4 June 2008: Miguel d'Escoto Brockmann (Nicaragua) was elected on
4 June 2008 to serve as President of the 63rd Session of the UN General
Assembly (UNGA), which will begin on 16 September 2008.
5 June 2008: Kandeh Yumkella, Director-General of the UN
Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), emphasized low-emissions economic
development as an element of the solution to climate change in his statement to
commemorate World Environment Day on 5 June.
5 June
2008: The International Labour Organization (ILO) rolled out its Green Jobs
Initiative, aimed at easing the transition to green business and jobs, on World
Environment Day. Speaking about the Initiative, Juan Somavia, ILO
Director-General, said “green
growth and avoiding dangerous climate change depend on greener enterprises and
green jobs.”
5 June 2008: The UN Environment Programme's (UNEP)
International Children's Painting Competition this year was on the theme
“Climate Change: Actions We Can Take Now.”
4 June 2008: Projects from Peru and Lao People's Democratic
Republic recently received the Sasakawa Prize, a prestigious award from the UN
Environment Programme (UNEP). The Prize,
which aims to incentivize sustainable and replicable grassroots environmental
efforts, focused this year on “moving towards a low carbon economy.”
29 May 2008: The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and Japan announced a new $92 million initiative to help Africa adapt to global warming.
22 May 2008: The UNFCCC Secretariat has signed Memoranda of Understanding (MOU) with the Institute for Global Environment Strategies (IGES), based in Japan, and UNEP Risoe, in Denmark, to ensure that the organizations receive a faster, smoother flow of information related to the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM).
24 May 2008: The Global Environment Facility (GEF) and the Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to improve aid effectiveness by collaborating on projects addressing climate change and biodiversity loss.
22 May 2008: On the occasion of International Day for Biological Diversity (IBD), which was observed on 22 May 2008, UN and UNEP dignitaries stressed the nexus between biological diversity, food supply and climate change.
May 2008: In the lead up to World Environment Day, which will be observed on 5 June 2008, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon likened fossil fuel dependence to a dangerous addiction, saying “addiction is a terrible thing. It consumes and controls us, makes us deny important truths and blinds us to the consequences of our actions. Our world is in the grip of a dangerous carbon habit.” This year, World Environment Day will be hosted in Wellington, New Zealand, under the theme “Kick the Habit! Towards a Low Carbon Economy.”
| Earth Negotiations Bulletin (ENB) |
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| Conference Reporting Services (CRS) |
