Cliamte Change

AOSIS ultimatum to BASIC

At an informal meeting today between BASIC and AOSIS, the AOSIS group has reportedly given an ultimatum to BASIC, saying that it will not support BASIC unless the major economies come up with some sort of ambitious mitigation targets.

Half way house: divided we fall?

At 1 o’clock on December 3, 2011, halfway through CoP 17, the President of CoP 17 held a plenary to take stock of the work done so far. She first thanked the delegates for the “flexibility” they’d shown so far, thus “allowing work to happen”. She was pleased to inform the plenary that work on the Green Climate Fund (GCF) had progressed a lot: indeed, today was a crucial day in the GCF negotiations, such that the Chair wasn’t able to attend the ‘informal stocktaking’, as this particular briefing has been termed. She informed that after 2 rounds of informal consultations on GCF, “a number of countries are willing to accept a report”. 

Of stances, tactics and country positions

November 28, 2011, Durban: Key players at the climate negotiations in Durban presented a preview of their tactics which they might adopt over the next 14 days. On the opening day of CoP17, China made it clear that without finance and technology transfer on the table, the talks were doomed. The US on its part wanted the Cancun Agreement, signed last year, to be operationalised. The European Union stuck to its recent demand that a solution to global warming is only possible if emerging economies like China and India take emission reduction targets.

How to rewrite the Durban script

It’s that time of the year again. Climate change talks are heating up, with the next conference of parties scheduled in Durban in end-November. There is heat but no light. The negotiations are stuck despite the clear signs of climate change: dangerous and potentially catastrophic extreme weather events.

CoP3

Press Release: NOVEMBER 06, 1997

Future sold out A potential bargaining tool to challenge the inequitable sharing of global common resources, such as the atmosphere, is slipping out of the hands of the South for good, according to Anil Agarwal, Director, Centre for Science and Environment New Delhi.

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WHY WELCOME TROUBLE?

SBI 8: Bonn Jun 2-12 : 1998

Entitlements
Date: Jul 31, 1998

Two weeks of discussions on the Kyoto Protocol on climate change have just ended. But core problems remain. The world's worst polluters are still scotfree. It is business as usual for industrialised nations. A report from Bonn

Wither UN objectivity?

November 15, 2000

At an informal meeting with NGOs during the negotiations on Tuesday, UNEP executive director Klaus Töpfer refused to comment when asked if UNEP was working overtime to position itself as a broker for CDM projects. He strongly advocated the inclusion of sinks in the CDM, despite the uncertainties involved. This would give UNEP the opportunity to participate and attract some funds for his cash-strapped organisation.

Carbon colonialism

October 25, 2000

Cheap Fix: The rush to make profits out of carbon-fixing engenders another kind of colonialism

NGOs in glass houses

October 25, 2000

Should Northern groups be pushing international financial institutions to stop funding fossil fuel projects in the South?