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J. Tuyet Nguyen, a journalist with years of experience, has covered major stories in New York City and the United Nations for United Press International, the German Press Agency dpa and various newspapers. His reports focused mostly on topics with international interests for readers worldwide. He was president of the United Nations Correspondents Association (2007 and 2008), which is composed of more than 250 journalists representing world media with influence over policy decision makers. He has chaired the organization of the annual UNCA Awards, which seeks to reward journalists around the world who have done the best broadcasts and written reports on the UN and its specialized agencies. He has traveled the world to cover events and write stories, from politics to the environment as well cultures of different regions. But his most important reporting work has been with the United Nations since the early 1980s. He was bureau chief of United Press International office at the UN headquarters before joining dpa in 1997. Prior to working at the UN, he was an editor on the International Desk of UPI World Headquarters in New York. He worked in Los Angeles and covered the final months of war in Vietnam for UPI.

UPDATE: Climate change summit adopts final document at closing, calls for phasing down coal

Glasgow/New York, November 13 – The UN climate change conference in the Scottish city of Glasgow adopted a final outcome document, which for the first time ever mentioned cutting fossil fuels to tackle global climate change impacts before closing a two-week summit. The document, known as the Glasgow Climate Pact, is “an important document, but it is not enough,” said UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.

“The approved texts are a compromise,” he said, reflecting the disappointment of many of the 197 governments and people attending the summit without getting concrete commitments for climate action. “They reflect the interests, the conditions, the contradictions and the state of political will in the world today.”

The deal provides important steps forward “but unfortunately the collective political will was not enough to overcome some deep contradictions. We must accelerate climate action to keep alive the goal of limiting global temperature rise to 1.5 degrees Celsius,” Guterres said in a video statement released at the close of the two-week meeting that began on October 31.

Guterres said that it is time for the world to go “into emergency mode” that calls for ending fossil fuel subsidies, phasing out coal, putting a price on carbon, protecting poor and vulnerable countries and delivering the $100 billion a year on climate finance commitment.

“We did not achieve these goals at this conference. But we have some building blocks for progress,” he said.

The final document called for “phase down” use of coal rather than “phasing out” which climate activists had demanded, and for phasing down “inefficient” fossil fuel subsidies.

Turning to young people who demonstrated to demand concrete climate action, indigenous and women leaders and others who attended the summit, Guterres said, “I know you are disappointed. But the path of progress is not always a straight line. Sometimes there are detours. Sometimes there are ditches. But I know we can get there. We are in the fight of our lives, and this fight must be won. Never give up. Never retreat. Keep pushing forward”.

The adopted document, after several revised versions, was hammered out following hours of negotiations that skipped deadline in Glasgow.  It expressed “alarm and utmost concern that human activities have caused around 1.1 °C of warming to date, that impacts are already being felt in every region, and that carbon budgets consistent with achieving the Paris Agreement temperature goal are now small and being rapidly depleted”

The document reaffirmed the 2015 Paris Agreement temperature goal of “holding the increase in the global average temperature to well below 2 °C above pre-industrial levels and pursuing efforts to limit the temperature increase to 1.5 °C above pre-industrial levels,” and it

recognized that “the impacts of climate change will be much lower at the temperature increase of 1.5 °C compared with 2 °C and resolves to pursue efforts to limit the temperature increase to 1.5 °C.”

It recognized that limiting global warming to 1.5 °C requires “rapid, deep and sustained reductions in global greenhouse gas emissions, including reducing global carbon dioxide emissions by 45 per cent by 2030 relative to the 2010 level and to net zero around mid-century, as well as deep reductions in other greenhouse gases.”

It called on the 197 countries that signed the UN convention on climate change to make stronger pledges to cut global-warming emissions in this decade at the 27th COP to be held Egypt’s Red Sea resort of Sharm El-Sheikh. It asked countries that failed to implement emission cutting programs to renew efforts and called on wealthy nations to “at least double” by 2025 the climate-related funds. Developed countries had promised to donate $100 billion a year by 2020 to help poor and vulnerable countries cope with climate change impacts but that promise was not fulfilled under the pandemic.

The Glasgow summit was the 26th Conference of the Parties to the UNFCC. The next COP in 2022 will be held in the Red Sea resort Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt, and the 2023 COP will be hosted by the United Arab Emirates.

The final document did not fulfil all expectations but the summit produced some positive decisions. The United States and China, the world’s biggest emitters, made a surprise announcement that they will jointly work to cut more carbon emissions this decade while China said it will develop a first-time plan to reduce methane. More than 100 countries have agreed to cut methane emissions by 30 percent by the end of this decade, which is mainly a major program pushed forward by the Biden administration.

More than 100 countries, including the US, Brazil, China and Russia, pledged to end deforestation by 2030.

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UN urges real progress at Glasgow summit; US and China to cooperate on climate action

Glasgow/New York, November 11 – The United Nations said some “progress” has been made at the Glasgow Climate Change Conference as countries and more than 1,000 cities around the world have committed to reach net zero emissions by 2050 while the global coal pipeline has decreased by 76 per cent since 2015. But the progress is “far from enough,” said UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres one day before the conference is to adopt a final document before closing.

More than 100 countries have committed to halting and reversing forest loss and land degradation by 2030 and others have agreed to reducing methane emissions 30 per cent by 2030. The 197 countries attending the climate change conference have also formed a Net-Zero Asset Owners Alliance, which Guterres said is “the gold standard for credible commitments and transparent targets” and “is managing US $10 trillion in assets and catalyzing change across industries.”

“I encourage the much larger Glasgow Finance Alliance for Net Zero to follow the same path,” he said in an address to the high level of attendees to the conference. He also cited decisions by 28 new countries and members to join the Powering Past Coal Alliance, which raised the membership to 165 countries, cities, regions and businesses, and the 44 countries and 32 companies and regions that have committed to transition from coal to clean power.

“That’s why I have been calling for the formation of coalitions of countries, international financial institutions and private finance – as well as renewable energy companies – to support this momentous shift,” he said. “Some 30 member states and regional development banks have pledged immediate support for the clean energy transition in countries. I urge more financial institutions and investors to follow suit.”

“The announcements here in Glasgow are encouraging – but they are far from enough,” he said.

Guterres said he will establish a High-Level Expert Group to propose “clear standards to measure and analyze net zero commitments from non-state actors,” a decision he said is beyond the mechanisms already set out in the Paris Agreement. “This High-Level Expert group will build on existing work and submit a series of recommendations to me during the course of next year. They will work in a transparent and inclusive manner, and I invite you all to cooperate fully with them.”

US and China to cooperate on cutting emissions

The United States and China, the world’s biggest greenhouse gas emitters, said in a surprise announcement at Glasgow on November 10 that they will take joint actions to fight climate change in the coming decade. The announcement stirred hope of climate action, but it failed to support a proposal by the United Kingdom to all countries to update their emissions-cutting plans by the end of 2021. Climate organizations said the UK proposal could help close the differences between how countries plan to cut emissions and what scientists believe what are needed to prevent climate disasters.

See joint statement at:

https://www.state.gov/u-s-china-joint-glasgow-declaration-on-enhancing-climate-action-in-the-2020s/

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Forty seven countries commit to develop climate-smart health care systems to counter climate change

Glasgow/New York, November 9 – A group of 47 countries, a majority of them developing and climate-vulnerable countries, have committed to develop climate-resilient and low-carbon health systems as increasing evidence shows that climate change has impacted people’s health worldwide. The decision by these countries was announced by the World Health Organization at the 26th UN climate summit at the Scottish city attended by 197 member countries of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change.

WHO said most countries in the group have also committed to transform their health systems to be more sustainable and low-carbon while 12 countries have set a target date to reach net zero carbon emissions on or before 2050. The commitments were made as part of the COP26 Health Programme, which is a partnership between the UK government, WHO, the UNFCCC and health groups such as Health Care Without Harm.

“Commitments are anticipated to be implemented in the coming years and will allow countries to develop a roadmap for future investments in climate resilient and low carbon sustainable health systems and facilities,” the programme said.

WHO said countries that have committed to achieving low-carbon, sustainable health systems include Argentina, Fiji, Malawi, Spain, the United Arab Emirates, the United States and 36 others. Countries that have committed to enhance the climate resilience of their health systems include Bangladesh, Ethiopia, the Maldives, the Netherlands, and 42 others.

“The future of health must be built on health systems that are resilient to the impacts of epidemics, pandemics and other emergencies, but also to the impacts of climate change, including extreme weather events and the increasing burden of various diseases related to air pollution and our warming planet,” said Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General of the World Health Organization.

“Health systems must also be part of the solution, by reducing carbon emissions. We applaud those countries that have committed to building climate-resilient and low-carbon health systems, and we hope to see many others following their lead in the near future.”

Countries that have joined the COP26 Health Programme are: Argentina, Bahamas, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Belize, Bhutan, Cape Verde, Central African Republic, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Egypt, Ethiopia, Fiji, Germany, Ghana, Ireland, Jamaica, Jordan, Kenya, Lao PDR, Madagascar, Malawi, Maldives, Morocco, Mozambique, Nepal, Netherlands, Nigeria, Norway, Oman, Pakistan, Panama, Peru, Rwanda, Sao Tome and Principe, Sierra Leone ,Spain, Sri Lanka, Tanzania, Togo, Tunisia, Uganda, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, United States of America and Yemen.

Island states are some of countries most vulnerable to climate change from the Caribbean to the South Pacific Ocean.  WHO pointed out Fiji where the government has built more climate-resilient health infrastructure, strengthened the health workforce and provided health care facilities with sustainable energy services to cope with cyclones, flash floods and rising sea levels.

Minister for Health and Medical Services Ifereimi Waqainabete of Fiji said, “In the midst of the pandemic, we had to recover from extreme weather events and manage the resulting health impacts. [It] has shown us that health systems and facilities are the main line of defense in protecting populations from emerging threats … and that now is the time to increase our commitment to a safer, and more sustainable and inclusive future for all.”

“The message from WHO and health professionals around the globe is clear: climate change is a huge health challenge and we need to act now. I’m really pleased to see so many countries prioritising this issue through the COP26 Health Programme and their level of ambition. Strong leadership from the health sector is vital to make sure we protect our populations from the impacts of climate change by enhancing the climate resilience of health systems, and by reducing emissions from the health sector,” said Wendy Morton, Minister for Europe and Americas, in the United Kingdom’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office.

The COP26 Health Programme include:  Building climate resilient health systems; Developing low carbon sustainable health systems; Adaptation Research for Health; The inclusion of health priorities in Nationally Determined Contributions and Raising the voice of health professionals as advocates for stronger ambition on climate change.

Countries participating in the programme are committed to, first, conducting climate change and health vulnerability assessments, and to develop national adaptation plans for health, and second, high ambition-high emitter countries commit to setting a target date by which to achieve net zero emissions health systems and develop an action plan or roadmap to achieve sustainable, low carbon health systems.

The second commitment is significant to global mitigation efforts: the health sector accounts for 10 per cent of global GDP and is a substantial contributor to greenhouse gas emissions, accounting for around 4.6 per cent.

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Climate demonstrations go global, call for action and justice for all

Glasgow/New York, November 5 – Thousands of young climate activists, so far the largest crowd of protesters in the Scottish city of Glasgow, took to the streets to demand actions against climate change. Headed by Swedish teen activist Greta Thunberg, the young activists called the UN global climate summit “a failure” and brandished signs calling for an end of deforestation and for saving the planet from climate dangers.

But Glasgow is expecting a much larger protest Saturday November 6 as tens of thousands of climate activists are prepared to demonstrate as part of the “Global Day for Climate Justice” organized by Cop26 Coalition. The demonstrations demand that the 197 governments that are holding the 26th UN global climate summit work out effective and just measures against climate change.

More than 25,000 people have registered to attend the climate summit, which the UN considered its most important one as global warming is threatening the earth with more climate disasters such as flooding, severe draught and wildfires. The organizers said over 200 simultaneous events are set to take place around the world, with over 100 in the United Kingdom alone.

With such large crowds in Glasgow, COP26 Coalition has provided guidelines to all participants to take measures against Covid-19 including testing, wearing facial masks and social distancing.
“Public health and safety during the ongoing pandemic is our primary concern,” the guidelines said. “We have planned all activities over COP26 to minimise the risk of spreading Covid-19. We are fighting for climate justice at COP against the backdrop of global vaccine inequality and a need to keep everyone in our communities – both in Glasgow and abroad – safe.”

The Global Day for Climate Justice organization said in its website, which provided also details for the demonstrations, said:

“The Era of Injustice is Over: Our Time is Now”

“Justice won’t be handed to us by world leaders or delivered by corporations. So far, governments have done too little too late: colluding with corporations and hiding behind green washed ‘solutions’ that actually don’t exist yet, that don’t address the scale of the problem, and in many cases rely on more exploitation of people and the planet.

“The transformative solutions that we need to survive and build a more just and fair world can only be brought about through collective action, solidarity and coordination, from our local communities and international levels. We are bringing together movements from across the world to build power for system change – indigenous movements, frontline communities, trade unions, racial justice groups, youth strikers, land workers, peasants, NGOs, grassroots community campaigns, feminist movements, faith groups.”

“Wherever you are in the world, now is the time to join the fight for climate justice. We need all hands on deck: in workplaces, communities, schools, hospitals and across national borders.”

Asad Rehman, a spokesperson for the COP Coalition, told the 350.org, a climate organization present in Glasgow that civil society groups had little access to the climate summit.

“We are taking to the streets across the world this weekend to push governments from climate inaction to climate justice,” Rehman said.  “This has been the least accessible climate summit ever – with so many people sidelined at the talks or not able to make it in the first place. Today those people are having their voices heard.”

“The climate crisis has resulted from our broken, unequal societies and economies. We must transform our global economies into ones that protect both people and our planet instead of profit for a few.”

Brianna Fruean, a Samoan member of the Pacific Climate Warriors delegation and a speaker at the rally on Saturday, said:

“As someone from one of the regions most threatened by climate breakdown I know just how important this climate summit is, and how crucial it is that voices are heard on the streets as well as the corridors of power. For a decade now, the storms in the Pacific have been getting more violent, the droughts have been longer and the floods deeper. Fishers cannot feed their families. Family-owned shops that are flattened in a cyclone are rebuilt, only to be destroyed by rising water.”

“That’s why I’m marching today – with people right across the world – because it can’t go on like this. We refuse to be just victims to this crisis. We are not drowning, we are fighting and on Saturday the world will hear us.”

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UN issues new global roadmap to secure clean energy access for all by 2030 and net zero emissions by 2050

Following is a press release from the UN Department of Global Communications:

New York, November 3 – As pressure mounts for urgent climate action, UN Secretary-General António Guterres today issued a global roadmap to achieve a radical transformation of energy access and transition by 2030, while also contributing to net zero emissions by 2050. 

The roadmap sets an aggressive timeline to ensure that 500 million more people gain access to electricity in a mere four years’ time, by 2025, and 1 billion more people gain access to clean cooking solutions. This would require that annual investment in access to electricity and clean cooking increase to US$ 35 billion and US$ 25 billion, respectively. The required investment represents only a small fraction of the multi-trillion-dollar global energy investment needed overall, but would bring huge benefits to one-third of the world’s population.

“We face a moment of truth,” the Secretary-General said. “Close to 760 million people still lack access to electricity. Some 2.6 billion people lack access to clean cooking solutions. And how we produce and use energy is the main cause of the climate crisis. We must solve these challenges this decade. And we must start today. With the global roadmap at hand, we can together realize the potential of energy as a crucial enabler for the achievement of the SDGs and the objectives of the Paris Agreement, ensuring a more prosperous, equitable and sustainable future for people and the planet.”

The global roadmap is a major outcome of the UN High-level Dialogue on Energy held on 24 September, at which over 130 Heads of State and Government and global leaders from business and other sectors announced over $400 billion in new finance and investment for clean energy as part of voluntary commitments called Energy Compacts. These Compacts are examples of the concrete actions and partnerships required under the global roadmap, in order to achieve clean, affordable energy for all by 2030 – Sustainable Development Goal 7 – and net zero emissions by 2050, in support of the Paris Agreement on Climate Change.

Targets and timelines for action

Also by 2025, the roadmap calls for: fossil fuel consumption subsidies to be re-directed towards renewable energy and energy efficiency; a 100% increase in modern renewables capacity globally; a doubling of annual investment in renewables and energy efficiency globally; and 30 million jobs to be created in renewable energy and energy efficiency. These will help ensure an inclusive, green recovery by investing in poverty reduction, health, education and social protection.

The most immediate target in the roadmap calls for no new coal power plans to be in the pipeline after 2021. This has been an area of mobilization in the lead-up to the energy summit, and a “No New Coal Power” Energy Compact was announced by the Powering Past Coal Alliance and UN-Energy with seven partner governments so far: Chile, Denmark, France, Germany, Montenegro, Sri Lanka and the United Kingdom.

By 2030, the roadmap calls for tripling annual investment for renewable energy and energy efficiency globally as well as global renewable power capacity, and phasing out coal power plants altogether by 2030 for OECD countries and globally by 2040. At the same time, universal access to electricity and clean cooking solutions must be achieved, including electricity for all healthcare facilities and schools worldwide, and 60 million new jobs created in renewables and energy efficiency.

A just and inclusive energy transition

Acknowledging that no two national energy transition pathways will be identical, the roadmap urges that in achieving the milestones set out, the Sustainable Development Goals should be integrated as a guiding framework to ensure a just and inclusive energy transition where no one is left behind, especially vulnerable populations.

The Secretariat of the High-level Dialogue on Energy today also issued a report, which provides more details on the roadmap’s recommendations, as well as the statements and commitments made at the High-level Dialogue.

Spearheading partnerships

Looking ahead, the global roadmap urges governments, businesses and all stakeholders to step up and drive the global energy transition forward through transformational partnerships. Additional Energy Compacts should continue to be mobilized, including through a global energy compact action network, supported by UN-Energy, the coordinating body that brings together over 25 UN system and international organizations working on various aspects of sustainable energy.

The roadmap calls for the UN system to significantly scale up its efforts towards attaining SDG 7 and net zero emissions, and for strengthening UN-Energy, which will coordinate and monitor progress on the Energy Compacts and implementation of the roadmap through the 2030 target year.

Under the leadership of its Co-Chairs, Achim Steiner, Administrator of UNDP, and Damilola Ogunbiyi, the Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General for Sustainable Energy for All, who have also served as Co-Chairs of the High-level Dialogue, UN-Energy will continue to spearhead commitments and partnerships and sustain the momentum created by the Dialogue, including the Energy Compacts. Serving as the Secretariat for UN-Energy is UN DESA, under the leadership of Under-Secretary-General Liu Zhenmin, who also served as Dialogue Secretary-General.

Media Contacts

UN DGC: Dan Shepard, shepard@un.org; HLDE Secretariat, UN DESA: Pragati Pascale, pascale@un.org; Daniella Sussman, daniella.sussman@un.org. UNDP: Sarah Bel, sarah.bel@undp.org.  SEforAll: Divya Kottadiel, divya.kottidiel@seforall.org.

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On the web: www.un.org/en/conferences/energy2021 | Twitter: @UN_Energy

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Climate magnifies hunger in Madagascar, forecasted poor rains bring dread and despair

Following is a news release from the World Food Program:

Antananarivo, Madagascar, November 2 – As climate talks get underway in Glasgow, families in Southern Madagascar, where climate is driving famine-like conditions, brace themselves for yet another harsh year ahead as the ongoing drought shows no signs of abating, signaling deteriorating hunger.

Severe hunger has touched over 1.1 million people with 14,000 of them one step away from famine. The situation, already alarming, is set to worsen by the end of year with the number of people in famine-like conditions expected to double.

“The changing climate has meant that many families who were able to live off the land 15 years ago have now fallen into severe hunger. Families are scavenging for survival and many are living only on the food assistance they receive,” said Menghestab Haile, WFP Regional Director, Southern Africa.”I recently met a mother who told me that she had lost her 8-month-old to seeds from cactus fruit that had accumulated in his stomach. The face of hunger in Southern Madagascar is horrific.”

The drought has led to the complete disappearance of food sources leaving families visibly famished and resorting to survival measures such as eating locusts, wild leaves and cactus leaves which are usually fed to cattle. Vulnerable children are bearing the brunt of the crisis with malnutrition in under-fives expected to quadruple, crossing the half million mark by April 2022.

“The number of malnourished children coming to health centres in Southern Madagascar has doubled compared to this time last year. Many of them are too weak to laugh or cry, let alone play and learn,” said Anna Horner, WFP’s Chief of Nutrition Innovative Financing, who recently visited Southern Madagascar. “The physical and mental damage to children due to malnutrition can be irreversible. It is heart-wrenching to see so many young minds and bodies unnecessarily suffering from hunger and malnutrition.”

Amidst the hottest decade on record, Madagascar has suffered from exceptionally warm temperatures, deficits in rainfall and unexpected sandstorms that have covered fields, left crops wilted and harvests well below average.  By April 2021, 70 per cent of the Grand Sud was in drought with food production only a third of the last five-year average. The forecasted dry start to the upcoming planting season means families will not be able to sow their fields immediately and their access to food and an income hangs in the balance. Adding to an already dire situation, a recent upsurge of locusts is expected to affect an estimated 400,000 hectares of land.

WFP has been reaching around 700,000 people monthly with emergency life-saving food as well as supplementary nutrition products for pregnant and nursing women and children. Moving beyond emergency support, WFP together with the government, is implementing long-term resilience building activities that help communities adapt to the changing climate. These include access to water, reforestation, sand dune stabilization and economic support like access to microinsurance schemes in case of crop failure.

In September, 3,500 households received a payout of US$100 each to recover losses from the failed maize crop. The payout helped families sustain themselves despite a lost harvest.

WFP aims to scale up its response in Southern Madagascar and urgently needs US$69 million over the next six months to do so. WFP is increasingly concerned about the situation in Madagascar and has been ringing the alarm bells over the climate-induced hunger crisis, one of the potentially many in the world.

The United Nations World Food Program is the 2020 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate.  We are the world’s largest humanitarian organization, saving lives in emergencies and using food assistance to build a pathway to peace, stability and prosperity for people recovering from conflict, disasters and the impact of climate change.

Follow us on Twitter @wfp_media @PamMadagascar

For more information please contact (email address: firstname.lastname@wfp.org)

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US and the European Union lead global pact at climate summit to cut methane emissions worldwide

Glasgow/New York, November 2 – The United States and the European Union are calling for a global pact to cut methane emissions by 30 per cent and have received backing from dozens of governments, a move that would help the climate summit in the Scottish city of Glasgow to move forward as it badly needs a breakthrough in climate action to revert global warming.

Methane is one of greenhouse gases that cause global warming and its impact is over 80 times stronger than carbon dioxide (CO2) over a 20-year period. Scientists and environmentalists said cutting methane emissions could help the goal of slowing down global warming.

The US Environmental Protection Agency planned to issue strict rules limiting methane emissions from oil and natural gas production in the United States as part of President Joe Biden’s climate initiatives, it was announced in Washington.

Governments attending the climate summit have begun signing the Global Methane Pledge, which aims at cutting methane emissions to keep global temperature within 1.5 degrees Celsius. The pledge says participating countries agree to take “voluntary actions to contribute to a collective effort to reduce global methane emissions at least 30 per cent from 2020 levels to 2030, which could eliminate over 0.2 degree C warming by 2050.”

See climate summit’s schedule of meetings: https://unfccc.int/conference/glasgow-climate-change-conference-october-november-2021

The UN Environment Program, with support from the European Union, launched on October 31 an International Methane Emissions Observatory (IMEO) at the G20 summit in Rome for the purpose of driving action on reducing methane emissions. UNEP said methane emissions are responsible for at least a quarter of the current climate warming.

It said IMEO will “improve the reporting accuracy and public transparency of human-caused methane emissions. IMEO will initially focus on methane emissions from the fossil fuel sector, and then expand to other major emitting sectors like agriculture and waste.”

“As highlighted by IPCC, if the world is serious about avoiding the worst effects of climate change, we need to cut methane emissions from the fossil fuel industry. But this is not a get-out-of-jail free card: methane reductions must go hand in hand with actions to decarbonize the energy system to limit warming to 1.5°C, as called for in the Paris Agreement,” said Inger Andersen, Executive Director of UNEP.

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UN blunt message to climate summit: “Either we stop it — or it stops us”

Glasgow/New York, November 1 – In his address opening the climate summit in the Scottish city of Glasgow UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres urged the 197 countries that signed UN Framework Convention on Climate Change to prevent a climate catastrophe. We face a stark choice:  Either we stop it — or it stops us,” he said.

The United Nations’ 26th climate conference, considered the biggest and most important for planet earth, opened negotiations that could last two weeks faced with negative views that it may not succeed in efforts to revert global warming as wealthy nations remain divided about measures to phase out coal and other energy sources responsible for global warming.

“It’s time to say: enough,” he said. “Enough of brutalizing biodiversity. Enough of killing ourselves with carbon. Enough of treating nature like a toilet.

Enough of burning and drilling and mining our way deeper. We are digging our own graves.”

Guterres said the planet is changing “from the ocean depths to mountain tops, from melting glaciers to relentless extreme weather events.

Sea-level rise is double the rate it was 30 years ago.”

The UN chief called recent statements that the world is still on tract to fight climate change an “illusion.” He said published report of Nationally Determined Contributions, which are pledges by countries to implement measures cutting emissions, would still increase global temperature to 2.7 degrees Celsius this century instead of 1.5 degrees as demanded in the Paris climate agreement in 2015.

“So, as we open this much anticipated climate conference, we are still heading for climate disaster,” he said. “Young people know it. Every country sees it.”

Frustration built up after the group of 20 major economies (G20) remained divided about how to implement the Paris 2015 climate agreement, which aims to achieve net zero emissions by 2050 by removing enough greenhouse gases from the atmosphere in order to match any new emissions.

The two-week climate summit opened on October 31 in Glasgow with an ambitious but difficult program of setting up new regulations to implement targets of phasing out fossil fuels burning that are heating up the planet. Known as COP26, which means the 26th annual Conference of the Parties to the UNFCC signed by 197 countries. About 100 heads of state and government and more than 25,000 participants from the UN, non-governmental organizations and civil societies and activists have registered to attend in person. US President Joe Biden, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, European Union leaders, Guterres and other government leaders were to address the summit.

See climate summit’s schedule of meetings: https://unfccc.int/conference/glasgow-climate-change-conference-october-november-2021

A main goal of fighting climate change was set at the climate conference in Paris in 2015, which demanded that countries implement climate mitigating measures and adapt to climate technology to prevent the average global temperature from rising above 1.5 degrees Celsius. But studies showed that global warming will continue with deadly heat waves, flooding, wildfire, drought and the collapse of the ecosystems.

Climate action requires also that wealthy countries allocate $100 billion a year to developing and vulnerable countries so they can adapt to green technology and cope with climate disasters that they are not responsible for. But wealthy countries have not yet met the needed financial goal.

The UN Environment Program said in a new Emissions Gap Report before the Glasgow conference that new and updated commitments to mitigate climate change were a positive step forward. But it said however that the world remains on track for a dangerous global temperature rise of at least 2.7 degrees Celsius this century even if climate action is implemented.

The report said the efforts remained insufficient and the world needs a 55 per cent reduction to limit global temperature increase below 1.5°C, the capstone defined by scientists as the less risky scenery for our planet and humanity’s future.

See full report here: https://bit.ly/2ZhNuUT

Executive summary: https://bit.ly/3GloOfd

The report showed that updated Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), which are pledges by each country to reduce national emissions, as well as other commitments made for 2030 but not yet officially submitted – would only lead to an additional 7.5 per cent reduction in annual greenhouse emissions in 2030, compared to previous commitments.

The UN Development Program and the University of Oxford issued also a new survey called the G20 Peoples’ Climate Vote that showed the crucial importance of how young people support climate action in the G20, which is a group of the world’s wealthiest nations. Climate action by the G20 would have a huge impact on mitigating climate change because the group accounts for 80 per cent of the global economy and 75 per cent of global emissions.


See full report: https://bit.ly/3GixZNt

“This new Peoples’ Climate Vote shows that, on average, 70 per cent of young people in G20 countries believe that we are in a global climate emergency,” said UNDP Administrator Achim Steiner.

“Given that they are about to inherit this climate emergency, young people are sending a message to global leaders that is loud and clear: they want climate action now. The world is now watching – hoping that countries will come together at COP26 in Glasgow to make bold, historic decisions that will literally change the future.”

The most popular climate policies among under-18s in the G20 countries surveyed were conservation of forests and land (59%), using solar, wind and renewable power and using climate friendly farming techniques (both 57%). Support for these policies was stronger among young people by three percentage points for the first two policies, and by four percentage points for climate-friendly farming.

The survey polled over 689,000 people, including over 300,000 under 18 years old. Youths at are particularly aware of climate dangers as they are entering the workforce and becoming voters, which put them in positions of greater influence.

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Methane Observatory Launched to Boost Action on Powerful Climate-Warming Gas

Rome, October 31 – The UN Environment Program, with support from the European Union, has launched a new observatory to drive action on reducing methane emissions – a powerful greenhouse gas responsible for at least a quarter of the current climate warming.

The International Methane Emissions Observatory (IMEO) was launched at the G20 Summit, on the eve of the latest round of climate talks, known as COP26 in Glasgow.

IMEO will improve the reporting accuracy and public transparency of human-caused methane emissions. IMEO will initially focus on methane emissions from the fossil fuel sector, and then expand to other major emitting sectors like agriculture and waste.

The recently published UNEP-CCAC Global Methane Assessment states that zero or low net-cost reductions could almost halve anthropogenic methane emissions and proven measures could shave 0.28 degrees Celsius from the forecasted rise in the planet’s average temperature by 2050.

IMEO will provide the means to prioritize actions and monitor commitments made by state actors in the Global Methane Pledge – a US- and EU-led effort by over two dozen countries to slash methane emissions by 30 per cent by 2030.

See detailed report on the IMEO at https://bit.ly/3ClU8bv

Methane: over 80 times more potent than CO2

To stay on track to reach the Paris Agreement goal of limiting climate change to 1.5°C, the world needs to almost halve greenhouse gas emissions by 2030. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change notes that if the world is to achieve the 1.5°C temperature target, deep methane emissions reductions must be achieved over this time.

“As highlighted by IPCC, if the world is serious about avoiding the worst effects of climate change, we need to cut methane emissions from the fossil fuel industry. But this is not a get-out-of-jail free card: methane reductions must go hand in hand with actions to decarbonize the energy system to limit warming to 1.5°C, as called for in the Paris Agreement,” said Inger Andersen, Executive Director of UNEP.

Methane released directly into the atmosphere is more than 80 times more potent than CO2 over a 20-year time horizon. However, as methane’s atmospheric lifespan is relatively short – 10 to 12 years – actions to cut methane emissions can yield the most immediate reduction in the rate of warming, while also delivering air quality benefits.

EU Commissioner for Energy Kadri Simson said: “Methane has accounted for roughly 30 per cent of global warming since pre-industrial times, and today its emissions are increasing faster than at any other time since record keeping began in the 1980s.”

“Existing systems do not allow us to determine precisely enough where emissions happen across the global and in what volumes. Once better data is available, countries can take swift and well-targeted action.”

“In the EU, we will already propose pioneering legislation to cut methane emissions this year. This includes mandatory leak detection and repair and limiting venting and flaring.”

The fossil fuel industry is responsible for one-third of anthropogenic emissions and is the sector with the highest potential for reductions. The wasted methane, the main component in natural gas, is a valuable source of energy that could be used to fuel power plants or homes.

IMEO: an independent and trusted entity

The Observatory will produce a global public dataset of empirically verified methane emissions – starting with the fossil fuel sector – at an increasing level of granularity and accuracy by integrating data principally from four streams:

* reporting from the Oil and Gas Methane Partnership 2.0 (OGMP 2.0),

* direct measurement data from scientific studies,

* remote sensing data, and

* national inventories.

This will allow IMEO to engage companies and governments around the world to utilize this data to target strategic mitigation actions and support science-based policy options.

Critical to this effort are data collected through OGMP 2.0, launched in November 2020 in the framework of the Climate and Clean Air Coalition. OGMP 2.0 is the only comprehensive, measurement-based reporting framework for the oil and gas sector, and its 74 member companies represent many of the world’s largest operators across the entire value chain, with assets that account for over 30 per cent of all oil and gas production.

IMEO: First Annual Report

In a report released to coincide with the launch, IMEO laid out its Theory of Change, at the heart of which is the need for an independent and trusted entity to integrate these multiple sources of heterogenous data into a coherent and policy-relevant dataset.

The report also includes the analysis of the first reports submitted by the company members of the OGMP 2.0. During this first year, most companies put significant effort into reporting and outlined ambitious 2025 reduction targets. Out of the 55 companies that set targets, 30 meet or exceed the recommended targets of 45% reduction or near-zero methane intensity, and 51 have submitted plans that provide confidence the accuracy of their data will improve in the next 3-5 years.

Hosted by UNEP, IMEO is budgeted at EUR 100 million over five years. To maintain its independence and credibility, it will receive no industry funding. Instead, IMEO will be entirely funded by governments and philanthropies, with core resources provided by the European Commission as a founding member.

Contact:

Terry Collins & Assoc. | tca.tc | LinkedIn.com/in/terrycollins, Toronto, ON M6R1L8 Canada

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Climate summit faces major challenges to revert global warming

Glasgow/New York, October 30 – The United Nations climate conference in the Scottish city of Glasgow faced negative views that it may not be able to succeed in efforts to revert global warming as wealthy nations remain divided about measures to phase out coal, a major source of greenhouse gas emissions.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said during meetings October 29-30 in Rome of the G20 that there is a “serious risk” that the Glasgow conference “will not deliver,” as reported by UN News. G20 is the group of the world’s wealthiest nations that account for 80 per cent of the global economy and 75 per cent of global emissions.

 “Even if recent pledges were clear and credible, and there are serious questions about some of them, we are still careening towards climate catastrophe,” he said.

“If we want real success…we need more ambition and more action. The most important objective of this G20 Summit must be to re-establish trust – by tackling the main sources of mistrust – rooted in injustices, inequalities and geo-political divides,” he said.

“On all our climate goals, we have miles to go.  And we must pick up the pace. Scientists are clear on the facts. Leaders must be as clear in their actions,” he stated, adding that the climate summit can be “a turning point towards a safer, greener world. It is not too late. But we must act now”.

The two-week climate summit was to open on October 31 in Glasgow with an ambitious but difficult program of setting up new regulations to implement targets of phasing out fossil fuels burning that are heating up the planet. Known as COP26, which means the 26th annual Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change signed by 197 countries.

About 100 heads of state and government and thousands of representatives from the UN, non-governmental organizations and civil societies have registered to attend in person. US President Joe Biden, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, European Union leaders and Guterres will address the summit.

A main goal of fighting climate change was set at the climate conference in Paris in 2015, which demanded that countries implement climate mitigating measures and adapt to climate technology to prevent the average global temperature from rising above 1.5 degrees Celsius. But studies showed that global warming will continue with deadly heat waves, flooding, wildfire, drought and the collapse of the ecosystems.

Climate action requires also that wealthy countries allocate $100 billion a year to developing and vulnerable countries so they can adapt to green technology and cope with climate disasters that they are not responsible for. But wealthy countries have not yet met the needed financial goal.

The UN Environment Program said in a new Emissions Gap Report before the Glasgow conference that new and updated commitments to mitigate climate change were a positive step forward. But it said however that the world remains on track for a dangerous global temperature rise of at least 2.7 degrees Celsius this century even if climate action is implemented.

See full report here: https://bit.ly/2ZhNuUT

Executive summary: https://bit.ly/3GloOfd

The report said the efforts remained insufficient and the world needs a 55 per cent reduction to limit global temperature increase below 1.5°C, the capstone defined by scientists as the less risky scenery for our planet and humanity’s future.

The report showed that updated Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), which are pledges by each country to reduce national emissions, as well as other commitments made for 2030 but not yet officially submitted – would only lead to an additional 7.5 per cent reduction in annual greenhouse emissions in 2030, compared to previous commitments.

The UN Development Program and the University of Oxford issued also a new survey called the G20 Peoples’ Climate Vote that showed the crucial importance of how young people support climate action in the G20, which is a group of the world’s wealthiest nations. Climate action by the G20 would have a huge impact on mitigating climate change because the group accounts for 80 per cent of the global economy and 75 per cent of global emissions.


See full report: https://bit.ly/3GixZNt

“This new Peoples’ Climate Vote shows that, on average, 70 per cent of young people in G20 countries believe that we are in a global climate emergency,” said UNDP Administrator Achim Steiner.

“Given that they are about to inherit this climate emergency, young people are sending a message to global leaders that is loud and clear: they want climate action now. The world is now watching – hoping that countries will come together at COP26 in Glasgow to make bold, historic decisions that will literally change the future.”

The most popular climate policies among under-18s in the G20 countries surveyed were conservation of forests and land (59%), using solar, wind and renewable power and using climate friendly farming techniques (both 57%). Support for these policies was stronger among young people by three percentage points for the first two policies, and by four percentage points for climate-friendly farming.

The survey polled over 689,000 people, including over 300,000 under 18 years old. Youths at are particularly aware of climate dangers as they are entering the workforce and becoming voters, which put them in positions of greater influence.

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