Summary
Highlights for Friday, 20 September 2019
Welcoming participants to IPCC-51 on Friday morning, 20 September, IPCC Secretary Abdalah Mokssit thanked the Government of Monaco and the Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation for their generous financial and scientific support to the IPCC, including to the IPCC Scholarship Programme for young developing country scientists, and encouraged other delegations to follow Monaco’s example. IPCC Chair Hoesung Lee said that the IPCC Special Reports completed during the 2018-2019 period will galvanize action at the UN Secretary-General’s Climate Action Summit on 23 September and at the 25th meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the UNFCCC (COP 25) in December. WMO Deputy Secretary-General Elena Manaenkova highlighted the WMO’s ocean- and cryosphere-related work, including establishment of the Global Cryosphere Watch and a new regional climate center in Antarctica. Florin Vladu, Manager, Adaptation Programme, UNFCCC, noted that the Special Report on the Ocean and Cryosphere in a Changing Climate (SROCC) will inform and support the next round of Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), 60% of which he said already include reference to ocean-related adaptation and mitigation actions. Anne Larigauderie, Executive Secretary, Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES), giving the first statement by IPBES to the IPCC, said that properly managed ecosystems can contribute to climate mitigation, underscoring the need to jointly address climate change and biodiversity.Andrés Couve Correa, Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation, Chile, underscored shared knowledge and coordinated action to address climate change. Referring to COP-25 as “the Blue COP,” which will be held in Santiago, Chile, in December, he highlighted the relevance of the SROCC for COP 25. His Serene Highness Prince Albert II of Monaco highlighted political obstacles to taking action on climate change, including those related to the pursuit of selfish short-term interests. Quoting oceanographer Sylvia Earle, he said that “it is the worst of times but also the best of times, because we still have a chance.” The second Joint Session of Working Groups I and II then convened to begin consideration of the Summary for Policymakers (SPM) of the SROCC. The Government of Monaco and the Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation hosted a reception at the at Monaco's Oceanographic Museum on Thursday evening, 19 September.
IISD Reporting Services, through its ENB Meeting Coverage, provided daily web coverage and a summary and analysis from IPCC-51.
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Reception at the Oceanographic Museum
