Scroll down for French and Spanish The new universal sustainable development agenda underlines the need for sustainable development and climate change to be addressed simultaneously through coordinated efforts. It will be on the shoulders of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) Parties to keep the ball rolling towards a climate agreement that …
Read more “WATCH THIS! NGO Newsletter #13: Will the Paris agreement build on the momentum of SDGs?”
The adoption of the new universal sustainable development goals (SDGs) has kicked-off a set of government actions to achieve a clean and prosperous future. Two major polluters, the US and China, announced a joint vision on climate change. China, UK and France ramped up climate finance to $17.5 billion.
Dear Mr Schneider, Dear Mr Buendia,
We, the April 10 Movement for the Defense of the Tabasara River (M-10), Alianza para la Conservacion y el Desarrollo (ACD) and Asociacion Ambientalista de Chiriqui (ASAMCHI), are writing to inform you about the decision of the Panamanian government to temporarily suspend the project Barro Blanco Hydroelectric Power Plant, in the Tabasara River, Panama (project number 3237). The decision was taken because of breaches of the national environmental impact assessment requirements, including shortcomings in the agreement with the locally affected indigenous communities.
In light of the recent decision that the CDM local stakeholder consultations are to be conducted “in accordance with applicable national regulations, if any.”1, we hereby ask the CDM Board to take action, including to coordinate with ongoing investigations, react to the suspension decision of the Panamanian government, and suspend the project upon finding non-compliance with the current CDM rules and procedures.
As a part of capacity building work on NAMAs, Carbon Market Watch organized a webinar on NAMAs and how civil society can contribute to and benefit from the process. The aim of the webinar was to build understanding among the civil society organisations (CSOs) on the functioning of NAMAs and the significance of public participation for accountability of NAMA actions. The speakers included representatives of civil society and United Nations Development Program (UNDP), who are developing and implementing NAMAs on the ground. During the webinar two case studies were presented – from Mexican and Georgian NAMAs – which highlighted the opportunities for and challenges from civil society engagement on the ground.
Dear members of the European Parliament,
On behalf of the Chair of the CDM Executive Board, I would like to thank you for your communication of 20 May 2015, informing us of your serious concern about project 9713: Santa Rita Hydroelectric Plant. Your letter was made available to the CDM Executive Board (the Board).
I hereby inform you that project 9713” Santa Rita Hydroelectric Plant” was registered by the Board on 2 June 2014 after undergoing a review process at the request of Board members. The issues you raise in your letter were looked at during the course of this review and it was found that the proposed project activity had complied with the requirements of the CDM, including the local stakeholder consultation process. Further, the designated national authority (DNA) of Guatemala issued required letter of approval (dated 2 July 2012) confirming that the project will assist Guatemala in its efforts to achieve sustainable development. The DNA had also confirmed to the Board, in the course of the review of the project activity, that the local stakeholder consultation process was carried-out appropriately.
Dear Mr Schneider and Mr Buendia,
As a Member of the European Parliament committed to the respect of Human Rights, we are writing to you to express our serious concern about the Santa Rita Hydroelectric Plant in the Dolores River in Guatemala, which was registered under the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) in June 2014 (project number 9713).
In a meeting in March 2015 with a representative of the local indigenous communities we learnt that many of the communities that will be impacted by the project were never consulted in accordance with the CDM local stakeholder consultation requirements. As a result, the project has been, and still is, in the center of a violent conflict between the communities and the power company implementing this project.
During the Geneva session of climate negotiations held in February 2015, 18 countries made a joint pledge to extend the integration of human rights in the climate change regime by including human rights expertise in their climate delegations. This initiative offers an opportunity to support the inclusion of references to human rights in the Paris 2015 climate agreement.
On February 9th, 2015, the National Environmental Authority (ANAM) temporarily interrupted the construction of the hydroelectric dam project in Barro Blanco. The communities accepted the Government proposal to open a tripartite dialogue (Government, company and affected communities), then chose the committees to represent them. Five meetings have since taken place to discuss cultural and religious topics, as well as the current state of conservation of the petroglyphs (threatened by the flood generated by the dam) and others archaeological discoveries brought to light in the dam area.
Sharing experiences with existing climate mitigation mechanisms, such as the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) and highlighting the severe impacts on basic human rights these UN mechanisms can have, activists from Africa, Asia and Central America met with financial institutions and policy makers involved in financing these projects. The accountability of climate finance was thereby discussed from a European perspective.
