Coping after Copenhagen: Maximizing Mexico
UNU Open Colloquium
Coping after Copenhagen: Maximizing Mexico
In association with
The Embassy of Mexico in Japan
Supported by
- Global Environment Outreach Centre (GEOC) , Tokyo, Japan
- Institute for Global Change Adaptation Science (ICAS), Ibaraki University
- Institute for Global Environmental Studies (IGES)
- Integrated Research System for Sustainability Science (IR3S)
- National Institute for Environmental Studies (NIES)
- Institute for Sustainable Energy Policies (ISEP)
ABOUT THE COLLOQUIUM
Amidst mixed reflections about the outcome of UN Climate Conference in Copenhagen last year, global voices present in UNFCCC/COP-15 were convinced that climate change is an unprecedented challenge and is negatively impacting life of living beings, livelihoods of poor and equilibrium of social-economic-environmental systems. Mitigation to effectuate reduction of green house gases still remain priority among nations, but is less likely to benefit the world without universally acceptable and legally binding agreement. Urgency for immediate and adequate actions to ‘adapt to climate change’ before its impacts become unmanageable has also gained considerable priority in the recent climate debate. UNU in resonance with international body of scholars also believes that while adaptation offers opportunity for all to prepare for long-term consequences of a changing climate, robust and appropriate decisions to arrest Green-House-Gases (GHGs) should also compliment the process without further delay. However, in addition to augment adequate financial and technological resources, capacities to act rapidly also need to be amplified in the world over.
To discuss these emergent issues further towards optimizing possible opportunities in the 2010 UN Climate Change Conference in Mexico, United Nations University Institute for Sustainability and Peace is organizing an open Colloquium on 19th May 2010. The Colloquium is aimed at galvanizing the opinions of policymakers, administrators, researchers and the public towards achieving following key objectives:
- Reassuring that climate change is topmost concern of present generation to ensure that future generations also enjoy the similar, if not better, benefits from planet earth;
- Advocating for robust decisions by the governments at all levels, appealing for avoidance of delays, while accepting certain degree of scientific uncertainty;
- Retrofitting policy and public opinions by engaging synergistic thinking and promoting analytical discourse.
Participation in the colloquium is open to all and is specifically targeting at academia including students, researchers, scientists, activists, environmental NPOs/NGOs, administrators, representatives from embassies, international organizations, media and concerned citizens. Key note speeches will be delivered by some of the renowned climate change experts of present times. Panel discussion will help to get further inputs from wide spectrum of practitioners and policy makers. Concluding session will include interaction with the audience.
PROGRAMME
1. Introduction to colloquium Dr. Akhilesh Surjan, UNU-ISP
2. Welcome remarks Prof. Kazuhiko Takeuchi Vice-Rector, UNU
3. Opening remarks Mr. Kazuhiko Takemoto, Vice-Minister for Global Environmental Affairs, Ministry of Environment, Japan
4. Remarks H. E. Ambassador Miguel Ruiz-Cabanas, Embassy of Mexico in Japan
5. Keynote speech-1: “Climate Affairs: Why Bother” by Dr. Michael Glantz, Director, Consortium for Capacity Building, University of Colorado Boulder, USA
6. Keynote speech-2: “Lessons Learned in Copenhagen, Challenges Ahead and Optimizing Opportunities in Mexico” by Dr. Saleemul Huq, Senior Fellow, International Institute for Environment and Development, London, UK
7. Panel discussion: Echoing Global Consensus towards Winning Climate Challenge,
- Moderator: Prof. Nobuo Mimura, Director, Institute for Global Change Adaptation Science (ICAS), Ibaraki University
- Dr. Mikiko Kainuma, Project Leader, Climate Policy Assistance Project, National Institute for Environmental Studies, Japan.
- H. E. Ambassador Miguel Ruiz-Cabanas, Embassy of Mexico in Japan
- Mr. Tetsunari Iida, Executive Director, Institute for Sustainable Energy Policies (ISEP), Japan
- Prof. Hironori Hamanaka, Chair, IGES Board of Directors
- Mr. Jiro Adachi, Executive Director, Japan Center for a Sustainable Environment and Society (JACSES)
8. Discussion open to the floor
9. Vote of Thanks and closing remarks Prof. Kazuhiko Takeuchi Vice-Rector, UNU
ABOUT THE KEYNOTE SPEAKERS
Dr. Saleemul Huq is the Director of the Climate Change Programme at the International Institute for Environment and Development based in London, UK where his interests are in looking at the linkages between climate change and sustainable development, specifically for the developing countries. He was the founding Executive Director of the Bangladesh Centre for Advanced Studies (BCAS) and has done work in many developing countries on integrating environmental and national planning as well as assessing vulnerability and adaptation to climate change. Lead author of the chapter on Adaptation and Sustainable Development in the third assessment report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). Lead Author of the chapter on Adaptation and Mitigation in the IPCC's fourth assessment report. He graduated and received his PhD in Biological sciences from Imperial College, London, United Kingdom.
Prof. Michael Glantz is the Director of the Consortium for Capacity Building (CCB) at the University of Colorado, where he also teaches in the International Affairs Programme. Until recently, he was the only senior social scientist at the USA’s National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) in its 50-year history. His interests include interactions among climate, water, environment and society (droughts, floods, fires, famines, freezes) and their impacts on the people and on political systems and economies. He undertook one of the first studies of the societal impacts of the El Nino phenomenon and proactively participated in the First Assessment Report of the IPCC in 1990. Selected by UNEP in 1991 as a Global 500 Laureate, he continues to research and write about climate, society and environment interactions and authored/edited 40 books. His book Climate Affairs: A Primer (2003) captures the need to understand the climate system for decision-making purposes. His most recent books are ? Heads UP: Early Warning Systems for Climate, Water, Weather and Society (May 2009) and Usable Thoughts: Climate, Water and Weather in the Twenty-first Century (Dec 2009) both from UNU Press. He holds a B.Sc. in Metallurgical Engineering and an M.A. and Ph.D. in Political Science from the University of Pennsylvania (USA).
MORE INFORMATION ABOUT THE PROGRAMME
http://isp.unu.edu/events/2010/maximizing_mexico.html
Coping after Copenhagen: Maximizing Mexico
In association with
The Embassy of Mexico in Japan
Supported by
- Global Environment Outreach Centre (GEOC) , Tokyo, Japan
- Institute for Global Change Adaptation Science (ICAS), Ibaraki University
- Institute for Global Environmental Studies (IGES)
- Integrated Research System for Sustainability Science (IR3S)
- National Institute for Environmental Studies (NIES)
- Institute for Sustainable Energy Policies (ISEP)
ABOUT THE COLLOQUIUM
Amidst mixed reflections about the outcome of UN Climate Conference in Copenhagen last year, global voices present in UNFCCC/COP-15 were convinced that climate change is an unprecedented challenge and is negatively impacting life of living beings, livelihoods of poor and equilibrium of social-economic-environmental systems. Mitigation to effectuate reduction of green house gases still remain priority among nations, but is less likely to benefit the world without universally acceptable and legally binding agreement. Urgency for immediate and adequate actions to ‘adapt to climate change’ before its impacts become unmanageable has also gained considerable priority in the recent climate debate. UNU in resonance with international body of scholars also believes that while adaptation offers opportunity for all to prepare for long-term consequences of a changing climate, robust and appropriate decisions to arrest Green-House-Gases (GHGs) should also compliment the process without further delay. However, in addition to augment adequate financial and technological resources, capacities to act rapidly also need to be amplified in the world over.
To discuss these emergent issues further towards optimizing possible opportunities in the 2010 UN Climate Change Conference in Mexico, United Nations University Institute for Sustainability and Peace is organizing an open Colloquium on 19th May 2010. The Colloquium is aimed at galvanizing the opinions of policymakers, administrators, researchers and the public towards achieving following key objectives:
- Reassuring that climate change is topmost concern of present generation to ensure that future generations also enjoy the similar, if not better, benefits from planet earth;
- Advocating for robust decisions by the governments at all levels, appealing for avoidance of delays, while accepting certain degree of scientific uncertainty;
- Retrofitting policy and public opinions by engaging synergistic thinking and promoting analytical discourse.
Participation in the colloquium is open to all and is specifically targeting at academia including students, researchers, scientists, activists, environmental NPOs/NGOs, administrators, representatives from embassies, international organizations, media and concerned citizens. Key note speeches will be delivered by some of the renowned climate change experts of present times. Panel discussion will help to get further inputs from wide spectrum of practitioners and policy makers. Concluding session will include interaction with the audience.
PROGRAMME
1. Introduction to colloquium Dr. Akhilesh Surjan, UNU-ISP
2. Welcome remarks Prof. Kazuhiko Takeuchi Vice-Rector, UNU
3. Opening remarks Mr. Kazuhiko Takemoto, Vice-Minister for Global Environmental Affairs, Ministry of Environment, Japan
4. Remarks H. E. Ambassador Miguel Ruiz-Cabanas, Embassy of Mexico in Japan
5. Keynote speech-1: “Climate Affairs: Why Bother” by Dr. Michael Glantz, Director, Consortium for Capacity Building, University of Colorado Boulder, USA
6. Keynote speech-2: “Lessons Learned in Copenhagen, Challenges Ahead and Optimizing Opportunities in Mexico” by Dr. Saleemul Huq, Senior Fellow, International Institute for Environment and Development, London, UK
7. Panel discussion: Echoing Global Consensus towards Winning Climate Challenge,
- Moderator: Prof. Nobuo Mimura, Director, Institute for Global Change Adaptation Science (ICAS), Ibaraki University
- Dr. Mikiko Kainuma, Project Leader, Climate Policy Assistance Project, National Institute for Environmental Studies, Japan.
- H. E. Ambassador Miguel Ruiz-Cabanas, Embassy of Mexico in Japan
- Mr. Tetsunari Iida, Executive Director, Institute for Sustainable Energy Policies (ISEP), Japan
- Prof. Hironori Hamanaka, Chair, IGES Board of Directors
- Mr. Jiro Adachi, Executive Director, Japan Center for a Sustainable Environment and Society (JACSES)
8. Discussion open to the floor
9. Vote of Thanks and closing remarks Prof. Kazuhiko Takeuchi Vice-Rector, UNU
ABOUT THE KEYNOTE SPEAKERS
Dr. Saleemul Huq is the Director of the Climate Change Programme at the International Institute for Environment and Development based in London, UK where his interests are in looking at the linkages between climate change and sustainable development, specifically for the developing countries. He was the founding Executive Director of the Bangladesh Centre for Advanced Studies (BCAS) and has done work in many developing countries on integrating environmental and national planning as well as assessing vulnerability and adaptation to climate change. Lead author of the chapter on Adaptation and Sustainable Development in the third assessment report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). Lead Author of the chapter on Adaptation and Mitigation in the IPCC's fourth assessment report. He graduated and received his PhD in Biological sciences from Imperial College, London, United Kingdom.
Prof. Michael Glantz is the Director of the Consortium for Capacity Building (CCB) at the University of Colorado, where he also teaches in the International Affairs Programme. Until recently, he was the only senior social scientist at the USA’s National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) in its 50-year history. His interests include interactions among climate, water, environment and society (droughts, floods, fires, famines, freezes) and their impacts on the people and on political systems and economies. He undertook one of the first studies of the societal impacts of the El Nino phenomenon and proactively participated in the First Assessment Report of the IPCC in 1990. Selected by UNEP in 1991 as a Global 500 Laureate, he continues to research and write about climate, society and environment interactions and authored/edited 40 books. His book Climate Affairs: A Primer (2003) captures the need to understand the climate system for decision-making purposes. His most recent books are ? Heads UP: Early Warning Systems for Climate, Water, Weather and Society (May 2009) and Usable Thoughts: Climate, Water and Weather in the Twenty-first Century (Dec 2009) both from UNU Press. He holds a B.Sc. in Metallurgical Engineering and an M.A. and Ph.D. in Political Science from the University of Pennsylvania (USA).
MORE INFORMATION ABOUT THE PROGRAMME
http://isp.unu.edu/events/2010/maximizing_mexico.html
