FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 10, 2018
Bonn, Germany — Delegations representing over 190 countries made slow progress towards the adoption of guidelines to implement the Paris Agreement at the April 2018 climate meeting. With the adoption of the Paris Agreement in 2015, countries agreed to a series of commitments and vision for addressing climate change. These guidelines are expected to play a critical role in translating these commitments and vision into real world action.
The progress achieved at this negotiating session paves the way for a productive additional round of negotiations in Bangkok in early September, which will move us closer to a successful outcome at COP24 in Katowice. But with only three weeks left of negotiations before the deadline for finalizing the Paris Agreement implementation guidelines, more political leadership will be needed to resolve the many issues where divergences remain, including fundamental differences and concerns related to the financial support needed for implementation.
“We welcome the fact that the draft guidance for national commitments retains an invitation for Parties to consider the relevance of human rights, the rights of indigenous peoples, gender equality, and a just transition for workers. The recognition of the importance of these principles — as well as those of food security and ecosystem integrity — in guiding the implementation of climate actions will be critical to ensure that the Paris Agreement steers policies towards people-centered and rights-based mitigation and adaptation action,” says Sébastien Duyck, senior attorney at the Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL).
At the meeting, Parties agreed to further capacity building for those developing countries seeking support to ensure that their climate action remains gender responsive and builds on human rights and traditional knowledge.
However, there was no progress to initiate the work of the Local Communities and Indigenous Peoples Platform that governments established six months ago during COP23. “Traditional knowledge and respect for indigenous peoples’ rights are critical for effective climate actions that benefit us all. Governments can no longer afford to ignore these perspectives,” comments Duyck.
These guiding principles are necessary for keeping global temperature rise to 1.5 degrees Celsius. During the Talanoa Dialogue, governments and stakeholders came together outside of their traditional roles and shared stories through which many highlighted opportunities for increasing mitigation action. It also allowed many to highlight that taking a people-centered, rights-based approach to mitigation and adaptation activities not only ensures that rights are upheld, but also leads to improved outcomes, as indigenous peoples, women, and local community members often have the best knowledge of local conditions and effective practices. “Building on the Talanoa Dialogue, at COP24 governments must send a strong political signal calling for Parties to enhance their commitments in line with the imperative of limiting global temperature rise to 1.5,” says Erika Lennon, senior attorney at CIEL.
At the meeting, Parties also finalized the first section of the Paris Agreement implementation guidelines, related to the enhancement of public participation, access to information, and awareness, among others. “The Talanoa Dialogue showed the important role the public must play in developing national plans for mitigation and adaptation in order to ensure effective climate action. Unfortunately, Parties did not use the opportunity in adopting this first decision to concretely encourage Parties to develop these critical national actions in a manner consistent with the right to public participation and access to information,” said Lennon.
In September, countries will gather in Bangkok for an additional negotiating session. Parties will need to make faster progress over the next six months to ensure a robust set of implementation guidelines at COP24.