Policy Brief on Intended Nationally Determined Contributions (INDCS)
Part A: Introduction: The issue of ‘intended nationally determined contributions’ (INDCs) has come to be one of the important components of the process towards the UNFCCC’s 21st Conference of Parties (COP21) to be held in Paris in December 2015. Countries have been in the process of preparing their INDCs. This Paper is intended to provide the background information on the INDCs, and a guide to developing countries on how to formulate their INDCs. (more…)
Understanding the Lima Climate Conference : A Proxy Battle for the 2015 Paris Agreement
I: Reaching agreement on the Lima outcome, after a near collapse
The annual United Nations climate conference, held in Lima, ended early on Sunday morning 14 December 2014 after over two weeks of intense negotiations and the trauma of an almost total collapse of this round of talks that was supposed to be an important step towards a new climate change agreement scheduled to be adopted in Paris in December 2015. (more…)
South Centre-TWN Side Event at the UN Climate Conference in Lima: Perspectives on the 2015 Paris deal: Options on the road from Lima to Paris
Speakers from developing countries will give insights on the critical markers from Lima to Paris in order to secure an equitable and just climate agreement at the South Centre-TWN side event in Lima, Peru.
Climate Change, Technology and Intellectual Property Rights: Context and Recent Negotiations
I. Technology Transfer, Sustainable Development and Climate Change
In order to meet their objectives for mitigation and adaptation in climate change, and move more towards a sustainable development pathway, developing countries need access to environmentally-sound technology at affordable prices. (more…)
The IPCC’s final report, known as the Synthesis Report, indicates the world is doomed if present climate and emission trends continue, but the key solutions are as elusive as before. Imagine our world getting more and more polluted, and little space left for the Earth to absorb more pollutants before all kinds of disasters take place. And imagine that we have not yet found the solutions to really slow down the emissions or to prevent the catastrophe that lies ahead. This look into our scary future was evident at the recent meeting in Copenhagen to finalise the last climate change report of the IPCC (inter-governmental panel on climate change). (more…)
As the United Nations hosts a Climate Summit Sep. 23, the lingering question is whether the meeting of world leaders will wind up as another talk fest. It is most likely that it could go that way. The problem is that developed countries are pressuring developing countries to indicate their pledges for emissions reductions post-2020 under the Paris deal which is currently under negotiation, without any indication of whether they will provide any finance or enable technology transfer – which are current commitments under the Convention. (more…)
Loss and Damage Mechanism Set Up for Climate Change
The UN Climate Conference held in Warsaw has set up a new international mechanism to help developing countries affected by loss and damage from climate change, such as the Philippines typhoon. (more…)
Developing the loss and damage mechanism in climate change: The tasks ahead
The establishment of the Warsaw International Mechanism for Loss and Damage associated with climate change impacts (the Mechanism) stands out as one of the key outcomes and milestones of the 19th Conference of the Parties (COP19) of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) held in Warsaw in November 2013. This brief offers our views, as negotiators from developing countries, who have worked on this issue in the past few years. (more…)
SDGs: Economic Issues at National and Global Levels
The economic pillar of sustainable development is crucial, yet relatively neglected. It should get its proper place in the Sustainable Development Goals. This paper deals with economic issues at national level (as Sustainable Development Goals) and at international level (as part of the new Global Partnership for Development). It is part of the South Centre’s contribution to the United Nations process of establishing Sustainable Development Goals.
SDGs: Technology and Finance—The Means of Implementation
The following is a statement by Executive Director of the South Centre, Martin Khor, to the Open Working Group on Sustainable Development Goals held at the United Nations in New York on 9 December 2013. (more…)
Obstacles to Development in the Global Economic System
I. Obstacles to Development Arising from the International System
As the international community wades into the political discussions regarding the alternatives to the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) after 2015 and the design of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as mandated by the Rio+20 conference, it is timely to consider the question of whether development is a matter mostly of individual effort on the part of nation-states or whether there are elements in the international economic system that could serve as significant obstacles to national development efforts. (more…)
