These is an excerpt from the AD HOC WORKING GROUP ON LONG-TERM COOPERATIVE ACTION UNDER THE CONVENTION Fifth session Bonn, 29 March to 8 April 2009. AWG-LCA “Focus” Document to be discussed at current Bonn Talks. It is part of a document has been prepared by the Chair of the AWG-LCA to further focus the negotiating process on the fulfilment of the Bali Action Plan and on the components of the agreed outcome to be adopted at COP 15 in Copenhagen in December.
The document describes areas of convergence in the ideas and proposals from Parties, explores options for dealing with areas of divergence, and identifies any gaps that might need to be filled in reaching an agreed outcome.
The document will be discussed by Parties during the current round of international Climate Change Talks taking place in Bonn.
Part II, ideas and proposals on all the elements of the Bali Action Plan are addressed in four main chapters, which are structured as follows in a manner that reflects the organization and scope of the
group’s work to date:
Chapter I: A shared vision for long-term cooperative action, covering paragraph 1 (a) of the Bali Action Plan;
Chapter II: Enhanced action on adaptation, covering paragraph 1 (c) of the Bali Action Plan as well as issues related to matching such action by developing countries with financial and technological support;
Chapter III: Enhanced action on mitigation, covering paragraph 1 (b) of the Bali Action Plan as well as issues related to matching such action by developing countries with financial and technological support;
Chapter IV: Finance and technology, covering paragraphs 1 (d) and (e) of the Bali Action Plan, which focuses on how technological and financial support for developing countries should be generated, governed and delivered, and on technological cooperation.
In the second document, there is a deeper focus;
Action on adaptation
A cooperative framework for promoting adaptation and resilience; Parties concur that adaptation to the additional burden of climate change is important to all countries, especially developing countries, particularly LDCs, SIDS and countries in Africa affected by drought, floods and desertification. Parties converge on the need for an overarching framework that would address different aspects of adaptation, such as the preparation and implementation of national plans, and the promotion of enabling environments and increased knowledge-sharing among all Parties.
The framework would be structured but flexible. Appropriately scaled up and streamlined financial and
technological support will be needed to support adaptation action in developing countries.
In addition, the IPCC report on Climate Change 2007: Climate Change Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability, says “a portfolio of adaptation and mitigation measures can diminish the risks associated with climate change.” Read the full report here.
Rajendra K. Pachauri, IPCC chairman, is quoted as saying “It’s not adaptation versus mitigation. The impact of climate change is so severe that we have to do both. One without the other would not work.”
Adaptation helps cope with the problem at the tail-end, mitigation pre-empts the problem at the root.
Adaptation
Adaptation to environmental change is not a new concept. Human societies have shown throughout history a strong capacity for adapting to different climates and environmental changes. For example, farmers, foresters, civil engineers, and their supporting institutions have been forced to adapt to numerous challenges to overcome adversity or to remove important impediments to sustained productivity.
Examples of adaptation and coping strategies with current climate fluctuations include farmers planting different crops for different seasons, and wildlife migrating to more suitable habitats as the seasons change.
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) defines adaptation as the “adjustment in natural or human systems in response to actual or expected climatic stimuli or their effects, which moderates harm or exploits beneficial opportunities”
Some degree of future climate change will occur regardless of future greenhouse gas emissions. Adapting to or coping with climate change will therefore become necessary in certain regions and for certain socioeconomic and environmental systems.
Mitigation
Climate mitigation is any action taken to permanently eliminate or reduce the long-term risk and hazards of climate change to human life, property.
When we are talk about climate change in our modern setting, we refer to changes brought about by industrialisation as seen in the increased use of energy sources that emit harmful gases into the atmosphere. These gases have a warming effect that effects climate patterns.
In Africa this has lead to shifts in rain patterns over the years. African communities are more vulnerable to changes in rainfall and other aspects of climate. Most activities and planning are tied to the seasons. The fact that climate change has resulted in unpredictable seasons has resulted in crop failures. Infrastructure development in marginal or pasture lands has also negatively impacted on the adaptive practices of the nomads and pastoralism. Government policies have also affected negatively most vulnerable groups who use the environment as a life support system and are divorced from the cash economy.
Africa’s development is mostly linked to rain-fed agriculture as opposed to irrigation. Rural communities have relied on predictable rainfall patterns for their crops, and whole economies are driven by this activity. Changes in rainfall patterns have implications for other aspects of life, including health. Unexpected flooding gives rise to parasites in the water that may in turn cause epidemics like cholera. When the highlands get warmer mosquitoes are able to survive, and they conquer these areas too. The consequence is the spread of malaria. Studies have also shown that the glaciers of Mount Kilimanjaro and Mount Kenya are greatly reduced. Yet it is well known that these glaciers are the source of streams and rivers, and are also very important for the rain.
These are examples of Africa’s sensibility to climate change, and the new situation can only be improved through adaptation. The continent itself contributes to the emissions of harmful gasses, but just about 10% of world’s total. It is quite obvious that there is little Africa can do in terms of mitigation. The continent is dependent on the will of emitting countries in the West in terms of reductions, but still reductions are not due to have any impact for the next 50 years.
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| Sensitivity, Adaptability, and VulnerabilitySensitivity is the degree to which a system is affected, either adversely or beneficially, by climate-related stimuli. Climate-related stimuli encompass all the elements of climate change, including mean climate characteristics, climate variability, and the frequency and magnitude of extremes. The effect may be direct (e.g., a change in crop yield in response to a change in the mean, range or variability of temperature) or indirect (e.g., damages caused by an increase in the frequency of coastal flooding due to sea-level rise).
Adaptive capacity is the ability of a system to adjust to climate change, including climate variability and extremes, to moderate potential damages, to take advantage of opportunities, or to cope with the consequences. Vulnerability is the degree to which a system is susceptible to, or unable to cope with, adverse effects of climate change, including climate variability and extremes. Vulnerability is a function of the character, magnitude and rate of climate change and variation to which a system is exposed, its sensitivity, and its adaptive capacity. |
Therefore, the focus on controlling emissions through international agreements and new technology in energy production and industries must be combined with strong efforts in minimizing damage through adaptation schemes. The most vulnerable ecological and socio-economic systems are those with the greatest sensitivity to climate change and with the least ability to adapt to new situation. As vulnerability defines the extent to which climate change may damage or harm a system, it depends not only on the system’s sensibility, but also on its ability to adapt. Thus traditional knowledge should be complemented by new research and climate change considerations must be an integrated element of the nation’s development agenda.How to finance adaptation?
The Global Environment Facility (thegef.org) is an independent financial entity and the financial mechanism for the international conventions on environment issues, like the the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).
The Convention defines the mechanism for the provision of financial resources to developing countries. It also specifi es that the financial mechanism, GEF, shall function under the guidance of, and be accountable to, the Conference of the Parties (COP), which shall decide on its policies, programme priorities, and eligibility criteria related to the Convention.
Financial resources for the implementation of the Convention are available through the GEF Trust Fund, the Special Climate Change Fund (SCCF), the Least Developed Countries Fund (LDCF) and the Adaptation Fund (once the Kyoto Protocol enters into force). Funding is also available through bilateral, regional and multilateral channels.
GEF Trust Fund is the main funding channel for climate change projects in developing countries. Since 1991, it provided approximately US$1.8 billion in grants for climate change activities. In addition more than US$ 9 billion was provided through co-financing from bilateral agencies, recipient countries and the private sector.
Source:
- Professor Paul Desanker interview by Churchill Otieno in the East African (newspaper), 13th December 2004.Climate Change Information Kit, published by UNEP and UNFCCC, October 2001.
- http://unfccc.int/cooperation_and_support/funding/items/2807.php
- http://thegef.org/Projects/Focal_Areas/focal_areas.html
- http://www.unep.org/gef/content/activity_climate.htm
- Italics additional comments from the Africa Climate Editors.
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