BRIDGING THE GAP: Bangkok Climate Change Conference

 BRIDGING THE GAP: Bangkok Climate Change Conference  Articles/Blogs  1 Response »
Sep 232012
 

This article was published on Climate Action Network Int’l Voice Blog 

Bangkok CC Conference (photo: ENB, IISD)

It has been nearly three years since I started following the climate change negotiations. I first attended the UN Climate Change Conference (UNFCCC) intersessional meeting in Barcelona organized just before Fifteenth Conference of Parties (COP15), a well-known Copenhagen climate summit. After that, I got selected as a Southern Capacity Building Fellow of CAN International for two years (2010 and 2011). Southern Capacity Building Program is more about strengthening capacity of civil society members from developing countries on climate change negotiation. I attended every COP and intersessions during 2010 and 2011 as a fellow.

After having some experience at the grassroots level and this short engagement in the UNFCCC process, I find it very challenging to link the expectations of communities with the progress of ongoing negotiations. Last week, after attending the Bangkok intersession, I faced a similar situation- having to update the communities within my country about the current state of negotiation. The Bangkok intersession was about exchanging of ideas on key issues to build on Durban decisions and finding ways to bring one of the Ad-hoc working groups to conclusion. This is not easy to convey to the grassroots people, who were waiting for action, not discussion.

Furthermore, the Bangkok session focused on how to raise ambition and strengthen international cooperation while finding ways to frame the Ad-hoc Working Group on Durban Platform (ADP) to deal with what will be implemented by 2020. Similarly, Ad-hoc Working Group-Kyoto Protocol (AWG-KP) and Ad-hoc Working Group – Long Term Action (LCA) were focused on fulfilling specific mandates from COP 17 and to resolve outstanding issues to ensure the successful completion of the group’s work in COP18. In reality, this makes little sense to the communities. Continue reading »

A cleaner, greener Nepal

 A cleaner, greener Nepal  Articles/Blogs  2 Responses »
Jul 312012
 

This article was published on MYREPUBLICA (31 July, 2012)

In a bid to promote clean technology in the country, Nepal has more than 700 electric vehicles (Safa tempos) running in the valley—a commendable effort to reduce its dependency on fossil fuels. Safa tempos are best driven for short distances and at relatively slow speeds, all of which suits the natural topography of Kathmandu valley. These green machines, which are mostly operated by women drivers, hold a lot of potential for the country’s economy and can tap Nepal’s massive hydropower potential to create a regional energy grid that contributes significantly in reducing GHG emission in the region.

The Trolley Bus Service
The interurban line (Trolley Bus Service) that connects Kathmandu to the satellite towns ceased its operation around November 2008. Established in 1975 and managed by the Nepal Trolley Bus Service (NTBS) of Nepal Transportation Corporation (NTC), the system functioned well in its early stages. At that time, this was one of the cheapest and most desirable modes of transport in the valley. With the change in political set up in the country in the 1990s, the management of the trolley bus service encountered hostile government bureaucracy and the organization’s overstaffing resulted in huge losses for NTBS. The revenue collected from fares was not enough to pay even the electricity bills or staff salaries. Currently, its office compound at Baneshwar is occupied by another implausible project, the Melamchi Water Supply. A part of its space is managed as battery charging station for Safa tempos, where they get uninterrupted electric supply even during load shedding.

THE BIRTH OF ELECTRIC VEHICLES
The advent of Safa Tempo’s in Kathmandu has replaced the notoriously environment unfriendly Vikram tempos that run on diesel. The development and promotion of Safa tempos in Nepal was initially supported through international projects. This later developed into a bigger EV industry with over 700 Safa tempos operating in more than 13 routes in Kathmandu. The journey was not as simple for other electric vehicles. When the first REVA car arrived in February 2001, it was bunged at the customs office for several months due to customs duty and additional special taxes. There are other similar stories for four and two wheeler electric vehicles that faced enormous challenges at all stages of import, registration and deployment to road and users.
Today, there are more than 700 three wheeler, approximately 1500 two wheeler and few four wheeler electric vehicles on our roads.

The prevailing law does not recognize a two wheeler as a Continue reading »

Introducing climate change at national level

 Introducing climate change at national level  Articles/Blogs, Climate Change  No Responses »
Jan 102012
 

Nepal became a party of UNFCCC in 1992 and adopted Kyoto protocol in 1997 at the 3rd Session of the Conference of the Parties (COP) along with many other nations. Than after eight years the government formally endorsed this decision. In the year 2003, a small group of civil society organization based in capital started a dialogue with the government about the benefit of being party to climate change convention and its associated protocol. The main attraction at that time was Clean Development Mechanism under the Kyoto protocol. This small group was successful to convince the government and as a result the government endorsed the Kyoto protocol on December 2005.

The group with its first success in establishing the climate change issue at the national level, was later formally named itself as “Climate Change Network Nepal (CCNN)”. This makes CCNN one of the oldest and pioneer networks on Climate change in Nepal. The network in its initial phase was very active in supporting the government as and when required. Gradually, the group expanded and ultimately it succeeded in bringing unique strengths of different agencies together. Continue reading »

 Posted by on January 10, 2012 at 8:51 pm

“It always seems impossible, until it is done!”

 “It always seems impossible, until it is done!”  Articles/Blogs, Climate Change  No Responses »
Dec 062011
 

Photos: Civil Society meeting (top), UNFCCC Executive Secretary, Christiana Figueres, showing off the CAN COP17 lanyard (bottom)

Civil society lanyards proudly touting this quote by Nelson Mandela was a good choice by CAN and the perfect fit for Durban.  Its timeliness resonates with many a delegate at the climate negotiations here at COP17.  Indeed the promise of optimism and hope it gives must surely permeate the negotiations and secure for our planet what Mandela proved is possible despite the trials and tribulations on the path to achievement.  Even though we despair at the slow pace of the negotiations, we will continue to persevere in the spirit of this silent reminder until the seemingly impossible is accomplished.

This week, more than 25,000 delegates from over 190 countries are gathered here in the beautiful city of Durban, South Africa to progress talks on finalizing the climate deal and to take us closer to a fair, ambitious, and binding global deal. Continue reading »

 Posted by on December 6, 2011 at 4:07 am

Negotiating (iphone) Technology On The Way To Durban

 Negotiating (iphone) Technology On The Way To Durban  Articles/Blogs, Climate Change, Guff-gaf  1 Response »
Oct 052011
 

One of my hobbies that I love is to use new and recently developed applications and technologies. On my last birthday, I was blessed with an ‘iphone’ from my colleague. I was very excited that day; I threw party on the same night when I got my iphone via DHL. Also credit goes to DHL for its service up to my far-flung apartment. And also I am grateful to my friend, that’s the nicest thing that anyone’s ever done for me. Otherwise, I would have never got chance to use such a wonderful thing, which would have cost almost six months of my personnel expenses in Nepal. As I remember now, I don’t know how that ‘full iphone-week’ passed; it felt like I was flying-up above Himalayas most of the time. My excitement continued when by the weekend, when my younger sister, studying civil engineering, asked me to find a map of our town on my iphone for her project work. Another hit was when my laureate brother asked me to find the meaning of some familiar Nepalese words, however, either my iphone does not support my language or not I could type on it. The next day I went to a local mobile service center on my town and discussed my problem with them. They tried all the possible solutions they could think of: they connected it with other devices, they installed and uninstalled software, but all of their efforts ruined root and branch.

UN Climate Change meeting @ PanamaNow, while having discussions with the friendly delegates here in Panamá, I realize that the Technology Executive Committee (TEC) has become like my friend (who gave me the iphone) and Climate Technology Centers and Network (CTCN) is like the service center in my town. Sometimes when the technology discussion is about service delivery, these institutions also seem like DHL, who did the hard job of delivering my iphone up to my apartment. Continue reading »

 Posted by on October 5, 2011 at 11:12 pm

Let us jointly fulfill the commitments: Kathmandu consultation

 Let us jointly fulfill the commitments: Kathmandu consultation  Articles/Blogs, Climate Change  2 Responses »
Aug 172011
 

“Bhutan as Chair of SAARC, made an intervention at the COP plenary today to admit SAARC as an observer at UNFCCC. The intervention was promptly supported by series of interventions by India followed by Pakistan. In response, the COP President requested the secretariat to facilitate the process for the approval of the proposal.” This was a part of a live email update from opening plenary of COP16 sent to CANSA google group from the Moon Palace, Cancun on November 20, 2010. There was an overwhelming response from the colleagues with the positive aspiration that from now onwards along with the civil society network, our governments’ regional forum will also take part in UNFCCC negotiations.

South Asian journalist at Cancun and back in the country also had similar expectations,  I was asked several questions upon receiving my email: what actual status did SAARC get at UNFCCC and what actually the observer mean? Is it like EU, or is it like African Union or like ICIMOD and IUCN? These questions in fact encouraged me to scrutinize more about our regional forum. Then, I started inquiring my own people, what I found were, objectively there is no vast difference between SAARC with EU and African Union. One of the objectives of SAARC is to accelerate economic growth and social progress of this region. Similarly, African Union is to accelerate the political and socio-economic integration of the continent and the European Union (EU) is an economic and political union of 27 member states. But in reality what I knew was, objectives are not the only principal guidance of this forum. So, in conclusion, back to the topic, SAARC after Cancun has given similar status as other intergovernmental organization (IGOs). Now, onwards SAARC can also attend any UNFCCC meetings as an observer and can also make a submission on its behalf.  Continue reading »

Bonn Climate Talk: Let’s discuss on Agenda !

 Bonn Climate Talk: Let’s discuss on Agenda !  Articles/Blogs, Climate Change  1 Response »
Jun 152011
 

Blogging from Bonn Climate Talk

Cancun set an excellent example how the outstanding leadership of a host country could effectively shape the discourse. With the Cancun Agreement as an output on the table, many issues need further discussion and more political willingness. As a follow-up for next year, discussion started from Bangkok on last April. Agenda became main agenda for Bangkok Climate Talk. The week long discussing went around only discussing agendas of Ad-hoc Working Groups and finally succeeded. Now we are at Bonn, Germany climate capital, where world meets every year to talk about climate.

I feel really embarrass and discomfort to open up this story of Bonn Meeting. We discussed on agenda for Subsidiary Bodies (SBs) on first week and are now discussing on where the next meeting should be held. Now let’s go one my one: first on the agenda and on the next meeting issues. This would be best agenda to discuss.

One of the reasons to open-up the discussion on the agenda was because of some new proposals from some countries such as water resources, blue carbon, agriculture, and the rights of nature and ecosystems. Finally, parties agreed to work on the understanding that consultations would continue.

Papua New Guinea attempt to push Blue Carbon in an agenda by introducing it as an effective solution to reduce atmospheric CO2 by conserving water plants which dubbed carbon sequestration more effectively (up to 100 Continue reading »

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