Kenya Young Greens

Call for inputs on the CDM policy dialogue - one month to go

2011-12-21T21:36:00.000-08:00

The call for inputs on the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) policy dialogue will be open for one more month. Stakeholders may submit their comments, suggestions and proposals until 16 January 2012 (24:00 GMT) by visiting the following link:

http://cdm.unfccc.int/public_inputs/2011/eb64_02/index.html

The inputs, and a summary of them, will be shared with a high-level panel that will conduct the dialogue. They will also be considered by the CDM Executive Board at its first meeting in 2012.

The CDM policy dialogue was launched at the UN Climate Change Conference in Durban with a view to addressing issues such as external forces affecting the CDM, future challenges it can be expected to face, and opportunities and possible directions for its future use and development.

The terms of reference for the policy dialogue on the CDM may be found under the following link:

http://cdm.unfccc.int/Reference/Notes/gov/info_note23.pdf

Published by CDM watch and
Posted by Philip Otieno

2011-12-08T03:03:00.000-08:00

One of the emerging impediments to an acceptable outcome of Multilateral Agreement on Climate Change is the continued insistance by some developed countries that climate change mitigation actions need to be comparable across board cutting across both developed and developing countries, and developing countries insisting that the burden of historical responsibility on Greenhouse Gases emissions must be one of the key principles coupled with capability to mitigate in designing mitigation actions.

Critical countries in this debate are the four developing countries which have become major players in greenhouse gas emissions. They include: Brazil; South Africa; India; and China, collectively referred to as BASIC countries in the climate change negotiations.

To this end, experts from these four countries held a side event to Equitable access to sustainable development , available at http://http//gdrights.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/EASD-final.pdf

Published by
Philip Otieno

Climate Change Mitigation: Closing the Ambition Gap

2011-12-06T21:20:00.000-08:00

Closing the Ambition Gap:
Key Points for Ministers to Avoid 4°C Warming

Current pledges by all countries put the world onto a 3-4°C or more warming pathway, given the low level of ambition, and with many pledges full of loopholes. Any credible outcome on mitigation in Durban must deal with this gap. Ministers in Durban must ensure that the following elements are reflected in the final decision texts related to developed and developing country mitigation:

1. Acknowledge the ambition gap: The Durban outcome must explicitly acknowledge the ambition gap as reported in the UNEP emissions gap report. The report clarifies that current pledges by developed and developing countries will mean that by 2020 global emissions will be 6-11 GtCO2e higher than a 2°C emissions trajectory.

2. Recognise insufficiency of developed countries’ ambition: The Durban outcome must explicitly recognise that current pledges by developed countries fall far short of the agreed 25-40% IPCC range. Current pledges add up to no more than 12-18% reductions below 1990 by 2020. Ambition drops even lower if existing and proposed loopholes take full effect.

3. Ensure the ambition gap does not get bigger in Durban: Rules for the treatment of loopholes are to be decided in Durban. Existing and proposed loopholes have the potential to increase the ambition gap substantially, erasing most if not all of the already weak ambition of developed countries.

Hot Air: Minimise the carry over of unused AAUs from the first commitment period and avoid new hot air entering the system through weak pledges by Parties.
LULUCF: Make accounting mandatory for all emissions and activities, based on rules with highest environmental integrity. Reject current options in the LULUCF text for forest management that would allow forestry emissions to increase without penalty.
Offsets: Agree that carbon offsets from current or new flexible mechanisms used for developed country compliance must not be double counted as both developed and developing country mitigation actions.

4. Launch a one year work programme on the ambition gap to conclude at COP18: A work programme throughout 2012 should further clarify the size of the gap, and identify, and prepare for adoption, options to close the ambition gap. This work programme must be designed so that COP18 can adopt decisions on steps to close the gap. Work programme elements should include:

Updated Technical Paper: By February 2012, countries should provide full clarity on what their net emissions will be in 2020 based on pledges and the assumptions behind them. The secretariat should then update its Technical Paper.
Submissions on 25-40%: Request submissions from Parties and observers on options to move developed countries into the 25-40% range, as a first step, and subsequently to more than 40% below 1990 by 2020.
Increase ambition in developing countries: Encourage developing countries that have not done so yet to put forward NAMAs including information on the support required, and to increase, as appropriate, current ambition of already pledged NAMAs.
Ambition intersessional: 2012 should see an intersessional meeting specifically aimed at increasing overall ambition and closing the gap, including increasing pledges for developed countries, NAMA ambition and support, and other options such as addressing emissions from bunker fuels and inclusion of HFCs.
Space at the high-level segment of COP18 to take action to close the ambition gap, including moving developed countries into the 25-40% IPCC range, as a first step.

5. Set the long-term emissions pathway that keeps us below 1.5°C: Agree that each country shall contribute its fair share to move the world to the required emissions pathway, leading to a peaking of global emissions by 2015 and a reduction of global emissions by at least 80% below 1990 by 2050.

6. Decide that developed countries shall develop low carbon development strategies that outline how they will achieve near-complete decarbonisation by 2050. Mandate SBSTA to develop guidelines for such strategies for adoption by COP18. Encourage developing countries to prepare similar strategies and provide adequate support.

By CAN International

Posted by Philip

Progress on National Adaptation Plans negotiations in Durban

2011-12-03T02:05:00.001-08:00

It is day six into the seventeenth Conference of Parties and the agenda item number seven on the Subsidiary Body on Implementation (SBI), which is divided into part a and b namely;

a. A process to enable least developed country Parties to formulate and implement national adaptation plans, building upon their experience in preparing and implementing national adaptation programmes of action, and

b. Modalities and guidelines for the least developed country Parties and other developing country Parties to employ the modalities formulated to support national adaptation plans.

A contact group to have informal discussions on this was created and several texts have evolved with the latest being eleven pages long up from the nine page from the text on the 1st of December.

Key issues to note in this agenda item include:

More brackets have emerged in this latest version, that means that this informal group has not come to an agreement on those paragraphs with brackets and these issues will be taken to the plenary for consideration. That is not what you would want to see in a normal day since, the fewer the people the more likely that an amicable solution/ better compromise could be reached. The plenary is comprised of lots of people some of whom are politicians rather than technical people.

Two, is that whereas a country like Kenya is realling from the impacts of climate and has a decimal contribution to emission of Greenhouse gases, and as one study has it, it will cost Kenya upto USD 650 per year in 2012 to adapt to climate change, there is no express requirement for developing countries other than LDCs to develop NAPs but instead, they are being invited if they are interested to do so using the modalities that have been put in place for the LDCs. This is not new to this Durban process though, since that was the mandate from COP 16 in Cancun.

What you and I need to be concerned about is that developing and implementing these NAPs have costs as you can see in a paragraph above that it will cost Kenya a lot to adapt and that Kenya is not in any way responsible in part, to the impacts of climate change. However, the financial burden or responsibility to adapt is still not yet clear whether it will be upon Kenyan's or if those responsible for the impacts will assist poor Kenyans and their government adapt. This is because the provision on the draft text referring to financial arrangements for formulation and implementation is bracketing whether the developed country Parties to continue to provide the least developed country and other developing country Parties. Kenya is not an LDC , keep that in mind.

What I observe is that these other developing countries seems to be not very active on this agenda apart from Kenya and Botswana.

The Africa Group was absent and so is the G77 + China in this informal contact group.

I think that it is important for these other developing countries not to let down their vulnerable people and find away to mobilise support both within themselves and without, to provide a text on this matter and and ensure that the G77plus China, the Africa Group and all other groupings in which some of their members are to support this idea.

This is because I see a systematic narrowing of number of countries that developed countries want to officially commit to support in adaptation and on the other hand increase the number of countries that should officially take responsibility in mitigation actions.

Published by
Philip Otieno

CBD COP New Issue of Square Brackets

2010-10-29T05:24:00.000-07:00

You can find attached the new issue of Square Brackets published on the
occasion of the Nagoya meet. It is also posted on the CBD secretariat
web site:
http://www.cbd.int/ngo/square-brackets/square-brackets-2010-10-en.pdf
Kind regards
Philip Otieno

Civil Society Organizations’ Statement to Plenary 22 October 2010

2010-10-22T04:04:00.000-07:00

Today the Civil Society Organisations in Nagoya where the Tenth Conference of Parties to the Convention on Biodiversity is taking place are set to make a statement in the plenary .You can read their statement in the link below attachment below. http://xa.yimg.com/kq/groups/6459622/1719126007/name/CSO%20Statement%20to%20COP10%2022%20October%202010%2Epdf.

Thanks
Philip

Report of the 2nd GYG Congress

2010-09-07T07:48:00.000-07:00

The report of the 2nd Global Young Greens Congress by Kenya Young Greens is available for your perusal.
The report is prepared by Ms Rose Wachuka who is also the Strategic Advisor on Programs and Partner Relations at Kenya Young Greens and is by no means the official congress report.

The report can be accessed at

http://kenyayounggreensonline.googlegroups.com/web/2nd+GYG+Congress+-+Kenya+Young+Greens+Report+by+Rose+Wachuka.pdf?gda=wNRdznUAAADvVA6RE28WD1YTvVPkmZ-SQrmFXL8cyYTVSQyWkPX2nPyE-1BhHsDBNO7cQjvO7DLUHZ7c7IaNrxpcU0AlnFtdlhcSRX1TIXxjWdygCzx8wlwqT9objPsieKQmJ7X8MS4ytiJ-HdGYYcPi_09pl8N7uUhluvi6pBdfyiSLBCnA8g

A key highlight in the report is the Election of Ms Ann Bulimu, the Chairperson of Kenya Young Greens into the Global Young Greens Steering Committee.

ONLINE MEMBERSHIP REGISTRATION

2010-09-07T07:11:00.000-07:00

Inline with the need to keep up with changing technologies and for better ease of access for new members of the organisation, Kenya Young Greens has developed an online registration form that in essence takes under 6 minutes to complete.

With this process, Kenya Young Greens will now be able to keep an up to date register which will best enable us to keep both new and existing members well informed of the new developments at the organisation.

So go ahead and fill the form:

https://spreadsheets.google.com/viewform?formkey=dE91MEF6VHRsZno1bmNCUE5sUU1QWmc6MQ

Kenya Young Greens on Facebook and Twitter

2010-06-21T04:07:00.001-07:00

Finally, after an awesome training on utilising social networks to get ahead, we have gone right ahead an put that knowledge to some good use.
Now you can all get to be a friend of Kenya Young Greens on Facebook or follow us on twitter for the latest updates and news. That by no means sets in motion a non blogging element. We still are going to keep you locked and loaded from right here.

Twitter: kenyayounggreen
Facebook: kenya young greens kyg

SO let the fun begin and please join us.

Climate Change Convention Gets a new Executive Secretary

2010-05-18T04:12:00.000-07:00

Christiana Figueres has been appointed to replace Yvo De Boer as Executive Secretary of the UNFCCC.

Below is her Bio Data

With a long and distinguished career in the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, Ms. Figueres has been a member of the Costa Rican negotiating team since 1995. She represented Latin America and the Caribbean on the Executive Board of the Clean Development Mechanism in 2007, and was then elected Vice President of the Bureau 2008-2009. One of the most skilled mediators of the Convention, she is frequently asked to chair controversial negotiations. She conceived the new financial instrument “programmatic CDM” with four groundbreaking publications that have marked global thinking on this novel concept.

She initiated her life of public service as Minister Counselor at the Embassy of Costa Rica in Bonn, Germany in 1982. She served as Director of International Cooperation in the Ministry of Planning in Costa Rica, and was then named Chief of Staff to the Minister of Agriculture. Moving to the USA, she was Director of Renewable Energy in the Americas (REIA) and in 1995 founded the Center for Sustainable Development of the Americas (CSDA) which she directed for eight years. She designed and helped to establish national climate change programs in Guatemala, Panama, Colombia, Argentina, Ecuador, Honduras, El Salvador and the Dominican Republic, becoming a prime promoter of Latin America’s active participation in the Climate Change Convention. In 2001 she received the Hero for the Planet Award by the National Geographic Magazine.

Ms. Figueres has made important contributions to the analytic literature on the design of the climate regime, is one of the most widely published authors on the topic, and a frequent public speaker. She has a Masters Degree in Anthropology from the London School of Economics, and a certificate in Organizational Development from Georgetown University. She speaks Spanish, English and German.

Source: http://figueresonline.com/

You can read more on her nomination on Reuters: http://in.reuters.com/article/topNews/idINIndia-48558320100517

Posted By: Philip Otieno, Head of Progammes, KYG

Moving On...

2009-08-05T07:23:00.000-07:00

Sorry we have been all quiet on the blog but suffice it to say we have been busy. We have been part of the organising committe of the International Youth Day Expert and Public forum preparatory meeting set for the 11th of August 2009 which brings together a number of Organisations working on MDGs.
We have also been involved in the formation of the Kenya Youth Climate Network. More on this as it develops.
Do find out more on one of our Key platforms on climate change by joining the mailing list of the Youth Forum on Climate Change for updates. http://groups.google.co.ke/group/yfcc
Coming Soon Photos of the Youth forum on climate change