Climate Change Centre reaffirms commitment to Region

Mar 19, 2011 News

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At the recent Twenty-Second Inter-Sessional Meeting of the Conference of Heads of Government of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), leaders reinforced the urgent need to address climate change in the Region, according to the Caribbean Community Climate Change Centre (CCCCC).
The statement was issued after the conference sets out key climate change priorities for CARICOM countries.
According to the Climate Change Center, the Heads of Government welcomed the report from the Prime Minister of Saint Lucia on the outcome of the Sixteenth Meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) (COP 16) which was held last December in Cancun, Mexico.
It was further noted that the outcomes at Cancun represented progress for many countries and is clearly a stepping stone for future actions and agreements.
However, the road ahead is still a bumpy one for the Caribbean, being among the most vulnerable groups affected by climate change.  The region has already suffered greatly from the effects of a changing climate and will inevitably suffer severe consequences if strong measures are not taken at this stage.
The CCCCC further stated that the Caribbean shares these challenges with wider groups including the Alliance of Small Islands States (AOSIS) and the Group of Latin America and Caribbean Countries (GRULAC), and has over the years, worked with them to secure stronger global efforts to address climate change.
Based on these links, the Heads of Government  agreed that CARICOM Member States would make efforts to ensure that there is adequate and balanced representation by competent CARICOM experts, through GRULAC and AOSIS, on the newly formed governance bodies of the UNFCCC.
They also agreed that Member States would collectively sponsor and lobby for the CCCCC to be designated an International Centre on Adaptation.  The CCCCC will also support Member States in identifying and preparing appropriate projects, in order to make use of available and emerging resources for climate change adaptation.
The CCCCC welcomed the opportunity to work with Member States and stated that it is firmly committed to this endeavour. “Throughout the years we have worked within the Region to support and facilitate projects, programmes and initiatives that build capacity to address climate change especially as it relates to adaption.”
We recognise the immense challenge ahead as the Region is already being affected by the effects of a changing climate change. However, it is important that we also recognise the possibilities for strong responses that exist at this stage.
The CARICOM as a collective group has worked effectively throughout the years to negotiate on climate change issues and can continue to play a significant role in crafting an effective global framework for addressing climate change.
The CCCCC has had the privilege of working with Member States to develop their capacity to address challenges posed by climate change and gained their collective agreement on a Regional Climate Change Strategic Plan in 2009.
Heads of Government requested the CARICOM Secretariat to convene a Joint COHSOD-COTED Meeting to agree on an action plan to address the way forward for the Region to follow-up on the outcome of COP-16, preparation for COP 17 and for the implementation of the Regional Climate Change Strategic Plan, among other issues.
“There is clearly much work to be done this year as the Caribbean and other groups work towards achieving an effective climate change framework.”
In his statement during the High Level Segment at COP 16, CCCCC Executive Director, Dr. Kenrick Leslie, emphasised that: “CARICOM
is seeking the highest level of ambition from the negotiations and an agreement, which will result in the peaking of global concentrations of greenhouse gases by 2015 and a decline to 350 parts per million to give the atmosphere an even chance to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels”.
CARICOM holds the position that emission reduction targets under the Kyoto Protocol are woefully inadequate; and much more must be done and each state has to contribute their share.
Dr. Leslie also reminded Parties that, “The challenge is not easy. It will require concerted global action to achieve the objectives required. This will require leadership, responsibility, and accountability”.
Climate Change is no longer seen as a future threat but as a reality that affects us all today, and while many argue about the causes and the nature of it, it is important to recognise that the world is experiencing dramatic changes which need to be addressed urgently.
For developing countries, every fraction of a degree of further global warming will multiply the massive problems which are already undermining their national development efforts and threatening their physical survival.

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