More
than 165 countries have indicated that they will participate in the signature
ceremony being
convened by United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, who is rallying the
UN to “walk the talk” when it comes to climate change action.
The signing is the first step toward ensuring that the agreement enters into force as soon as possible. After signing, countries must take the further national step of accepting or ratifying the agreement.
The agreement can enter into force 30 days after at least 55 Parties to the UNFCCC, accounting for at least 55 per cent of global emissions, ratify the agreement.
There are 13 countries, mostly Small Island Developing States, that are expected to deposit their instruments of ratification immediately after signing the agreement on Friday.
The signing is the first step toward ensuring that the agreement enters into force as soon as possible. After signing, countries must take the further national step of accepting or ratifying the agreement.
The agreement can enter into force 30 days after at least 55 Parties to the UNFCCC, accounting for at least 55 per cent of global emissions, ratify the agreement.
There are 13 countries, mostly Small Island Developing States, that are expected to deposit their instruments of ratification immediately after signing the agreement on Friday.
Already,
country delegations heading to New York for signing of the Paris Climate Change
Agreement will be traveling climate neutral.
The
travel emissions will be tallied and an equivalent volume of Certified Emission
Reduction (CERs) credits will be cancelled.
The CERs
will be sourced from the Adaptation Fund, set up to fund projects that help
developing countries cope with the inevitable effects of climate change. So, in
addition to compensating for the delegates’ travel, purchase and cancellation
of the credits will help fund projects on the ground.
“Reaching
climate neutrality by mid-century will require a serious and significant effort
to de-carbonize the global economy, based on a systemic shift to ever cleaner
energy, rising levels of energy efficiency and far more sustainable management
of all forms of natural resources,” said Christiana Figueres, Executive
Secretary of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change
(UNFCCC). “Everyone can help speed up and scale up this shift by offsetting the
emissions they are at present unable to reduce.”
CERs, each
equivalent to one tonne carbon dioxide, are awarded to emission reduction
projects registered under the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) – everything
from clean cookstove projects, to wind energy, to tree planting.
Meanwhile,
the Islamic Climate Change Declaration has also been presented to the President
of the UN General Assembly, Mogens Lykketoff.
The Declaration calls for all nations with the greatest responsibility and capacity to lead the way in tackling climate change to phase-out the use of fossil fuels and shifting to 100% renewable sources of energy.
“Islam teaches us that ‘man is simply a steward holding whatever is on earth in trust’,” says Nana Firman, Co-Chair of the Global Muslim Climate Network. “The Declaration calls upon all nations and their leaders to drastically reduce their greenhouse gas emissions and support vulnerable communities, both in addressing the impacts of climate change and in harnessing renewable energy.”
The Declaration calls for all nations with the greatest responsibility and capacity to lead the way in tackling climate change to phase-out the use of fossil fuels and shifting to 100% renewable sources of energy.
“Islam teaches us that ‘man is simply a steward holding whatever is on earth in trust’,” says Nana Firman, Co-Chair of the Global Muslim Climate Network. “The Declaration calls upon all nations and their leaders to drastically reduce their greenhouse gas emissions and support vulnerable communities, both in addressing the impacts of climate change and in harnessing renewable energy.”
The
occasion also marked the official launch of the Global Muslim Climate Network as
support for climate action within the world’s second largest faith group
continues to grow.
Leaders of the Climate Vulnerable Forum have also urged a ministerial gathering of the "High Ambition Coalition" in New York to take the concrete steps needed to accelerate global climate action.
Speaking at the gathering, Secretary Emmanuel M. De Guzman of the Climate Change Commission of the Philippines said: "Ambition must translate into concrete steps to meet the 1.5 degree objective, which means all countries must resubmit far more ambitious contributions under the Paris Agreement by 2020, at the latest. Swifter progress to reach the $100 billion mark while respecting additionality with ODA commitments is equally urgent for enabling ambition globally."
The High Ambition Coalition emerged at the UN Climate Change Conference at Paris (UNFCCC COP21) as an alliance of developing and developed countries that together demanded strong outcomes at COP21, including inclusion of the ambitious 1.5 degree Celsius limit in the Paris Agreement.
No comments:
Post a Comment