Carcases of dead sheep and goats stretch across the landscape following drought in Somaliland in 2011, one of the climate impacts that experts say should be actively tackled by African countries themselves without passively relying on international assistance. Photo credit: Oxfam East Africa/CC by 2.0

By Fabíola Ortiz
PARIS, Jul 23 2015 (IPS)

African countries would do well to take their own lead in finding ways to better adapt to and mitigate the changes that climate may impose on future  generations instead of relying only on foreign aid.

This was one of the messages that rang out during the international scientific conference on ‘Our Common Future under Climate Change’ held earlier this month in Paris, six months before the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP21), also to be held in Paris, that is supposed to pave the way for a global agreement to keep the rise in the Earth’s temperature under 2°C.African countries would do well to take their own lead in finding ways to better adapt to and mitigate the changes that climate may impose on future generations instead of relying only on foreign aid

Africa is already feeling climate change effects on a daily basis, according to Penny Urquhart from South Africa, an independent specialist and one of the lead authors of the 5^th Assessment Report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).

Projections suggest that temperature rise on the continent will likely exceed 2°C by 2100 with land temperatures rising faster than the global land average. Scientific assessments agree that Africa will also face more climate changes in the future, with extreme weather events increasing in terms of frequency, intensity and duration.

“Most sub-Saharan countries have high levels of climate vulnerability,” Urquhart told IPS. “Over the years, people became good at adapting to those changes but what we are seeing is increasing risks associated with climate change as this becomes more and more pressing.”

Although data monitoring systems are still poor and sparse over the region, “we do know there is an increase in temperature,” she added, warning that if the global average temperature increases by 2°C by the end of the century, this will be experienced as if it had increased by 4°C in Southern Africa, stated Urquhart.

According to the South African expert, vulnerability to climate variation is very context-specific and depends on people’s exposure to the impacts, so it is hard to estimate the number of people affected by global warming on the continent.

However, IPCC says that of the estimated 800 million people who live in Africa, more than 300 million survive in conditions of water scarcity, and the numbers of people at risk of increased water stress on the continent is projected to be 350-600 million by 2050.

In some areas, noted Urquhart, it is not easy to predict what is happening with the rainfall. “In the Horn of Africa region the observations seem to be showing decreasing rainfall but models are projecting increasing rainfall.”

There have been extreme weather events along the Western coast of the continent, while Mozambique has seen an increase in cyclones that lead to flooding. “Those are the sum of trends that we are seeing,” Urquhart, “drying mostly along the West and increase precipitations in the East of Africa”.

For Edith Ofwona, senior programme specialist of the International Development Research Centre (IDRC), one of the sectors most vulnerable to climate variation in Africa is agriculture – the backbone of most African economies – and this could have direct negative impacts on food security.

“The biggest challenge,” she said, “is how to work with communities not only to cope with short-term impacts but actually to be able to adapt and be resilient over time. We should come up with practical solutions that are affordable and built on the knowledge that communities have.”

Experts agree that any measure to address climate change should be responsive to social needs, particularly where severe weather events risk uprooting communities from their homelands by leaving families with no option but to migrate in search of better opportunities.

This new phenomenon has created what it is starting to be called “climate migrants”, said Ofwona.

Climate change could also exacerbate social conflicts that are aggravated by other drivers such as competition over resources and land degradation. According to the IDRC expert, “you need to consider the multi-stress nature of poverty on people’s livelihoods … and while richer people may be able to adapt, poor people will struggle.”

Ofwona said that the key is to combine scientific evidence with what communities themselves know, and make it affordable and sustainable. “It is important to link science to society and make it practical to be able to change lives and deal with the challenges people face, especially in addressing food security requirements.”

Meanwhile, she added, consciousness in Africa of the impacts of climate change is “fairly high” – some countries have already defined their own climate policies and strategies, and others have green growth strategies with low carbon and sustainable development.

Stressing the critical role that African nations themselves play in terms of creating the right environmental policy, Ofwona said that they should be protagonists in dealing with climate impacts and not only passive in receiving international help.

African governments should provide some of the funding that will be needed to implement adaptation and mitigation projects and while “we can also source internationally, to some extent we need to contribute with our own money. While the consciousness is high, the extent of the commitment is not equally high.”

Edited by Phil Harris    

Hopes are high that the 10^th Asia-Europe Meeting – or ASEM summit – to be held in Milan on October 16-17 will confirm the credibility and relevance of Asia-Europe relations in the 21^st century.

ASEM has certainly survived many storms and upheavals since it was initiated in Bangkok in 1996 and now, with ASEM’s 20^th anniversary in 2016 approaching rapidly, the challenge is not only to guarantee ASEM’s survival but also to ensure that the Asia-Europe partnership flourishes and thrives.

Talk about renewal and revival is encouraging as Asians and Europeans seek to inject fresh dynamism into ASEM through changed formats and a stronger focus on content to bring it into the 21^st century.

ASEM’s future hinges not only on whether governments are ready to pay as much attention to ASEM and devote as much time and energy to their partnership as they did in the early years but also on closer engagement between Asian and European business leaders, civil society representatives and enhanced people-to-people contacts.  An ASEM business summit and peoples’ forum will be held in parallel with the leaders’ meeting.

Shada Islam. Courtesy of Twitter

Significantly, the theme of the Milan summit – “Responsible Partnership for Sustainable Growth and Security” – allows for a discussion not only of ongoing political strains and tensions in Asia and in Europe’s eastern neighbourhood, but also of crucial questions linked to food, water and energy security.

Engagement between the two regions has been increasing over the years, both within and outside ASEM. Five of the 51 (set to rise to 52 with Croatia joining in October) ASEM partners – China, Japan, India, South Korea and Russia – are the European Union’s strategic partners. Turkey and Kazakhstan have formally voiced interest in joining ASEM, although approval of their applications will take time.  There is now a stronger E.U.-Asian conversation on trade, business, security and culture.

Exports to Asia and investments in the region are pivotal in ensuring a sustainable European economic recovery while the European Union single market attracts goods, investments and people from across the globe, helping Asian governments to maintain growth and development.  European technology is in much demand across the region.

Not surprisingly, Asia-Europe economic interdependence has grown.  With total Asia-Europe trade in 2012 estimated at 1.37 trillion euros, Asia has become the European Union’s main trading partner, accounting for one-third of total trade.  More than one-quarter of European outward investments head for Asia while Asia’s emerging global champions are seeking out business deals in Europe.  The increased connectivity is reflected in the mutual Asia-Europe quest to negotiate free trade agreements and investment accords. For many in Asia, the European Union is the prime partner for dealing with non-traditional security dilemmas, including food, water and energy security as well as climate change. Europeans, too, are becoming more aware of the global implications of instability in Asia.

ASEM’s connectivity credentials go beyond trade and economics.  In addition to the strategic partnerships mentioned above, Asia and Europe are linked through an array of cooperation accords. Discussions on climate change, pandemics, illegal immigration, maritime security, urbanisation and green growth, among others, are frequent between multiple government ministries and agencies in both regions, reflecting a growing recognition that 21^st century challenges can only be tackled through improved global governance and, failing that, through “patchwork governance” involving cross-border and cross-regional alliances.

Discussions on security issues are an important part of the political pillar in ASEM, with leaders exchanging views on regional and global flashpoints.  Given current tensions over conflicting territorial claims in the East and South China Seas, this year’s debate should be particularly important.

Asian views of Europe’s security role are changing. Unease about the dangerous political and security fault lines that run across the region and the lack of a strong security architecture has prompted many in Asia to take a closer look at Europe’s experience in ensuring peace, easing tensions and handling conflicts.  As Asia grapples with historical animosities and unresolved conflicts, earlier scepticism about Europe’s security credentials are giving way to recognition of Europe’s “soft power” in peace-making and reconciliation, crisis management, conflict resolution and preventive diplomacy, human rights, the promotion of democracy and the rule of law.

In addition, for many in Asia, the European Union is the prime partner for dealing with non-traditional security dilemmas, including food, water and energy security as well as climate change. Europeans too are becoming more aware of the global implications of instability in Asia, not least as regards maritime security.

Meanwhile, over the years, ASEM meetings have become more formal, ritualistic and long drawn-out, with endless preparatory discussions and the negotiation of long texts by “senior officials” or bureaucrats. Instead of engaging in direct conversation, ministers and leaders read out well-prepared statements.  Having embarked on a search to bring back the informality and excitement of the first few ASEM meetings, Asian and European foreign ministers successfully tested out new working methods at their meeting in Delhi last November.

The new formula, to be tried out in Milan, includes the organisation of a “retreat” session during which leaders will be able to have a free-flowing discussion on regional and international issues with less structure and fewer people in the room.  Instead of spending endless hours negotiating texts, leaders will focus on a substantive discussion of issues.  The final statement will be drafted and issued in the name of the “chair” who will consult partners but will be responsible for the final wording.  There are indications that the chair’s statements and other documents issued at the end of ASEM meetings will be short, simple and to-the-point.

ASEM also needs a content update.  True, ASEM summits which are held every two years, deal with many worthy issues, including economic growth, regional and global tensions, climate change and the like. It is also true that Asian and European ministers meet even more frequently to discuss questions like education, labour reform, inter-faith relations and river management.

This is worthy and significant – but also too much.  ASEM needs a sharper focus on growth and jobs, combating extremism and tackling hard and soft security issues. Women in both Asia and Europe face many societal and economic challenges.  Freedom of expression is under attack in both regions.

ASEM partners also face the uphill task of securing stronger public understanding, awareness and support for the Asia-Europe partnership, especially in the run up to the 20^th anniversary summit in 2016.

The 21^st century requires countries and peoples – whether they are like-minded or not – to work together in order to ensure better global governance in a still-chaotic multipolar world.

As they grapple with their economic, political and security dilemmas – and despite their many disagreements – Asia and Europe are drawing closer together.  If ASEM reform is implemented as planned, 2016 could become an important milestone in a reinvigorated Asia-Europe partnership, a compelling necessity in the 21^st century.

Shada Islam is responsible for policy oversight of Friends of Europe’s initiatives, activities and publications. She has special responsibility for the Asia Programme and for the Development Policy Forum. She is the former Europe correspondent for the Far Eastern Economic Review and has previously worked on Asian issues at the European Policy Centre. 

Shumi attends school and does shifts at a brick factory. Credit: Naimul Haq/IPS

By Naimul Haq
DHAKA, Jul 3 2012 (IPS)

At first glance the smart young women in white overcoats, black rubber boots and protective face masks seem out of place in impoverished Bangladesh’s dirtiest industry – brick making. 

But this factory in Savar, 35 km outside Dhaka, is no ordinary brick kiln. It is a Hybrid Hoffman Kiln (HHK) which uses modified German technology that drastically cuts down the smoke and soot associated with firing blocks of clay into bricks.    

HHKs also use semi-automatic machines that do away with heavy manual labour, allowing women to be employed in brick-making in large numbers.   

Since production started at this demonstration unit last year, many of the women in nearby villages  have switched from being low-paid farm labourers to skilled brick makers. 

Says Salma Begum, 34, from the nearby Bhatiakandi village: “I used to toil nine hours at a stretch daily on a potato farm just to earn about 1,400 Bangladeshi taka (17 dollars) a month. 

“Now, working six hours daily as a supervisor at the loading section of this modern brick factory, I earn 64 dollars as monthly salary.” 

Rehana Begum, 42, a former labourer at a nearby vegetable farm, says her life changed after she took a five-month training stint at the same brick field. 

About six months ago, Rehana and her husband, Motin, signed on as regular workers. “My husband and I together make about 120 dollars a month, enough for my family of six that includes my mother-in-law,” she tells IPS. 

It was in 2010 that the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Bangladesh introduced new brick making technologies to replace the polluting fixed chimney kilns (FCK) that release large  amounts of carbon into the atmosphere. 

Traditionally, the brick industry in Bangladesh was unregulated, ran  during the six dry months of the year and depended heavily on male bonded labour. 

Md Hisham Uddin Chisty, research officer of Clean Energy Alternatives (CEA), consultants for HHK technology, told IPS: “The new design allows women to participate in production as the heavy work is mechanised.”   

The women are happy to learn new skills. “I joined as an apprentice three months ago after five days of training at the factory. I learnt how to operate some of latest machines and make good quality bricks,” says Shahera Begum, 27. 

Md Murtoja Ali, marketing manager of CEA, told IPS: “Women are preferred in certain sections where heavy work is not involved and where they perform far better than their males because they have more patience. 

“We give opportunities to all the women living in the nearby villages so that they get some experience. About 82 of the women are on short-term contracts which allow them to take time off to attend to family matters and return when they can.” 

“Because I get a one-hour lunch break I can go to my home in nearby Ganakpara village to cook for the family and be back at work on time,” she tells IPS.  

Shumi, 16, a school girl from Ganakpara village, says she works at the production line and attend school between shifts. The youngest worker at the factory, Shumi earns 56 dollars a month and plans to continue with her education.

“My supervisors have been very generous. Because of such worker-friendly atmosphere we enjoy working here,” she says. 

The factory, built at a cost of 841,575 dollars, has modern facilities like changing rooms, clean toilets and rest rooms. 

“All workers are required to take a shower after completing their shifts, and those who work near the hot oven chamber are also required to drink oral rehydration solutions,” says Kabir Hossain, a manager. 

“The idea of short-term employment is to have pool of trained workers available in the surrounding villages at all times,” Hossain explains. 

Also, when the project ends in 2014 and it is handed over to the owner he will not face any shortage of workers, says Khondker Neaz Rahman, project manager of ‘Improving Kiln Efficiency in the Brick Making Industry, to IPS. 

The UNDP-funded pilot project currently has four such factories in operation, two in Savar and one each in Natore and Gazipur districts, all of them designed to transfer the technology and produce skilled manpower. 

“There is tremendous enthusiasm among the workers to learn how to operate the machines and earn money,” says Neaz adding that there is a proposal to open a formal training centre. 

The new factories have provisions to allow women to breastfeed infants and run routine health checks of the workers. Fire drills are carried out every month and attention paid to safety. 

Mosammet Khadiza, 35, from Ganakpara, is appreciative of the discipline. “We are not allowed to gossip during production but we have tea breaks to relax and freshen up.” 

Kabir said, “Any worker feeling sick can always seek permission to take rest or go home. We can always replace him/her with extra hands who are usually prepared to work on short notice.” 

Mizan ur Rahman, president of Bangladesh Brick Manufacturing Owners’ Association, told IPS that the new system of recruitment and the modern equipment are welcome because they greatly improve productivity. 

“We prefer skilled women workers because they tend to be more efficient and far easier to manage than male workers,” Mizan said. 

Monwar Islam, director-general of department of environment, told IPS, “We want to see more women working in this industry. In fact, we are in the process of formulating a policy to encourage women to find jobs in brick making.” 

Things are expected to improve further after the government stops renewing existing licenses on factories that have not adapted to the new technology by September and implements a complete ban on all FCK brick factories a year later.

Women workers at a 'smokeless' brick factory. Credit: Naimul Haq/IPS

By Naimul Haq
DHAKA, Jun 22 2012 (IPS)

Bangladesh, a country highly vulnerable to climate change, is doing its bit to reduce greenhouse gas (GhG) emissions and glacier-melting soot by switching to ‘smokeless’ brick-making technology.

Currently, brick-making is a cottage industry and owners fire them with anything from coal and wood to discarded tyres and plastic bags, releasing in the process  GhGs estimated to be about nine million tonnes of carbon dioxide (CO2) equivalent annually, according to World Bank studies.

Also, a scientific paper published United States-based scientists in the Mar. 2 edition of ‘Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics’, an open access journal of the European Geosciences Union, said carbon contained in soot landing on Himalayan glaciers may be melting them faster than CO2.

The paper, focused on the impact of pollution on the snows of the Himalayas and Tibetan plateau, said the soot was affecting water flow in the rivers of the sub-continent that are fed by the Himalayan snows and also changing the timing and intensity of monsoon rains by surface warming.

Such studies have special relevance for deltaic Bangladesh, a country located in the shadow of the eastern Himalayas and through which the great snow-fed rivers of sub-continent drain.

Now, with 25 million dollars spread over five years (2010-2014) a United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) programme is bringing in new technologies that are expected to significantly reduce GhG emissions and atmospheric pollution while producing green bricks in improved kilns at reduced costs.

Within that five-year period, the project’s 15 kilns will have demonstrative value, but also result in direct cumulative energy savings of 314 kilo tonnes of coal. They will save 1,470 kilo tonnes of CO2 equivalent by cumulative direct emission reduction during the 15-year expected service life of the kilns.

Bangladesh’s environment ministry has already ordered a phase-out of the outmoded fixed chimney kilns (FCK) in the country by September 2013 and their replacement with the improved Hybrid Hoffman Kiln (HHK) or the vertical shaft brick kiln (VSBK).

A  Bank study on the economic costs and benefits of various brick-making  technologies showed that where FCKs could generate 1.23 dollars per thousand bricks, VSBKs could generate 1.30 dollars and HHKs 1.39 dollars.

HHK technology, modified by the Chinese and introduced by UNDP through a local consulting firm, Clean Energy Alternatives (CEA) is, unlike other types of kilns, capable of producing bricks round the year.

Khondker Neaz Rahman, project manager of ‘Improving Kiln Efficiency in the Brick Making Industry in Bangladesh’, told IPS, “In terms of energy efficiency, reduced GHGs, complying with international rules on occupational health hazards and quality of production, the modified HHK is the best technology.

“The clay used to make the brick mixes in 30 percent dust coal, so, when burning in the oven it requires less energy and produces less CO2,” Rahman explained.

HHK units emit 40 – 60 percent less dust and carbon per brick produced than the traditional FCKs and do not emit black smoke. HHKs also use insulation around their walls to capture lost heat from the oven chambers, making for efficient use of energy.

Best of all, HHK technology is designed to use only coal as fuel and this is expected to reduce the chopping down of forests for firewood, especially in the Cox’s Bazaar and Khulna regions.

“This project is the first climate mitigation project in Bangladesh and is supported by UNDP and the Global Environment Facility,” Stefan Priesner, country director, UNDP Bangladesh, tells IPS.

According to Priesner, if successfully implemented, the project could result in annual reduction of GhG emissions equivalent to that from 230,000 passenger vehicles or carbon sequestered by more than 250,000 acres of forests.

“While the initial investment is significant, the scale of production is multiple (more than 7) times higher than a conventional factory,” said Priesner. “This in combination with the up to 50 percent energy savings makes this technological advancement an attractive value proposition for investors.

“Importantly, it addresses the problem of the largest stationary source of GhG emission in the country; saves energy; preserves the soil quality and creates ‘green jobs’ that have an important role to play in sustainable development and poverty eradication of Bangladesh.”

Md Murtoja Ali, marketing manager of CEA, told IPS: “By end of 2014 we will have 16 demonstration factories that will help transfer the technology and we are hoping to train workers, operators and managers from about 100 existing factories.”

Neal Walker, resident coordinator of the U.N. in Bangladesh, told IPS that HHK technology was attractive to entrepreneurs because it “gave investors a relatively quick return, steady production in all seasons over many years and it is environment friendly and saves soil and energy.”

Adopting a carrot-and-stick approach, local banks are lending only to those brick-making units that comply with the new regulations from the department of environment. All unregistered brick factories must apply for approval by September this year or they stand to lose their operating licenses.

Mijanur Rahman, president of Bangladesh Brick Manufacturing Owners Association, told IPS, “We welcome the change, but adapting to the new technologies requires huge investment as the modern machines and the high ground needed for round the year production is very costly.”

Rahman’s concerns are being addressed by the Bank and other partners like the UNDP and the Asian Development Bank (AsDB).

Anqian Huang, finance specialist of AsDB in Dhaka, told IPS:  “AsDB is processing a capacity building technical assistance this year to support a 50 million dollar loan implementation. The loan would have a component to help concerned ministries to strengthen enforcement to phase out the FCKs.”

The state’s central bank has also introduced soft loan schemes to support HHK technology in the light of its energy efficiency and its formal industry characteristics.

College students go green

By Kafil Yamin
JAKARTA, Jun 17 2012 (IPS)

JAKARTA, Jun 17 (IPS) 2012 – Studies on carbon emissions conducted in the Bogor Agricultural University (BAU) in West Java confirm that the worst culprits are students with their trendy lifestyles.

“On average, each student dumps two plastic bags a day and there are more than 3,000 of them on our campus,” Popi Puspita Forestian, a student at BAU, tells IPS.

Besides plastic bags, there are also electronic devices such as CD-DVD players, play stations, TV sets, mobile phones, computers and other devices that college students consider essential to lead a contemporary lifestyle.

“Most students are aware of the costs of their lifestyles to the environment, but they won’t be seen dead out of fashion,” Popi added. “So we decided to work on how to make green activities trendy.”

Another study by the Jakarta-based Institute for Essential Service Reform (IESR) confirms Popi’s assessment that trendy lifestyles are the driving factor behind Indonesia’s incessantly rising carbon emissions – and  students are not always to blame.

IESR arrived its conclusions by setting up an online carbon calculator, www.iesr.or.id/carboncalculator/ that enables every individual to figure out his or her own carbon footprint with the data updated continuously.

“The middle class in the cities of Indonesia are major contributors to greenhouse gas (GhG) emissions – about 50 percent of it, mostly from their use of electronic devices,” said Henriette Imelda, an IESR researcher.

“The excessive use of electronic devices gives a boost to electricity consumption, which in turn increases carbon dioxide (CO2) emission,” the study said.  

West Java, Indonesia’s most developed province, is now also the highest carbon emitter in Indonesia, releasing an estimated 12,500 grams of CO2 per capita per day. Banten, Central Java, Sumatra and Kalimantan are not far behind.

Surprisingly, overpopulated and poorly managed Jakarta, with its daily traffic jams, is not among the five major carbon emitting cities.

West Java is a centre for universities and schools where the use of paper for various purposes is massive and the carbon emissions aggravated by the use of electronic devices, lamp bulbs, television sets and electrical appliances such as hairdryers, the IESR study said.

The province is home to no less that 68 universities, 18 of them state-owned; 130 government high schools, thousands of private institutions and non-government organisations (NGOs).

Nearly 50 percent of West Java’s carbon emissions come from electronic devices, followed by incandescent electric bulbs. “This shows the West Java people’s excessive lamp use,” the study said while noting the need  for people to switch to more efficient lighting.

A rapid expansion of housing complexes in the province has raised demands on electricity with the National Power Corporation hard put to meet rising consumption.

“The Sundanese, West Java’s main population, are highly conscious of  looks and fashionable lifestyles. They follow global trends in fashion and buy up the latest consumer products,” Imelda told IPS.

Recently, IESR launched a campaign called ‘Low Carbon Women’, a feature of which is the deployment of a cadre of volunteers called ‘sobat esensial’ (essential friends), who spread information on climate change and ask for commitments to reduce individual carbon emissions.

“Women can do a lot in the global fight against climate change – and they  can start by calculating how much carbon they are producing,” Imelda said. 

At BAU, Popi and about 50 of her fellow students routinely pick up plastic bags and litter lying around the campus to send across the message that plastic can harm the environment.

The team encourages the use of reusable cloth bags on campus green by distributing them free. “This year, we were able to give each student a trendy cloth bag,” Popi said.

Indonesia, which has committed itself to reducing its carbon emission by 26 percent by 2020, against a ‘business-as-usual’ scenario, is tapping every social group or community that can help achieve that target.

In 2005, the World Bank rated Indonesia as the third largest emitter of carbon, but that was mostly on account of runaway deforestation to extract timber and make way for plantations, particularly palm oil.

According to Greenpeace large volumes GhGs are also released by the destruction of Indonesia’s peatlands, believed to store about 35 billion tonnes of carbon and released by the plantation industry.

While Indonesia does not provide annual data on emissions, burning coal to produce electricity – mainly to meet demands from foreign investors in ‘dirty’ industries like steel, cement and power-  has boosted pollution levels and carbon release.

In September 2011, Indonesia announced an “action plan” to help ministries and local governments implement low carbon development activities, some of it visible in areas like Rajawati, a lush and green South Jakarta neighbourhood.

In Rajawati every household contributes to the planting of flowering plants and trees nurtured on organic, biodegradable waste.  

“All the greenery you see here comes from the efficient conversion of household waste,” Ninik Nuryanto, head of Rajawati’s Women’s Association. “Each household takes care to segregate waste, with plastics going into one bin and biodegradable matter into another.  

“In the beginning, fertiliser made from organic waste was just a way to help cultivate flowers in front yards. But, when production exceeded demand, we started selling it profitably,” Ninik told IPS.  

“While other neighbourhoods are weighed down with mounting waste, we just can’t get enough of it,” Ninik said.  

Apart from the packets of organic fertiliser, Rawajati’s community also sells flowers and teak tree seeds.

Money raised from the association’s sales goes into a fund for public services, such as paving roads, repairing sewage canals and the maintenance of a community park.

The main idea, Ninik said, is to get the community involved in green activities and become aware of the importance of maintaining the carbon balance.

(END)

School children plant mangrove seedlings on Dec. 2, 2011 to fortify coastal areas from the effects of climate change. Credit: Courtesy of the Caribbean Coastal Area Management Foundation

By Peter Richards
CASTRIES, St Lucia, Feb 28 2012 (IPS)

As developing countries urgently seek new sources of financing to cope with problems linked to climate change, delegates from the nine-nation Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) met here last week to evaluate potential funds and outline a more concrete vision of what is required for the subregion.

“The workshop sought to raise awareness and share experiences on instruments and best practices related to financing adaptation and sustainable energy, and to generate feedback on planned future action and partnerships,” Keith Nichols, head of the Sustainable Development Division at the St. Lucia-based OECS Secretariat, told IPS.

Supported by the World Bank, it explored carbon financing opportunities to enhance the ability of Small Island Developing States (SIDS) such as those of the OECS to respond to challenges like sea level rise and coastal erosion.

“The pursuit of a green growth agenda which promotes co-benefits in climate adaptation and mitigation, and which supports scaling-up of renewable energy and other economic resilience-building programmes, served as the vision on which this workshop was initiated,” Nichols added.

Delegates discussed case studies on sustainable land management for climate variability and climate change; adaptation challenges in the coastal and marine sectors; climate change adaptation and disaster risk reduction in the OECS; as well as an adaptation finance case study from the Pacific region.

The OECS comprises Antigua and Barbuda, Dominica, Grenada, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Montserrat, St. Kitts-Nevis, Anguilla and the British Virgin Islands.

Chrispin D’Auvergne, chief sustainable development officer for St. Lucia, believes that as a grouping, the OECS can better negotiate access to global climate funding – for which there is plenty of competition among developing nations.

“Recently there was an international fund launched, the Green Climate Fund, but I believe there will be a lot of demand on that fund. There is also an existing Adaptation Fund, but again I think the demand for that fund will outstrip the supply,” he said.

Approved at a U.N. conference in South Africa, the Green Climate Fund is supposed to raise 100 billion dollars a year from rich nations by 2020 for climate adaptation in poorer countries.

“There is also bilateral and multilateral sources available through the international development banks for countries interested,” D’Auvergne said.

“There is loan financing. But for many developing countries, the argument is that we are not the cause of this, so ideally we are not supposed to be borrowing money to finance climate change adaptation needs,” he added.

D’Auvergne argues that “one of the things we have to do as Small Island States is press these developed countries to live up to those pledges and some of them have started doing so.

“But also for our part we really have to try to crystallise exactly what we are seeking in relation to climate change funding, because it’s one thing to go out and say we need funding to adapt to climate change, but it’s another thing to say ‘I have put together a package of what we need’ and say to our bilateral and multilateral sources ‘this is it’, but if it is a generic request we are less likely to receive assistance,” he said.

There was a general consensus that the approach to climate resilience and low carbon development should be embedded into national/sectoral, regional and private sector development plans, and that there is need for additional investment in capacity and public education so that communities shift from “understanding” the key issues to “ownership”.

The main obstacles remain the lack of needed financing, the absence and inaccessibility of data, human resources and mapping capabilities, and a lack of political will and cooperation amongst stakeholders.

Nichols said that among the recommendations outlined to deal with financing climate change adaptation and sustainable energy were the need to link climate change adaptation with disaster risk management and to engage the private sector, particularly insurance companies.

The Clean Development Mechanism (CDM), as envisioned under the now- expired Kyoto Protocol, in which richer countries pay poorer countries to reduce emissions on their behalf, is one possible solution.

But the workshop noted that while the CDM has established credibility as a market mechanism in terms of size, value and types of participants, “it has limitations for sustainable development and GHG (greenhouse gases) reductions in small island states”.

Serious doubts have also been raised about whether many of the CDM projects meet the requirement that they be “additional” – in other words, that the net reduction of greenhouse gas emissions is greater than the cuts that would occur anyway without the initiative.

Other instruments, such as Green NAMA bonds (short for Nationally Appropriate Mitigation Actions) and the Green Climate Fund, which encourage upfront financing for low carbon development objectives, are also promising to encourage private sector participation.

The workshop was the second initiative by OECS this month on environmental issues.

The first dealt with efforts to strenthen the management framework for ocean resources so as “to ensure their maximum contribution to economic development goals of OECS member states”.

The St. Lucia-based grouping said that the sustainable development of ocean resources represents a key aspect of the economic development of the OECS region, in conformity with best international practices, the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and other related instruments.

“OECS states see a need to consider the possibilities for other resources within OECS waters such as the implications of the recently endorsed CARICOM Common Fisheries Policy, marine transportation tourism, and the exploration for petroleum products.

“The current OECS ocean governance programme is geared towards enabling the OECS Secretariat to create an institutional framework for regional cooperation in trans-boundary oceans management; strengthening national and regional capacities for the development and implementation of ocean law and policy within the framework of sub-regional cooperation,” the Secretariat added.

This article is one of a series supported by the Climate and Development Knowledge Network.

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