-General for Policy Coordination and Inter-Agency Affairs, UN DESA L-R: Maria-Francesca Spatolisano, Assistant Secretary-General for Policy Coordination and Inter-Agency Affairs, UN DESA; Inga Rhonda King, President of ECOSOC; Boris Greguška, Slovakia, UNFF14 Chair; Lesley Brough, UNFF Secretariat; and Juwang Zhu, Officer-in-Charge, UNFF Secretariat Cheikh Niang, Senegal, on behalf of the African Group Sahar Abu Shawesh, Palestine, on behalf of G-77/China Silvio Gonzato, EU Tegan Brink, Australia Boris Greguška, Slovakia, UNFF14 Chair, consulting with Lesley Brough, UNFF Secretariat Asaf Karavani, Israel Zhang Hong Won, China Kutaiba Al-Saadon, Saudi Arabia Benito Owusu-Bio, Ghana Tomasz Grysa, Holy See Matthias Schwoerer, Germany L-R: Fazliyev Farrukh Fakhriddinovich and Novitskiy Zinoviy Bogdanovich, Uzbekistan UNFF14 plenary session Thematic Panel on Forests and Climate Change Igor Viszlai, Forest Europe Duncan Brack, Royal Institute of International Affairs, UK Elena Paoletti, Italian Society of Silviculture and Forest Ecology Khalid Chekri, Morocco, UNFF14 Rapporteur Forest Europe video presentation Luciana Melchert, Brazil Catherine Karr-Colque, US Ghanshyam Pandey, Federation of Community Forestry Users, Nepal Siddhanta Das, India Thematic Panel on Forests, Inclusive and Sustainable Economic Growth and Employment Pia Katila, International Union of Forest Research Organizations (IUFRO) Jose Joaquin Campos Arce, Co-Chair, Board of Trustees of the Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR) and World Agroforestry (ICRAF) Gill Shepherd, London School of Economics and Political Science, UK Jessica Coronel, Ecuador Delegates from Canada, New Zealand and Australia consulting UNFF14 side event on "Scaling Up Sustainable Wood Value Chains" presented by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO) and Collaborative Partnership on Forests (CPF)

Highlights for Saturday, 4 May 2019 As the first week of the BRS COPs draws to a close, members of civil society implore delegates to support the Norwegian proposal to amend the Annexes to the Basel Convention and establish a Partnership on Plastic Waste to better manage marine plastic litter and microplastics The 2019 meetings of the Conferences of the Parties (COP) to the Basel, Rotterdam, and Stockholm (BRS) Conventions wrapped up the first week with discussions of several waste issues, with extensive time both in plenary and a contact group devoted to work on marine plastic litter and microplastics.Morning plenary was dominated by interventions on this complex and highly salient issue, with over 80 delegates waiting to share their views. Behind the statements, a clear division began to emerge on whether transboundary movement of plastics for recycling is a “problem” or a “solution,” given the varied capacities of countries to manage the volume of plastics and the growing amount of plastics that are of low value and therefore difficult to sell for recycling, or recycle in general.With widespread support for the Basel Convention to be part of the global effort, delegates discussed possible ways of addressing the issue. Norway presented its proposal, which includes different measures for different types of plastic waste, namely: clean, sorted plastic waste; hazardous plastic waste; and non-hazardous, unsorted, mixed and other plastic waste. One measure discussed at length was the prior informed consent procedure, which would provide information to countries importing plastic waste. Some were concerned that such an additional requirement could impede the ability to send wastes for recycling as a key part of the circular economy.In the afternoon, the Basel Convention discussed another mechanism increasingly at its disposal: partnerships. With multi-stakeholder partnerships in place to share information and catalyze action on computing equipment, household waste, and, perhaps soon, plastics, many delegates cited such partnerships as a key area of work for the Convention. Delegates also discussed nanomaterials, an emerging waste issue with significant data gaps.In the evening, delegates gathered for a reception sponsored by the Government of Switzerland to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the Basel Convention.For more details on the day's events and to hear what delegates said in the corridors, see our Earth Negotiations Bulletin. 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 Meetings of the Conferences of the Parties to the Basel, Rotterdam and Stockholm Conventions. The summary and analysis report is 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. Plenary: Basel Convention Delegates during plenary Ole Thomas Thommessen, Norway Valentina Sierra, Uruguay Afele Faiilagi, Samoa Patience Nsereko, Uganda Koutoua Thomas Gnamessou, Côte d'Ivoire Sigurbjörg Sæmundsdóttir, Iceland Hassan Azhar, Maldives Zaigham Abbas, Pakistan Marina Carrilho Soares, Brazil Von Glenn Hernandez, Basel Action Network (BAN) Nazira Abdylasova, Kyrgyzstan Roselyn Bue, Vanuatu Yaser Khalil Abu Shanab, Palestine Joost Meijer, Co-Chair of the Expert Working Group of the Review of the Annexes Leila Devia, Basel Convention Regional Center (BCRC) - Argentina Patrick McKell, Chair, Small Intersessional Working Group (SIWG) on the Strategic Framework Siddika Sultana, Asian Center for Environmental Health Flavius Ardelean Motoc, EU Abdullah Al Muraikhi, Qatar Contact Groups Nanette Laure, Co-Chair, Contact Group on Technical Matters under the Basel Convention Contact Group on Programme of Work and Budget Contact Group on Plastics Around the Venue Delegates at the start of plenary Delegates from Japan Delegates speak informally Delegates from Saint Kitts and Nevis Tamana Dawi, Afghanistan Delegates from Paraguay Yousef Dougha, Libya, and Ali Al-Dobhani, Yemen Representatives from the Stockholm Convention Regional Centre - Czech Republic Representatives from the BCRC - Caribbean

Highlights for Saturday, 4 May 2019 IPBES Chair Robert Watson, UK, gavels the meeting to a close at 2:58 pm. On Saturday morning, the working group on the Global Assessment recovened to review a table listing key knowledge gaps, which the group eventually agreed to add to the summary for policy makers (SPM) of the Global Assessment as an annex.Plenary convened at 11:00 am. Delegates approved the SPM and accepted the chapters of the Global Assessment report without further amendments. They applauded the Chapter Lead Authors, Experts, and the Technical Support Unit involved in preparing the assessment. Plenary then adopted IPBES’ Rolling Work Programme up to 2030 and the budget, and elected new members to the Multidisciplinary Expert Panel and the Bureau. Plenary elected Anna Maria Hernández (Colombia) as new IPBES Chair, and delegates accepted Morocco’s offer to host IPBES-8 in early 2021.CBD Executive Secretary Cristiana Pașca Palmer said biodiversity loss is destroying the “bedrock” of ecosystem services with dramatic economic and social consequences. She outlined forthcoming international biodiversity meetings towards the post-2020 biodiversity framework, noting they present an unprecedented opportunity to find a way forward.IPBES Executive Secretary Anne Larigauderie called the assessment “a landmark report,” stressing that current trends do not allow much optimism, and highlighting that biodiversity is also a development, economic, and security issue. She called on participants to work together to make most of the current momentum for biodiversity.In closing statements, Africa called for facilitating and monitoring the uptake of the Global Assessment’s outcomes. Asia and Pacific stressed the need for successful implementation of the adopted work programme. The Eastern European Region highlighted capacity building under the new work programme. Latin America and the Caribbean highlighted the technical paper on biodiversity and climate change. Western Europe and Others said that its members should use the Global Assessment to trigger decisions at all levels. The US said that IPBES’ efforts will serve and protect generations to come.The UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), for the biodiversity-related conventions, underscored the importance of stronger alignment of IPBES with the biodiversity conventions, who in turn, should work to address synergies. The UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) said understanding conservation and connectivity are “crucial.” The International Indigenous Forum on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IIFBES) stated that IPBES is strengthened by inclusion of Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities (IPLCs) in all programmes. The Open-ended Network of IPBES Stakeholders (ONet) asked members to integrate outcomes into national agendas, into discussions at the UN General Assembly, and into the Rio Conventions.In his farewell speech, outgoing IPBES Chair Robert Watson reminisced on his long history of involvement in environmental assessments, calling chairing IPBES his “most rewarding job.” He stated the Global Assessment gives the private sector and civil society the evidence they need for evidenced-based policy making.He then gaveled IPBES-7 to a close at 2:58 pm.Summary and Analysis: The Earth Negotiations Bulletin (ENB) summary and analysis of IPBES-7 will be available on this site on Tuesday, 7 May 2019. IISD Reporting Services, through its ENB Meeting Coverage, provided daily web coverage and daily reports from IPBES-7. Photos by IISD/ENB | Diego Noguera For photo reprint permissions, please follow instructions at our Attribution Regulations for Meeting Photo Usage Page Working Group I finalizes work before plenary. IPBES-7 meets for its final day at UNESCO Headquarters. IPBES Executive Secretary Anne Larigauderie CBD Executive Secretary Cristiana Paşca Palmer Global Assessment Co-Chair Eduardo S. Brondízio, Brazil/US, celebrates the SPM approval with Rapporteur Alfred Oteng-Yeboah, Ghana. Global Assessment authors and delegates celebrate the SPM approval. Stefan Leiner, EU Olivier Fontan, France Eiji Tanaka, Japan Ana María Hernández Salgar, Colombia, is congratulated by delegates on her election as the new IPBES Chair. Outgoing Chair Robert Watson, UK, receives a standing ovation at the end of IPBES-7. IPBES Executive Secretary Anne Larigauderie and outgoing Chair Robert Watson, UK, at the end of IPBES-7. The Multidisciplinary Expert Panel (MEP) meets before plenary Members of the outgoing and incoming Bureau Around the Venue Family photo of the Global Assessment Report Chapter 6 Authors CBD Executive Secretary Cristiana Paşca Palmer and IPBES Executive Secretary Anne Larigauderie L-R: Sarah Banda, IPBES Secretariat; Global Assessment Co-Chairs Sandra Díaz, Argentina, Eduardo S. Brondízio, Brazil/US, and Josef Settele, Germany; and Ione Anderson, Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research Interpreters at work A view of Paris from UNESCO Headquarters The ENB team with outgoing Chair Robert Watson, UK, and incoming Chair Ana María Hernández Salgar, Colombia.

Highlights for Friday, 3 May 2019 Mohammed Khashashneh, Stockholm Convention COP9 President, and Carlos Martin-Novella, Deputy Executive Secretary, BRS Secretariat, consult with the EU Delegates to the 2019 meetings of the Conferences of the Parties (COP) to the Basel, Rotterdam, and Stockholm (BRS) Conventions worked through a packed agenda on Friday, as they resumed work under the Basel Convention, sought to conclude the work of the Stockholm Convention, and addressed some of the outstanding issues of joint concern to at least two of the three Conventions.In the morning, participants discussed work undertaken intersessionally by expert working groups, including on the development of guidelines for environmentally sound management and work on technical guidelines on: e-waste; incineration on land and specially engineered landfill; and waste lead-acid batteries. While this technical work was welcomed by delegates, some non-governmental organizations called for additional work to close loopholes and otherwise strengthen guidelines to promote best environmental practices.Stockholm Convention COP9 convened in the afternoon and took a series of decisions, including one that reduces the number of exemptions and acceptable purposes for continued production and use of perfluorooctane sulfonic acid (PFOS), its salts, and perfluorooctane sulfonyl fluoride (PFOSF). Delegates also adopted a decision to list perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), its salts and PFOA-related compounds in Annex A (elimination) of the Convention. Notably, COP9 agreed to a request for additional exemptions for continued production and use. Several delegates were disappointed by the agreement to allow these exemptions, which had not been recommended by the POPs Review Committee. One industry observer emphasized that the substances are being phased out in large parts of the world and are not necessary, and several civil society organizations highlighted the negative impact of PFOA on human health and the environment. More broadly, several worried that introduction of exemption requests at the COP undermines the science-based review process of the Convention.With those decisions, Stockholm Convention COP9 was suspended until Friday, 10 May, when it will reopen for adoption of a decision on the budget and programme of work, as well as other outstanding issues. Basel Convention COP14 will resume on Saturday.For more details on the day's events and to hear what delegates said in the corridors, see our Earth Negotiations Bulletin. 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 Meetings of the Conferences of the Parties to the Basel, Rotterdam and Stockholm Conventions. The summary and analysis report is 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. Plenary: Basel Convention Abraham Zivayi Matiza, Basel Convention COP14 President, convenes the plenary Yang Zheng, China Prasert Tapaneeyangkul, Thailand Manoj Kumar Gangeya, India Gregory Rippon, Australia Marco Buletti, Switzerland Mohamed Aman, Bahrain Banu Gözet, Turkey Toï Pagnibam Meba, Togo Abel Arkenbout, Toxico Watch Julie Croteau, Canada Contact Groups Contact Group on Programme of Work and Budget Contact Group on Basel Convention Compliance Contact Group on Basel Convention Strategic Matters Plenary: Stockholm Convention View of the dais during plenary Heidar Ali Balouji, Iran María Florencia Grimalt, Argentina Christina Tolfsen, Norway Mehari Wondmagegn Taye, Rapporteur Delegates from the EU read the meeting report Delegates from Canada and Switzerland consult Delegates from Mongolia consult Around the Venue Rolph Payet, Executive Secretary, BRS Conventions Delegates from China meet at the start of plenary Sverre Thomas Jahre, Norway; Stina Andersson, Sweden; and Trevor Gordon, South Africa Meera Laurijssen, Consultant; Mario Yarto, BRS Secretariat; and Osvaldo Álvarez-Pérez, Rotterdam Convention COP9 President Delegates speak informally between sessions Delegates from Nigeria Delegates from Turkey A delegate reads a back issue of the Earth Negotiations Bulletin to understand the historic context of the negotiations Abderaman Mahamat Abderaman, Chad; Serge Molly Allo'o Allo'o, Gabon; David Kapindula, Zambia; Noluzuko 'Zukie' Gwayi, South Africa; and Gamini Manuweera, UN Environment Programme (UNEP) Delegates listen to a presentation in the exhibition area