UN Geneva @UNGeneva

 

 

COP21: Reconciling Economic, Social and Environmental objectives into one Climate Project

 

From the European Political Strategy Center, the EU in-house think tank 

EPSC @ECThinkTank   Dec 1

If #COP21 delivers, humanity will finally reconcile econ,

 

social & env objectives into one #climate project

 

ec.europa.eu/epsc/publicati…

 

 

 

COP21 works continue until Saturday 2015-12-12: New text on Saturday 9.00am

 

UN Climate Action @UNFCCC

#COP21 President @LaurentFabius: "I will be able to present a new next to Parties tomorrow at 9 a.m." pic.twitter.com/FJkj9zWdHZ

 

COP21 - Paris 2015 @COP21

.@LaurentFabius "Sur la base des progrès accomplis, je pense être en mesure de présenter demain au Comité ma proposition de texte final"

 

COP21en @COP21en

.@LaurentFabius "It will be a huge step forward for Humanity" #COP21 #ParisAgreement pic.twitter.com/Q4u7z7tXfR

 

EU Climate Action @EUClimateAction

#EU team analyses latest draft of the #Paris2015 Agreement text ahead of all night negotiations at #COP21 pic.twitter.com/ukCEjuv8Tf

 

 

John Kerry @JohnKerry 

Past midnight in Paris for #COP21. Everyone working hard. A critical moment, an opportunity we can't afford to miss. pic.twitter.com/LoardSMd85

 

 

 

 

COP21en @COP21en

.@LaurentFabius "It has been a long and very intense night. I really thank everyone for their implication" #COP21

 

 

 

U.S. Center at COP21 @US_Center  

Just released: Report shows US provided 15.6 billion public climate finance FY 2010-2015. state.gov/documents/orga… pic.twitter.com/hjazlXL5ti

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

COP21 2015-12-09: New draft agreement distributed to 196 participants

 

New draft agreement distributed to 196 participants available:

unfccc.int/meetings/paris_nov_2015/in-session/items/9320.php

http://www.cop21.gouv.fr/cop21-accord/

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Department of State @StateDept

.@JohnKerry today announced the US will double its grant-based, public climate finance for adaptation by 2020. More: go.usa.gov/cBFSH

 

 

UN News Centre @UN_News_Centre 2015-12-08

Robert Redford @UNESCO to discuss storytelling for global action on sidelines of #COP21 bit.ly/1jLRW3o

pic.twitter.com/Igs3sCM7SU

 

 

 Department of State Retweeted

John Kerry ‏@JohnKerry  Dec 7

Great to see my friend @LeoDiCaprio at #COP21-- one of the most committed advocates for our ocean and our planet.

 

 

 

 

COP21 2015/12/08: LPAA Focus on Innovation

 

 

LPAA Live @LPAA_Live

At #COP21, govts & private sector commit to increase R&D for low-carbon technologies bit.ly/21M3k1y #LPAA pic.twitter.com/a51mQ6xnR4

 

UN Climate Action @UNFCCC

Arnold @Schwarzenegger: "California will reduce its CO2 emissions by 85% by 2050" #LPAA #COP21 pic.twitter.com/jkiyJ6JZYt

 

COP21en @COP21en

.@Schwarzenegger just met @LaurentFabius to talk about #climatechange #COP21 pic.twitter.com/r1iSoTkt4B

 

 

 

 

COP21en @COP21en

[NEWS #COP21] Norway is going to double its contribution to the Green fund for #climate bit.ly/1lqPMrN pic.twitter.com/hIpHddnlBb

http://www.greenclimate.fund/-/norway-to-double-its-pledge-to-the-green-climate-fu-1

 

 

 

COP21 2015/12/07: LPAA Focus on Renewable Energy

 

LPAA Live @LPAA_Live

 

 

U.S. Center at COP21 @US_Center

 

C40 Mayors Summit 2015-12-04

 

 

http://www.c40.org/blog_posts/standing-together-to-face-the-toughest-challenges-of-the-21st-century

 

(Paris City Hall)

 

 

Excerpt:

 

Today, we are at Paris City Hall to commit ourselves to acting without delay to tackle climate disruption, which is a global challenge to the daily life of our citizens and to the legacy we will leave to future generations.  

As the Mayors of 82 of the largest and most iconic cities in the world, we know that creating better cities changes lives. Through C40 and other organisations, cities are demonstrating that they have a key role to play in the international efforts to build social cohesion and resilience. For that purpose, we are fully committed to strengthen our collaboration as a network of city leaders, knowing that we each advance more quickly because we are able to work together.

Signed by the C40 Steering Committee

With

Anne Hidalgo, Mayor of Paris

Michael R. Bloomberg, UN SG Special Envoy for Cities and Climate Change

 

 

 

Department of State Retweeted 2015-12-04

Evan Ryan @ECA_AS

 

COP21 DAY 5 - 2015/12/03 

LPAA Focus on Private Finance and Pollutants

http://

http://Pr

Private Finance: bit.ly/21AUPGA

Pollutants: http://bit.ly/21AUPGA

 

 

COP21 DAY 4 - 2015/12/04

LPAA Focus on Transport and Buildings

Ocean Day

 

 

Comment on negotiations

"A long term goal, a deal on finance, a ratchet mechanism, rules"

 

We Mean Business @WMBtweets

Our "The Bottom Line" Day 3 #COP21 Analysis - An Injection of Momentum in negotiations ow.ly/VpC3r pic.twitter.com/9QVbtlic77

 

 

Excerpt:

“they well know what such an outcome needs to contain: a long term goal, a deal on finance, a ratchet mechanism, rules etc. Over the remainder of the week what they need to find are the critical missing ingredients (…)”

 

 

The White House @WhiteHouse

.@POTUS on the task in Paris: "A long-term strategy that gives the world confidence in a low-carbon future." #COP21 snpy.tv/1YCZCos

 

 

 

Bill Gates tells Nature journal why he is in Paris for the conference

 

Nature News&Comment @NatureNews

Bill Gates tells Nature why he's in Paris for the climate conference ow.ly/VjvFB #COP21 #NatureAtCOP pic.twitter.com/Nj3nQNfJKy

 

 

President Obama Retweeted Bill Gates

Addressing climate change takes all of us, especially the private sector going all-in on clean energy worldwide.

President Obama added,

 

 

Bill Gates @BillGates

 

 

John Kerry @JohnKerry

Applaud @BillGates' announcement of world's largest clean energy research and development partnership. youtu.be/YhgIY-Vghj4

 

 

 

Spread the word: 154 major American companies are committing to #ActOnClimate → http://go.wh.gov/ClimatePledge  #COP21

 

 

We Mean Business @WMBtweets

 

 

http:/bit.ly/1J2Lyud  #CoperSucar

 

 

 

Season's Festivities at the US - Christmas National Tree Lighting - December 3rd

 

 

 

 

Ocean Day

Ocean & Climate @ocean_climate

 

Focus on Buildings

 

LPAA Live @LPAA_Live

 

 

 

Focus on Transport

UN Climate Action @UNFCCC

 

 

 

 

.@icao President presents the Airport Carbon Accreditation initiative http://bit.ly/1lkcFwu  #transport #LPAA #COP21

 

 

.@RoyalSegolene launches Mobilise Your City initiative: http://bit.ly/1MCO6GP  #transport #LPAA #COP21

 

 

Enviro Director at @OECD_ENV Simon Upton: #transport responsible for a quarter of GHG emissions #LPAA #COP21

 

 

Paris Declaration on Electro-Mobility & Climate Change presented at #LPAA by @RoyalSegolene http://bit.ly/1Q250zS 

 

 

.@RoyalSegolene launches global call for tender for cheaper electric cars: http://bit.ly/1Q42mYX  #LPAA #COP21

 

 

LPAA Live Retweeted

We Mean Business @WMBtweets

 

 

 

 

 

COP21 DAY 3 - 2015/12/02
COP21 Lima-Paris Action Agenda (LPAA) Focus on Resilience: Water & Oceans, Vulnerability & People

 

LPAA Live @LPAA_Live

 

UN Climate Action @UNFCCC

 

UN Climate Action @UNFCCC

The LPAA initiatives addressing WATER and OCEANS RESILIENCE are, as for today:

• Paris Pact on Water and Adaptation
• MegaCities Coalition on water
• Business Alliance for Water and Climate Change
• Adaptation of the West African coastal areas
• Maritim Regions in Action against Climate Change

 

 

Centre National de Recherche (CNRS) et COP21

http://www.cnrs.fr/fr/COP21/

 

https://twitter.com/CNRS/status/672007316930170880

Toute la journée #LaRechercheMobilisée pour la #COP21 twitter.com/inee_cnrs/stat…

 

 

irstea @irstea

 

 

L'écologie au CNRS @INEE_CNRS

 

 

Climate Generations areas (Le Bourget) and #Water Day

 

COP21en @COP21en

 

 

 

The Eight Days of the Lima Paris Action Agenda (LPAA)

#UNSG Ban Ki-moon arrives at @COP21 in #Paris. @fhollande @LaurentFabius @RoyalSegolene @UNFCCC @CFigueres

 

#UNSG Ban Ki-moon, @BarackObama and @fhollande at opening of @COP21 in #Paris.

 

 

 

UN News Centre @UN_News_Centre

 

UN Geneva @UNGeneva

 

 

U.S. Center at COP21 @US_Center

We're watching @POTUS live here, are you? #cop21 whitehouse.gov/live/president… pic.twitter.com/iBqKJNNVfR

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ministère CultureCom @MinistereCC

 

 

 

Prelude to COP21: Eiffel Tower lighting event with 1Heart1Tree

With the participation of the UN Secretary General and the Chief of the Amazon Forest

 

The links to the apps from: 1Heart1Tree @1Heart1Tree

 

 

"Plant the seeds today for a better world tomorrow" Ban Ki-moon at Eiffel Tower @1Heart1Tree event in Paris. #COP21

 

 

 

Retweeted by 1Heart 1Tree

ONU France et Monaco @ONU_France

 

 

 

Retweeted by 1Heart 1Tree

LE ROUX Arnaud @ArnaudLeRoux

 

 

 

 

 

United Nations Retweeted UN Climate Action

Cool #COP21 @twitter emojis for the UN Climate Change Conference which starts today in Paris.

United Nations added,

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

"Tous les rendez-vous de la COP21"  [paris.fr]

"All the rendez-vous of the COP21"  [paris.fr]

 

http://www.paris.fr/actualites/cop21-paris-vous-donne-rendez-vous-2947

 

 

Official site: http://www.cop21.gouv.fr/en/

 

Grand Palais - Petit Palais

Solutions COP21: http://www.solutionscop21.org/en/

 

 

Eiffel Tower

One Heart One Tree: A virtual tree with your name will be projected on the Eiffel Tower growing at the rate of your heart beat 

29th November - 3rd December

 

How does it work?

1. Download app.

2. Place finger on the camera area. Your heart beat is recorded – “algorithm analyses the chromatic micro-changes due to the blood-circulation on the finger”.

3. Type your name.

4. A 3D representation of a tree growing at the rate of your heartbeat is generated. Your name is added.

5. This will be projected on the Eiffel Tower.

 

Your heart beat gives birth to a virtual tree!

A real tree will be planted.

 

                                         Thank you! Your tree will be projected on (...)

 

 

 

 

At the port of Champs Elysées

Tara, "a legendary boat built for extreme conditions", "a platform for high-level scientific research missions"

 

http://oceans.taraexpeditions.org/en/m/agenda/coming-events/en-route-to-climate-conference/

 

 

1Heart1Tree @1Heart1Tree

 

 

 

 

 

Christiana Figueres ‏@CFigueres Nov 25

Heading to #COP21 in Paris with part of the @UNFCCC dream team! pic.twitter.com/NbCsjTwD6y

Nick Nuttall, Salwa Dallalah, Adriana Valenzuela and Hernani Escobar R.

 

 

Ministère CultureCom @MinistereCC

 

 

Ministère CultureCom @MinistereCC

 

 

 

Ministère CultureCom @MinistereCC

 

 

COP21 - Paris 2015 @COP21

 

 

 

CommissionEuropéenne @UEfrance

Extraits:

 

LES ESPACES GÉNÉRATIONS
CLIMAT D E L A COP21 /C M P 1 1 ,
PA R I S - L E BOURGET
Accessibles librement et gratuitement au public
comme aux personnes participant aux négociations
climatiques internationales, les espaces Générations
climat seront ouverts du 1er au 11 décembre 2015 de
10h30 à 19h00, à l’exception du dimanche 6 décembre.
Par leur proximité immédiate avec le Centre de
conférence des Nations Unies, leur dimension
(27 000m2) et leur conception directement inspirée de
la consultation de plus d’une centaine d’organisations
de la société civile, les espaces Générations
climat constituent une première dans l’histoire de
l’organisation des conférences sur le climat.
340 organisations françaises et internationales
de la société civile participeront à la vie des espaces
Générations climat. Chacun pourra les découvrir et
participer à travers une centaine de stands, une
vingtaine d’expositions pédagogiques et interactives,
plus de 300 conférences et une soixantaine de
projections de films.

 

 

 

 

 

 

COP starts 30th November 2015

Tweeted: 31 May 2015

 

 

 

 

UN Climate Action @UNFCCC 2015-11-23

#ClimateAction from the private sector: @UNEP & partners hosting #CaringforClimate at #COP21 bit.ly/1O13ESG

pic.twitter.com/kzGu6EmKO1

 

 

 

 

CLIMATE RISK INSURANCE FOR STRENGTHENING CLIMATE RESILIENCE OF POOR PEOPLE IN VULNERABLE COUNTRIES

 

ONU Action Climat @CCNUCC

Initiative #LPAA pr améliorer la protection des + vulnérables/risque #climat bit.ly/1X6NFGR @COP21 #COP21 pic.twitter.com/02meqZ3dNP

 

 

Cited previously from tweet below:

UN Environment @UNEP 2015-10-21

Pathway to $100bn emerging ahead of Paris #climate summit. Read more: ow.ly/TFmGC #COP21

 

Excerpt:

"Still, as Bangladesh scientist Saleemul Huq observed on Climate Home, most banks want a return on their investments. They’re more likely to get that from a clean energy plant than a sea wall."

 

"This is a problem many hope Paris will solve. One new addition to the text under debate in Bonn stipulates that 50% of all funding flows should be for adaptation."

 

 

UN Climate Action @UNFCCC 2015-11-23

Dozens of city, forest, biz initiatives to be presented at #COP21. Follow @LPAA_Live bit.ly/LPAA_website #LPAA pic.twitter.com/mtQGgrJP9N

 

 

 

 

 

Ségolène Royal @RoyalSegolene

La société civile se mobilise pour le #climat : cop21.gouv.fr/wp-content/upl… #COP21 #ActOnClimate pic.twitter.com/E1jo5PXe4l

 

 

COP21 - Paris 2015 @COP21

.@RoyalSegolene "il y a eu plus de 500 labels COP21 donnés à la société civile" pic.twitter.com/g35xzQFgCD

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Paris @Paris

Les Parisiens se mobilisent pour le climat: changer le monde avec l'asso #LesParques #COP21 ow.ly/UXuRs pic.twitter.com/3BXI3lbLc5

 

 

 

 

 

 

UN Climate Action @UNFCCC 2015-11-23

Iran submits its #climateaction plan ahead of #COP21 goo.gl/6Xpx4t #Action2015 pic.twitter.com/birZnxWuZ7

 

 

 

 

UN Environment @UNEP  18 Nov 2015

G20 leaders call #climatechange one of the greatest challenges of our time ahead of Paris. More: bit.ly/1O1j9M5 via @ClimateHome

 

 

 

@ElyxYak Retweeted 2015-11-17

Annabelle Baudin @AnnabelleBaudin

En plein rdv CRITIQUE de l'Humanité avec elle-même Ce dessin dit TOUT absolument TOUT . Merci @ElyxYak pic.twitter.com/6sy21Bwcfj

 

COP21 and social media

 

 

https://twitter.com/francediplo/status/662562283684524032

France Diplomatie ‏@francediplo  Nov 6

Engagez-vous pour la #COP21 en changeant votre photo de couverture sur les réseaux sociaux !

 

 

 

 

 France Diplomatie Retweeted

COP21 - Paris 2015 ‏@COP21  Nov 6

Découvrez la campagne de communication, bientôt diffusée dans la presse et en affichage dans vos villes #COP21

 

 

 France Diplomatie Retweeted

Laurent Fabius ‏@LaurentFabius  Nov 6

Dear @algore, do you have plans for December ? You’re most welcome to join us in Paris @COP21 !

 

 

 

2015-10-21: Pathway to $100bn emerging ahead of COP21

UN Environment @UNEP 2015-10-21

Pathway to $100bn emerging ahead of Paris #climate summit. Read more: ow.ly/TFmGC #COP21

 

Excerpts:

"A section detailing what assistance poorer countries will require to invest in green energy and protect communities against climate impacts had swelled from 12 paragraphs to 2.5 pages."

 

Oxfam’s Jan Kowalzig: “Now it has everything it needs… all the essential pieces… clinging on to every paragraph."

 

John Kerry: “The road through Paris is paved through investment decisions we are going to make this week,” he said.

 

"Still, as Bangladesh scientist Saleemul Huq observed on Climate Home, most banks want a return on their investments. They’re more likely to get that from a clean energy plant than a sea wall."

 

"This is a problem many hope Paris will solve. One new addition to the text under debate in Bonn stipulates that 50% of all funding flows should be for adaptation."

 

 

 

The importance of adaptation funding - Climate change impacts in Philippines

Implications for insurance

http://wwf.panda.org/about_our_earth/aboutcc/problems/rising_temperatures/hotspot_map/philippines.cfm

 

 

2015-10-19: Bonn #ADP2: Last meeting ahead of #COP21

EU Climate Action ‏@EUClimateAction 2015-10-19

Bonn #ADP2: Last meeting ahead of #COP21. EU press conference at 12:00CET: http://bit.ly/1GdZ57u  pic.twitter.com/GhYwkc3nkN

 

 

 

 

Miguel Arias Cañete @MAC_europa 2015-10-19

Crucial last round of UN climate talks before #COP21 begin today. We must improve draft text

bit.ly/1RMvQK4 pic.twitter.com/8ijZeDoRhZ

 

2015-09-04:ADP2.10 Bonn climate meeting completed, agreement text to be drafted

 

UNEP link ref: The tenth part of the second session of the Ad Hoc Working Group on the Durban Platform for Enhanced Action (ADP) was held from 31 August - 4 September 2015 in Bonn, Germany

 

Christiana Figueres @CFigueres 2015-09-04

#ADP2.10 closes. Next step: Co chairs to produce comprehensive draft agreement text & distribute 1st week October.

 

PRESS RELEASE / 04. SEP, 2015

UN Climate Action ‏@UNFCCC  

Gvts give ‘green light’ for draft agreement for @UN #climate negotiations in Oct http://bit.ly/1hHogE4  #COP21 #ADP2

https://twitter.com/COP21/status/639447400357187584/photo/1

[#Debrief] What's happening in Bonn this week? Answers http://politi.co/1KEuOic  #ADP2 #COP21

 

"POLITICO senior policy reporter Darren Samuelsohn sat down with Robert Orr, a longtime climate adviser to UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon who now runs the University of Maryland’s School of Public Policy".

 

Excerpts (with titles added by the author of the site):

 

 

 

http://www.politico.eu/article/whats-happening-in-bonn-right-now-climate-paris-obama-merkel/

 

Objectives

(…) to agree just how much pollution they’ll cut, and how much money rich nations will offer less developed countries to deal with their own growing energy demands and also adapt to a changing climate.

(…) the deal is expected to touch on everything from the future of coal and renewables to crop failures and rising seas.

(…) will require changes in everyone’s economies, everyone’s fuel mixes, everyone’s infrastructure investments.

 

The issue of financing

The issue of financing: All of this has to be paid for. Most will be paid for by private monies, but can this agreement reach a level of clarity and ambition that it sets the framework that those investments are made by private businesses, by finance houses, but pension funds, the big money out there. But to do that, we will need to see investments by governments, both north and south. Donors — traditional donors, the United States, Europe, Japan — need to step up and provide public funding for those governments that need that, but that then needs to be leveraged into this much bigger pool of private finance. That equation, and how the public and the private finance together is a critical open element yet to be negotiated.

(…)

This is, first and foremost, financing, getting the blend of public and private finance right, and the volumes of public-private finance, and the mechanics of that, the vehicles agreed for how — who will do what and how and in what time frame.

 

The fossil-fuel industry

RO: In the fossil-fuel industry already the major companies are evolving, and they’re evolving quite quickly. Everyone who is an oil company or a self-described fossil-fuel producer, they’re quickly becoming “energy companies.” They’re making investments in other parts of the energy spectrum of choices. So, how quickly those companies are able to evolve will make them competitive or not in the 21st century economy.

 

Effects on the consumer

DS: How would an American consumer feel the effects of a Paris climate deal?

RO: The effect on consumers will depend on where you live in the world and in the United States. The bottom line is this deal will set the framework for necessary reductions, but how they are reduced, through what mechanisms, and what burdens where and what benefits where, that’s the art of government and of public policy.

 

Although the outcome of Copenhague 2009 was disappointing (e.g. US & China had not proceeded to commitments) there were some interesting aspects, e.g. leaders rolling up their sleeves and being involved in text-editing

 

RO: The role of president and other heads of state and government is quite important. We did see an extraordinary scene in Copenhagen in 2009 where not just President Obama but other leaders truly rolled up their shirt sleeves. I do remember President Obama actually carrying a laptop to show other leaders certain texts. I saw President Lula of Brazil literally rolling up his shirt sleeves and saying, ‘I haven’t done this since I was a labor leader.’

 

But that kind of head of state and government involvement — don’t expect to see that in Paris. The negotiators have to do what negotiators have to do, and that’s the negotiation track, but leaders can help that along by getting critical agreements on the big issues. Don’t expect to see them line-editing text in Paris. That’s a negotiator job. But in September this year, in New York, there will be meetings on the margin of the Sustainable Development Goal summit. You will see a number of world leaders talking to each other in bilateral and multilateral fora. You will see it in the G-20 meeting later this year.

 

Also the INDC was decided at Copenhagen

RO: One very important thing was achieved in Copenhagen, which was the Copenhagen Accord for the first time created this notion of national plans from all governments. So the basic building block of the new regime was born in Copenhagen. But the sense of failure around Copenhagen was related…

 

(…) a lot of the benefits of the new regime have already been factored in to governments’ plans, expenditure, investments, and even more to the point, companies and private finance are already pricing this in.

 

On the Copenhagen development pledge of $100 billion per year starting in 2020: Very doable as a reallocation exercise

DS: How do you address the fact these negotiations aren’t on track to raise the $100 billion climate fund to help developing countries as promised back in 2009?

 

RO: This is one of the key elements that we do need from Paris. We need clarity with high granularity on the $100 billion commitment made on Copenhagen. This was a commitment of developed countries to support developing countries at a tune of $100 billion per year starting in 2020; so, annually from 2020 forward. It sounds like a lot of money, but if you take what the annual investments are just in energy, even before you get to any other part of the global economy, it pales in comparison.  So, we’re talking about simply reallocating to higher-value uses investments that are already being made in other energy sources, other types of infrastructure, other types of agricultural systems. So, this is a reallocation exercise to higher-value investments by governments and by private actors, and in that context, $100 billion is very doable.

 

Climate coalitions strengthening; COP21 will be the political impetus which will recognize their efforts and motivate them further

When you get the oil and gas companies starting to move as a bloc and, increasingly, with more and more oil and gas companies joining the coalition, that will move the needle. But the same is happening with agricultural products companies. The agreement in New York in September 2014 of a number of the key producers of palm oil, which is responsible for a larger percentage of the deforestation in the world, that is now becoming a solid coalition of virtually all the palm oil producers in the world.

 

These coalitions are not waiting for orders from governments. They’re not waiting for a starter’s pistol in Paris; they’re already doing this. But Paris will be the political impetus which will recognize their efforts and which will push them on.

 

 

[#Décryptage] Que se passe-t-il cette semaine à Bonn en vue de la #COP21 ? Réponses http://bit.ly/1UpcSyr  #ADP2

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2015-08-22: 100 days to COP21

 

 

http://www.cop21.gouv.fr/en

 

 

Our @COP21 climate targets cheat-sheet, now updated with Japan and Australia @AndreaDuRietz bloom.bg/1Foydub

pic.twitter.com/EOGjXHiPcU

 

A thunderclap set up by the UN Development Program:

 

Scroll down to Climate Action

 

Excerpts:

"It is clear to me from recent gatherings − the G7, the Major Economies Forum, the Paris informal ministerial, the International Conference on Financing for Development and many other bilateral meetings − that there is strong political will to reach an ambitious global climate agreement.

 

But in the negotiating rooms, progress has been painfully slow.

(...)

The technical talks are seriously lagging behind the political discussion. This must change.

(...)

When it comes to the substance, the text is still far too long, with all options put forward by countries earlier this year still on the table. This will need to be negotiated. So we have a lot of work ahead of us.

 

Negotiators will need to get straight down to the substance in August. They will need to start looking for areas of convergence and identify issues that will need to be resolved by Ministers. These include differentiation of the responsibilities and capabilities of the countries, the legal form of the agreement, the transfer of technology or support to developing countries, to mention just a few.

 

The European Union was the first major economy to submit its contribution in March – a binding, economy-wide emissions reduction target of at least 40% by 2030, compared to 1990 levels. This is the most ambitious contribution presented to date.

 

The good news is that, after a slow start, more and more countries are submitting their contributions: so far, 56 countries representing 61% of current global emissions.

 

But the not so good news is that the current contributions still represent only around a quarter of all countries.

 

Key G20 countries such as Argentina, Brazil, India, Indonesia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa and Turkey must submit their intended contributions without delay."