Delegates from 175 Nations in Bonn Labor Toward Climate Progress
Washington â" Countries made progress during the latest climate change negotiations in Bonn, Germany, August 2â"6, the United Nationsâ top climate change official says, but much work remains to ensure a successful outcome at the next U.N. Climate Change Conference in CancĂșn, Mexico.
(Media-Newswire.com) - Washington â Countries made progress during the latest climate change negotiations in Bonn, Germany, August 2â6, the United Nationsâ top climate change official says, but much work remains to ensure a successful outcome at the next U.N. Climate Change Conference in CancĂșn, Mexico.
This third round of talks sought to determine the negotiating points that delegates will address beginning November 29 at the 16th conference of the parties ( COP-16 ) to the U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change ( UNFCCC ).
âThis week,â UNFCCC Executive Secretary Christiana Figueres said in an August 6 briefing in Bonn, âgovernments have made progress toward deciding the shape of a successful result in CancĂșn.â More than 1,650 participants from 175 countries attended the meeting.
Negotiations in Bonn built on decisions made at the 2009 U.N. Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen, where developed countries agreed to take on economy-wide targets and provide financial support for developing countries. Major developing countries agreed to undertake actions that they would stand behind in a transparent manner.
Jonathan Pershing, head of the U.S. delegation in Bonn, cautioned that not enough progress was being made.
âWhat we have seen over and over again this week is that some countries are walking back from the progress made in Copenhagen and what was agreed to there,â Pershing, deputy special envoy for climate change, said at an August 6 briefing.
âInstead, what we need is to move forward,â he said. âWe need to be ambitious and we need to be pragmatic. If we do so, agreement at CancĂșn is within reach.â
ACHIEVABLE OUTCOME
Many governments, according to the U.N. meeting summary, said an achievable outcome in CancĂșn could involve quickly making operational the key elements of the Bali Action Plan, agreed to in 2007.
Mechanisms are needed to ensure that technological and financial elements of the plan are able to be carried out, Figueres said.
âThis means,â she said, âcountries could agree to take accountable action to, for example, manage and deploy climate finance, boost technology transfer, build skills and capacity to do this and deal with adaptation, especially in the poorest and most vulnerable countries.â
Progress at CancĂșn, Figueres said, âwould also include a mandate to take the process inexorably forward toward an encompassing agreement with legally binding status, which would take more time.â
NEXT STEPS
The next climate change negotiation will be held October 4â9 at the Tianjin Meijiang Convention and Exhibition Center in Tianjin, China. Also in preparation for COP-16, high-level meetings will take place in New York and Geneva.
In Switzerland, the informal meeting of climate ministers, to be held September 1â3, is co-organized by the governments of Switzerland and Mexico. According to the Swiss Federal Office for the Environment, about 30 countries from all continents and negotiating groups will be invited to discuss how funds for climate change mitigation and adaptation should be mobilized, managed and allocated from 2020 onward.
âThe United States is committed to achieving a successful outcome in CancĂșn that builds on the progress made in Copenhagen on all six of the major issues: mitigation, transparency, finance, technology and REDD+ [the U.N. Collaborative Programme on Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation in Developing Countries],â Pershing said.
âThe U.S. stands by the commitments our president made in Copenhagen,â he added. âWe are moving forward with our fast-start funding commitment, and President Obama has made it clear that he remains committed to taking bold action to address the growing threat of climate change.â
âWhatever governments decide to call the CancĂșn result, it has to deliver clear and unmistakable progress,â Figueres said.
âPolitical promises are on the table for the world to see ― to cut and limit the growth in their emissions and to provide finance for developing country action,â she said. âGovernments say these promises will be honored. Their best chance to do that is in CancĂșn.â
Want to do something about climate change? Join the global conversation on Facebook.
( This is a product of the Bureau of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://www.america.gov )
Related Content
Published by:
Release Date
This story was released on 2010-08-13. Please make sure to visit the official company or organization web site to learn more about the original release date. See our disclaimer for additional information.