World Resources Report
Launches Initiative on Decision Making in
a Changing Climate
As dilemmas go, this is as tough as it gets.
Between now and 2050, predictions suggest
that yearly rainfall in Ghana could plummet
to 60% less than it is today or increase
by as much as 49%. How can the government
of a resources-restrained West African nation
deal with such overwhelming uncertainty
in planning for the future? How decide,
for example, where to focus agricultural
development, and how to manage future water
supplies? And how can public officials throughout
Africa and Asia deal with other climate-related
impacts such as altered monsoon patterns
and long-lasting droughts?
The timely issue of
how national governments make decisions
for a changing climate is the topic of the
latest World Resources Report (WRR), which
today launches its interactive website www.worldresourcesreport.org.
Since 1986, the influential
World Resources Report has been jointly
published every two years by the United
Nations Development Programme (UNDP), United
Nations Environment Program (UNEP) the World
Bank, and the World Resources Institute.
This latest edition boasts an innovative
and interactive model that engages audiences
and presents a broad range of research involving
over 100 government officials, climate experts,
international leaders and practitioners
in the field from around the world. All
the research, which will include case studies,
in-country scenario exercises, and targeted
issue roundtables-will be available on the
website.
This research, and the
comments and contributions provided by visitors
to the WRR web site, will inform the findings
and recommendations of the WRR Report, to
be published in April 2011.
The Report will provide
guidance on integrating climate change risks
into planning and policies across sectors
such as agriculture, electricity production,
forestry and water management. It will present
approaches for dealing with different types
of climate risk and long-term change. The
findings will be particularly geared to
assist national level public officials in
Africa, Asia and Latin America whose countries
will bear the brunt of climate change impacts.
Some vulnerable developing
countries are already experimenting with
such approaches. The report will highlight
more than a dozen case studies including
innovative information dissemination practices
in Mali, the inclusion of biodiversity information
into development planning in South Africa,
and the use of community-based institutions
to combat desertification in Namibia.
Media accreditation open for UNEP Governing
Council and Global Ministerial Environment
Forum
Government ministers
from over 100 countries, civil society representatives
and high-profile figures from finance to
environment will meet in Nairobi from 21-
24 February 2011 for the 26th UNEP Governing
Council / Global Ministerial Environment
Forum.
Press conferences and media events will
focus on the Green Economy, the environmental
impact of armed conflict and natural disasters,
new research on climate change and other
emerging issues.
An advanced media briefing
with UNEP Executive Director Achim Steiner
on the key themes of the Governing Council
will be held on Thursday 17 February (details
below).
Media Accreditation
is now open and journalists should apply
online at:
http://www.unep.org/newscentre/media_accreditation/nomination/
Main launches and media
events will include:
What: Press Conference - Launch of UNEP
Yearbook and pre-Governing Council media
briefing
When: Thursday 17 February, 10:30am - 11.30am
Where: Norfolk Hotel, Harry Thuku Road,
Nairobi
The UNEP Year Book provides
new scientific insights into emerging environmental
issues and analyses recent developments
in our changing environment. This year's
publication focuses, among other things,
on the impact of the fertilizer phosphorous
on the environment. Global demand for phosphorous
has been rising steadily over the last century
and the fertilizer is now a key element
in modern agriculture (both organic and
non-organic farming). But when phosphorous
leaks from fields into rivers and lakes,
it triggers algal blooms, which can starve
waters of oxygen, kill fish stocks, contaminate
drinking water and damage tourism in coastal
areas. With a fast-growing global population
and more demand than ever for meat and dairy
products, the world faces a crucial challenge
of continuing the sustainable use of phosphorous
in agriculture to ensure food security,
while reducing its harmful impacts on the
environment and human health. The UNEP Year
Book presents several solutions to the problem,
including better recycling of waste water.
The launch will also
include an advanced media briefing on the
key themes of the forthcoming UNEP Governing
Council, including the launch of the Green
Economy Report on 21 February.
What: Press conference
- Launch of Kenya's transition to low-sulphur
diesel
When: Friday 18 February, 11:30am - 12.45pm
Where: UN Recreation Centre and Petrol Station,
UNEP headquarters, Gigiri
Exposure to air pollutants
emitted by vehicles - such as sulphur oxides,
soot and smoke particles - can lead to respiratory
and cardiovascular diseases and an increased
risk of lung cancer. In a move that is set
to improve air quality and reduce vehicle
emissions across East Africa, Kenya will
officially launch its transition to low-sulphur
diesel. Containing only 5% of the amount
of sulphur present in Kenya's previous diesel
supply, this cleaner, greener fuel is already
available in limited stations and will soon
be present in pumps across the country.
The transition to low-sulphur diesel is
the result of the work of the Partnership
for Clean Fuels and Vehicles (PCFV) - based
at UNEP headquarters and supported by government
and industry partners. The new low-sulphur
standard (the lowest in East Africa when
imports began) will also benefit countries
to which Kenya exports diesel, such as Uganda,
Burundi, Rwanda and the Democratic Republic
of Congo. UNEP Executive Director Achim
Steiner will join Kenyan government ministers,
senior foreign government representatives
and fuel industry groups for the launch.
What: Press Conference
- Launch of UNEP Green Economy Report
When: Monday 21 February, 1.00pm - 2.00pm
Where: Press Centre, UNEP Headquarters,
Nairobi
A new blueprint for
sustainable, economic growth, UNEP's ground-breaking
Green Economy Report outlines the public
policy choices, urgent actions and investments
needed for a transition to a global 'Green
Economy' - one that is low-carbon, resource-efficient
and socially-inclusive.
The report challenges
the myth that adopting a Green Economy approach
means an inevitable trade-off between environmental
sustainability and economic growth. It demonstrates,
for example, that investing 2 percent of
global GDP across ten key sectors will trigger
a new engine of economic growth and provide
a net generator of decent jobs. Greater
investment in a Green Economy model is also
vital for eradicating extreme poverty.
The idea of a Green
Economy is no longer confined to the realms
of environmental specialists and is fast
becoming a key component of mainstream economic
discourse. UNEP's Green Economy Report is
a critical landmark in the transition to
a more efficient and equitable economy that
makes better use of natural resources to
achieve sustainable growth.
In addition to Nairobi,
Green Economy launches will be held in Bangkok,
Beijing, Mexico City, Sao Paolo and several
other cities on 21 February. A live, interactive
streaming of the Nairobi launch will be
available online. The award ceremony for
the inaugural UNEP Young Environmental Journalist
Award will be held at the end of the press
conference, along with the signing of a
new agreement between UNEP and the US Environmental
Protection Agency.
What: Side Event - 'Fast
Action on Climate Change'
When: Wednesday 23 February, 1.00pm - 2.00pm
Where: Press Centre, UNEP Headquarters,
Nairobi
Carbon dioxide emissions
are not the only contributors to climate
change. The effects of non-CO2 gases such
as black carbon (soot) and ozone on climate
change and human health is of increasing
interest to the scientific community. Both
can be harmful air pollutants, disturbing
tropical rainfall, exacerbating the melting
of snow and ice in the Arctic and Himalayas
and reducing crop yields. The side event
will provide a preview of UNEP's Integrated
Assessment of Black Carbon and Tropospheric
Ozone. The ground-breaking report - due
for publication later this year - has convened
over 70 authors to provide science-based
analysis of emissions, concentrations and
the impacts on climate change, human health
and ecosystems of black carbon, ozone and
methane. Full implementation of the solutions
presented in the report could avoid 2.4
million premature deaths and reduce warming
in the Arctic by two-thirds compared to
current scenarios.
A closing Governing Council press conference
will be held on Thursday 24 February at
1.00p
