Green Economy To Eradicate Poverty

One of the topics to be discussed in the conference in Singapore is this. This is will be the first of many blogs to get your input and views on this topic.

At first glance looking at the issue of a Green Economy seems unheard of and unrealistic in these times of economic uncertainty. The main purpose of this blog will be to learn about the issue and see how it can be effective in developing nations.

The concept of Green Economy is novel and has been mainly been brought into light under the Green Economy Initiative formulated the United Nations Environmental Programme. They came up with a definition which reads as an economy " that results in improved human well-being and social equity, while significantly reducing environmental risks and ecological scarcities."

Click on this link to learn about this initiative

http://www.unep.org/greeneconomy/AboutGEI/tabid/1370/Default.aspx

Now the important issue to realise is the link between a Green Economy and Poverty. A great case-study on this issue is the India's National Rural Employment Guarantee Act(NREGA) Programme. The main objective of this programme is enhancing the livelihood security of people in rural areas by guaranteeing hundred days of wage-employment in a financial year to a rural household whose adult members volunteer to do unskilled manual work. This has now expanded to over 615 rural villages and touched the lives of 30 million on average annually.

Blog about a initiative you have heard about...or something that will generate a leaner and greener economy while tackling poverty as well.

Article : Foundations for a Sustainable future..

In 2012, delegates from around the world, including at least 20 heads of state, will converge in Rio di Janeiro to decide how the world responds to escalating climate change and stays sustainable over the next half century.


If successful, the meeting of 192 member countries of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) will send a clear signal to business and
industry, governments and citizens around the world. Commitments made and
mechanisms agreed will signal that the future belongs to a low-carbon economy
and that tomorrow’s winners will be those that invest in clean energy solutions.
It will also set in motion swift support for the most vulnerable in adapting to a
warming world.

ESSENTIAL ELEMENTS OF A SUSTAINABLE FUTURE:
1. The Big Picture Agreement

The world sets a goal to keep global average temperature below 1.5–2 degrees Celsius in comparison with pre-industrial levels. this is in line with the best scientific guidance which warns that greater warming will spawn increasingly dangerous and unpredictable impacts. to limit temperature rise, countries also agree to reduce global emissions by at least 50 percent below 1990 levels by 2050.
In order to meet this goal, a high-level declaration would contain a set of substantive agreements in the form of targets and timetables from developed countries and emission reduction actions by developing countries. Financial commitments from the former to support the latter in their mitigation and adaptation efforts between now and 2020 must also be included.

Developed countries as a group — including the United States, 27 European Union countries, Japan, Australia, Canada and Russia — would commit to reducing emissions by at least 80 percent by 2050. These countries would also commit to cutting collective emissions by 25 to 40 percent below 1990 levels by 2020. Additionally, each developed country would also commit to an 'economy-wide' 2020 emission reduction target (known as a Quantified Emission Reduction Commitment or QERC) and an Emissions Pathway through 2030.
These national targets could be in the form of a range until the final legally binding instrument(s) is agreed in 2010.

Developing countries would agree to take nationally appropriate climate mitigation actions that will reduce emissions significantly (e.g., 15 to 30 percent) below
business-as-usual levels by 2020. African, Asian and Latin-american governments could implement emission reduction policies and measures in all major economic sectors,
including forestry (deforestation is responsible for 15 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions). Some large developing countries that are major economic players and
substantial greenhouse gas emitters, such as China, Brazil, and Mexico also would agree to individual non-binding goals to curb national emissions within the range. the amount of financial support that developed countries come
up with will fundamentally determine the level of action to
which developing countries are prepared to commit.

Country actions and commitments would be reflected in long-term nationally appropriate low-carbon planning processes.

Country Commitments for a Successful Copenhagen Outcome:



2. Building a Sound Foundation
For these commitments to form the basis of an effectively functioning agreement, a framework of international climate machinery needs to be built around them. this
will require a COP decision mandating that negotiations conclude in a legally binding instrument that contains the following specified mechanisms and institutions.

Our Objective and Aims

Our Objective and Aims

Objectives:

• Learning: Creating awareness and knowledge amongst youth and young leaders in Sri Lanka about the latest developments in environmental matters. For this Education track, we will be focusing on Energy for a low carbon future, a Green economy to eradicate poverty andEnvironmental Law and Governance for 2011.
• Voicing Out: The coming Rio + 20 summit in 2012 is an important date of decision for mankind. We would provide a platform for the youth from all over Sri Lanka to discuss and craft a document which will be submitted in the 2012 Summit Agenda so that their views can be heard.
• Taking Action: Bringing the youth of Sri Lanka together for this green agenda would forge new relationships, induce the development of new exciting ideas and provide a strong follow-up on these projects even after they have been suggested.

For more information please visit: Green Lanka Youth Platform (GLYP)

www.glyplatform.webs.com

A Climate Neutral UN

Combating climate change and catalyzing the transition to a low carbon,
more resource efficient global Green Economy is everyone’s responsibility
– international, regional and national organizations and the individuals
that work for them, regional and municipal authorities and companies
and civil society.


The UN system:

The UN system is made up of the organizations established
by the Charter of the United Nations, namely,
the United Nations principal organs, the specialized
agencies provided for in Article 57 of the Charter and
a number of programmes established by the General
Assembly under its authority derived from Article 22
of the Charter. The agencies are legally independent
international organizations with their own rules, membership,
organs and financial resources.

The international institutions that make up the UN system
have diverse fields of action and operations, structures,
mandate and governing body arrangements,
and varying field office presence.

Progress so far:

The aggregated GHG emissions of the UN system organizations
for their facility operations and travel in 2008, not including
peacekeeping, are estimated at approximately 770’000 tonnes of
CO2 equivalent. The average annual
GHG emissions across the UN system are approximately 8.3
tonnes of CO2 equivalent per staff member.

The UN system set out its approach in the UN Climate
Neutral Strategy. In this document, the UN defined its
“climate neutrality” as the entire set of polices that it
uses to estimate its known GHG emissions, measures
to reduce them, and to purchase carbon offsets to
“neutralize” those emissions that remain, aiming at the
highest standards possible. It identifies the following
elements that should be included:

1. A commitment to reducing GHG emissions as part
of an integrated and comprehensive environmental
management approach;
2. The preparation of consistent, comparable and transparent
inventory data, according to agreed methodologies,
which subsequently undergo periodic independent
verification;
3. The development and implementation of a package
of measures to reduce GHG emissions;
4. A decision to offset the remaining emissions through
a reasoned choice of offsets that satisfy a list of
agreed criteria, ensuring their high quality;
5. Regular transparent reporting combined with the
public communication of each organization’s emissions
inventory, together with any targets or goals
for emissions reductions;
6. The development and implementation of a knowledge-
management system serving the entire UN,
to document initiatives, data, lessons learned and
best practice; to post guidelines and methodologies;
to post model strategies and work plans; to provide
e-training courses; to host Q&A; to provide technical
assistance; and to host e-discussions.

For more information on the UN Climate Initiative, please see www.unep.org