LIRE attends the COP-17 as observer party
Monday, 28 November 2011
Lao Institute for Renewable Energy has been selected to join the delegation representing the Lao Civil Society Organizations (CSO) at the Conference Of the Parties number 17 (COP 17) in Durban, South Africa between 28th November and 9th December 2011.
This high level meeting is to address the international response to climate change. Almost two decades ago, 154 nations signed an international treaty, the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), to cooperatively consider what they could do to limit average global temperature increases and their resulting effects on climate, and how to cope with whatever impacts of climate change which were, by then, inevitable. This was in 1992; in 1995 the convention initiated negotiations which lead to the Kyoto Protocol. To date, UNFCCC numbers 195 member countries, who will all gather in Durban in November-December this year. More than 1000 non-profit organizations will participate as observers.
LIRE, a national CSO, for the first time will be present thanks to a special programme - “Strengthening Capacity Building of the Asian LDCs to be Climate Resilient” (SCALCR) dedicated to national non-profit organizations. This programme is supported by the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation (NORAD), and gathers together local non-profit organizations from Nepal, Cambodia, Bhutan, Bangladesh and Laos. It aims to enhance CSOs’ participation in the complex process of climate change negotiations and build local capacities to work more effectively with national governments to defend LDCs’ position at an international level.
The first step in this programme was to support the Lao delegation, especially the Climate Change Office (a department of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, MONRE), during the “the preparatory meeting for COP 17”. LIRE successfully represented Lao CSOs capacity with 3 presentations, on NAMA, the Kyoto Protocol and CDM-Renewable Energy respectively. It was an opportunity to meet the Lao delegation and exchange ideas on LIRE’s involvement during the COP 17, and how to work towards common objectives with the Lao delegation.
Further news will be published on our website to follow up on the COP 17 negotiations and of course to find out what solutions will be agreed for the Kyoto Protocol.