What the HECK is up with REDD+?!?!: A Summary Of My Struggles Up Until Now

by Lara Shirley This is part of a REDD+ trilogy featured here on : Lara is angry and confused, Lara is just angry, and Lara gets technical. Stay tuned for the next installment! REDD+ is complex, illogical and confusing. I kind of dislike it a lot. After having spent what feels like far too much time on it – although compared to many here, it’s barely a millisecond – I thought I would spare...

Day 4 Policy Updates: Loss and Damage text

by Nathan Thanki In general negotiations continue in "contact groups" and informals which are by and large closed to observers (though try your luck!) and in informal-informals and bilaterals in the corridors. In the contact group on loss and damage, chaired by ministers (rather than negotiators) from Sweden and St. Kitts, the G77 proposed a draft text yesterday (Tuesday) which was supported...

Day 3 Policy Updates: Contact Groups

by Lara Shirley There has been a general breakdown of bigger negotiations into smaller contact groups, which are often closed. COP In Finance, all agenda items were discussed. However, long term finance proved to be the most contentious. Philippines on behalf of the G77 stressed the importance of clarity in the pledged 100 billion per year by 2020 and urged scaling up of finance from the Fast...

Day 2 Policy Updates: Welcome to COP

by Bogdan Zymka and Lara Shirley Since these were the first two days of COP19, not much exciting has happened: only a couple contentious discussions in various forums. In the COP (Conference of the Parties), the G77+China strongly emphasized the need for a finance roadmap and strong mitigation targets calling it "an implementation COP". Definite finance targets are on track to become a key...

LOSS AND DAMAGE MUST BE ADDRESSED NOW: WE DEMAND A STRONG MECHANISM

by Katie O’Brien & Maria Alejandra Escalante  What is Loss and Damage? In the climate negotiations, the focus is often on mitigation and adaptation, but these two alone cannot fully address the impacts of climate change. Some climate change impacts have already been locked in from historical emissions and many countries do not have the capacity to adapt to the oncoming effects, especially...