UNFCCC COP 25: The Expanding Role of Civil Society in Effective Climate Solutions
(Also: What to Expect on Forests, Land Use and Biodiversity)
A COP Crossing Continents
For people working on climate change concerns, the months leading up to each year’s Conference of the Parties (COP) are generally characterized by a progressively increasing rush of activity. From logistical arrangements to the development of work products or outputs, preparations for the COP – especially by the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) Secretariat – are best begun as early as possible to ensure the completion of work and the proper allocation of resources. This year’s COP has thrown everyone for a loop, with a cancellation followed by a sudden change in venue approximately a month before proceedings start.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and UNFCCC Executive Secretary Patricia Espinosa at COP25 in Madrid, Spain | Photo by UN Climate Change
The 25th UNFCCC COP (COP 25) was meant to take place in Santiago, Chile, from the 2nd to the 13th of December 2019. Chilean President Sebastián Piñera announced at the end of October, however, that due to the civil unrest taking place in the country’s capital, they would no longer be able to host COP 25. Spain came forward mere days after the cancellation with an offer to host the COP in Madrid on the same dates, an offer that was quickly accepted by the COP Bureau, the 12-member administrative decision-making panel, at an emergency meeting soon after.
While some joked that this change of venue was the fastest decision-making process the UNFCCC has undertaken to date, concerns have also been raised by a number of developing country Party representatives and stakeholders. The resources needed to accommodate such an abrupt change might not be readily available for some, which raised concerns as to stakeholder attendance. The UNFCCC Rules of Procedure state that Parties must be notified of the dates and venue of a session at least two months before it takes place, although special circumstances surrounding this COP may be cited by others.
Stakeholders have also begun to speculate about the implications of a change in host country on COP priority outcomes. Carolina Schmidt, the Chilean Environment Minister and President-designate of COP 25, listed Chile’s COP priorities at the UN High Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development held in New York in July 2019. These include Ambition in Implementation, Market Mechanisms, Climate Finance, Scientific Solutions to the Climate Crisis, Adaptation, Loss and Damage, Forests and Food Security, and Oceans and Climate Change.
Although Chile retains the COP Presidency, which means it remains the leader and facilitator of Conference processes and negotiations, the last-minute shift to a European host has led some to wonder if any of the previously-identified COP priorities would be affected by the move to a developed country.
Chile had hoped to highlight the struggles facing developing countries and the most vulnerable sectors of society through this COP, and while the circumstances which led to the transfer to Madrid may be an illustration of such challenges, the change has also curtailed the ability of resource-limited vulnerable sectors and stakeholders to participate by directly monitoring proceedings, providing input, and taking part in COP events.
Conference of Parties; Summit(s) of the People
The People’s Summit 2019 will be held in Santiago, Chile
A “Peoples’ Summit 2019” had been set to take place alongside the COP in Chile, made up of “over 160 social, environmental and feminist organisations” and unions, meant to bring attention to unequal and unjust systems that have caused and continue to exacerbate climate change.[1] The Summit’s slogan is Salvemos la Tierra, Cambiemos el Sistema – “Save the Earth, Change the System.” Its objective is to “mobilize and build a global social force, an alternative to the production and consumption model (neoliberal), that overcomes the social and ecological crisis that puts the future of life on the planet at imminent risk.”[2]
Many environmental movements and activists thus strongly criticized the unilateral decision of the Chilean government to cancel hosting the COP, “ignoring the months-long work already done by Chilean and Latin American social movements,” while also “forc[ing] Spanish social movements to take over” without consultation and within a critically short time frame to prepare.[3]
Rather than cancel the People’s Summit with the withdrawal of Chile as host, two summits are now taking place parallel to COP 25 – one in Santiago and one in Madrid. This is a testament to the importance and necessity of platforms and venues to tackle critical social, economic, and environmental issues outside the walls of the Conference proper, and emphasize that the UN talks are not enough to solve the climate crisis at the scale and speed needed to avert the worst of its consequences. As the organizers of the People’s Summit state, “the responsibility and need to carry out the People's Summit is more current and necessary than ever.”[4]
The Social Summit for Climate will be held in Madrid, Spain alongside the 25th COP
Cumbre de los Pueblos 2019 is scheduled to take place from 2-7 December in Santiago de Chile at the Universidad de Santiago de Chile - USACH, with the additional slogan on its website: No hay COP, Sí hay Cumbre (“There is No COP, Yes There is a Summit”).
In Madrid, Cumbre Social por el Clima or a “Social Summit for Climate” will run from 6-13 December, with activities taking place mainly at Universidad Complutense de Madrid (Edificio Multiusos). Its slogan is Más Állá de la COP25: Los Pueblos por el Clima (“Beyond COP25: People for Climate”). Program details are also posted on the summit website.
Closer to Home: Women, Youth, and Indigenous Peoples
As the popular summits parallel to COP 25 seek to illustrate, climate change aggravates existing inequalities. People and communities that must already contend with limited resources and opportunities often find themselves unable to cope with worsening climate impacts.
Women, the youth, and indigenous peoples are often among the most disadvantaged members of societies around the world. Although their efforts and contributions to address and respond to climate change have long been unaccounted for and under-appreciated, these stakeholders possess creativity, resilience, and specialized knowledge that have long enabled and sustained adaptation, mitigation, and disaster risk reduction and management (DRRM) actions on the ground.
This can be seen in numerous examples close to home:
In Ifugao, watersheds are sustained by the muyong, or the traditional forest management system that has been used by Indigenous Peoples for generations. This community-driven strategy for forest conservation, rehabilitation, and sustainable use can help meet climate change adaptation and mitigation objectives, and is deeply ingrained in Ifugao culture and identity.[5]
In Palawan where climate change impacts have contributed to the significant decline of fish catches for small-scale fisherfolk, women have stepped up to provide for their families through alternative livelihood activities such as seaweed farming.[6]
Filipino youth all over the country have organized to participate in the global mobilization calling for urgent action on the climate emergency,[7] and have begun to engage with national and local governments to push for an ambitious and comprehensive set of demands, including a just transition to 100 percent renewable energy.
Photo credit: UN Climate Change
The Paris Agreement was considered revolutionary for its acknowledgement of the importance of human rights, the rights of indigenous peoples and local communities, the rights of children and intergenerational equity, and gender equality and the empowerment of women in actions to address climate change.
With the Agreement’s adoption, mechanisms were created to enhance engagement with indigenous peoples, gender, and youth constituencies through processes under the Convention. COP 21 in Paris saw the adoption of the Local Communities and Indigenous Peoples Platform (LCIPP), which notably facilitates the integration of indigenous knowledge systems, practices, and innovations in designing and implementing international and national actions to address climate change. In the same year, Parties approved a Gender Action Plan (GAP) to mainstream gender perspectives in the implementation of the Convention. A dedicated “Young and Future Generations Day” has also been consistently organized as part of the COP, highlighting youth-led activities and initiatives.
At this COP, the Subsidiary Body on Scientific and Technological Advice (SBSTA) will consider the draft initial two-year workplan of the LCIPP Facilitate Working Group (FWG) for 2020–2021, which centers on implementing the functions of the LCIPP. The draft workplan is included in the report of the FWG’s first meeting.
CTCN's workshop on the Gender Action Plan at COP 24 | Photo credit: Annabelle Avril, WECF
As for the Gender Action Plan, the Subsidiary Body on Implementation (SBI) will conclude its work on the review of the Lima Work Programme on Gender and its GAP, with a view to forwarding a recommendation on the outcome of the review for consideration and adoption by the COP. The Philippines made a submission in relation to this review in April 2019, focused on monitoring and reporting on the GAP, and capacity-building, knowledge-sharing and communication on gender and climate change.
Even outside the plenary halls and negotiating rooms, civil society has historically influenced international decisions in significant ways. Although the unforeseen change in COP venue this year has constrained many civil society or observer organizations (CSOs) to scale back their participation in COP 25, the scheduled side events are still expected to rally behind the need for urgent and decisive action in the face of the climate crisis.
It is likely that civil society at COP 25 will amplify calls for climate justice and accountability for climate change and its worsening impacts. Backed by the latest scientific findings from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Special Reports on Global Warming of 1.5C; Climate Change and Land; and Oceans and the Cryosphere, CSOs can be expected to be especially critical of greenwash and “business-as-usual” solutions that fall short of the transformational change that the world needs.
While foregrounding the voices of women, youth, and indigenous peoples, these parallel activities also provide opportunities to highlight the intersectional nature of many of the issues that these sectors confront. More than fixed categories, these identities are often nuanced and overlapping, giving rise to new forms of marginalization and vulnerability.
As such, even as today’s youth are expected to encounter the worst effects of climate change in their lifetime, adaptation will be more difficult for young girls whose education is often the first thing sacrificed by their families during a climate-induced crisis.[8] As climate change endangers the ecosystems and natural resources that form the bedrock of Indigenous Peoples’ livelihood and customs, indigenous women who are often more vulnerable to discrimination and exploitation are forced to face these risks when they transition to work outside their communities.[9]
Although they face these unique challenges, indigenous women, indigenous youth, and young girls have risen to the occasion. The side events at COP 25 provide valuable spaces for them to share their experiences and learnings, and reiterate how their calls for a more sustainable world are also ultimately calls for a more fair and equitable one as well.
Forests, Land Use, and Biodiversity at the COP
Among the environmental stressors that exacerbate the vulnerable situation of women, youth, and indigenous peoples are those related to terrestrial ecosystems, including desertification, land degradation, sustainable land management, food security, and greenhouse gas fluxes. The IPCC recently presented stark conclusions on these issues and their interlinkages with climate change, in its Special Report on Climate Change and Land (SRCCL), published in August 2019.[10]
The Report found that “[l]and degradation and climate change, both individually and in combination, have profound implications for natural resource-based livelihood systems and societal groups.”[11] Women and youth “with limited adaptation options” are particularly vulnerable to land degradation and climate change. Food security and climate change also have “strong gender and equity dimensions,” with women playing a key role in food security and climate extremes impacting the livelihoods of poor and vulnerable communities.[12]
Appropriately, forests and land use remain active areas of engagement at COP 25, both in terms of official agenda items and as topics in parallel and side events. The following agenda items and mandated events relevant to forests and land use are set to be tackled and/or take place at this COP:
Koronivia Joint Work on Agriculture (KJWA)
The KJWA will continue at this COP, with the Parties taking into consideration workshop reports from the June 2019 sessions on (1) methods and approaches from assessing adaptation, adaptation co-benefits, and resilience, and (2) improved soil carbon, soil health, and soil fertility under grasslands and croplands, as well as integrated systems, including water management. A workshop on improved nutrient use and manure management towards sustainable and resilient agricultural systems will also take place.
Third Koronivia Dialogue Scaling up Agriculture Actions to Tackle Climate Change, (Iraq Room), FAO Headquarters. | Photo credit: ©FAO/Alessandra Benedetti.
It is important to note that the KJWA’s current roadmap is set to conclude at the end of 2020, which raises the question of continuity. This is something that the ASEAN Negotiators’ Group on Agriculture (ANGA) is also contemplating seriously. This COP marks the group’s second session of active participation in the negotiations; its first engagement in June 2019 was labeled a diplomatic success and the group hopes to continue and improve its engagement as the roadmap nears its initial end date.
The Philippines made a submission under the KJWA in June of this year in relation to methods and approaches for assessing adaptation co-benefits and resilience; and improved soil carbon, soil health and soil fertility under grassland and cropland as well as integrated systems, including water management.
Warsaw International Mechanism for Loss and Damage Associated with Climate Change Impacts (WIM)
The SBI and the SBSTA will consider the report of the Executive Committee of the WIM regarding its work between October 2018 and September 2019 and recommend further action, if any. The Subsidiary Bodies will also review the WIM itself and recommend a draft decision to the appropriate body or bodies based on the outcome of this review. A whole-day WIM Review Event will take place at the COP on December 1st.
The Philippines made a submission providing views on the WIM Review in November 2019.
Joint SBSTA-IPCC special event: Special report on Climate Change and Land (SRCCL)
The SRCCL is “the first ever comprehensive assessment on the way we use land, from the perspective of climate change, desertification, land degradation and food security.” It provides updates to the state of knowledge since the Fifth Assessment Report and the Special Report on Global Warming of 1.5°C (SR1.5) and is also relevant to the three Rio Conventions, “raisi[ing] important questions on synergies between them in the context of sustainable development.”[13]
This special event is open to Parties, observers, and media, and will be web-casted. It will take place on December 4th and is intended to be an open dialogue between participants and IPCC experts.
COP25 Agriculture and Forest Day
The Agriculture and Forest Day will take place on December 5th, consisting of a High-Level Meeting on Forests and the Launching of the Platform of Latin American and Caribbean Agriculture Climate Action (PLACA).
The meeting on forests will include signing of international agreements related to results-based payments in the framework of REDD+; as well as the following panels:
Leveraging finance for mitigation efforts from countries, organizations and through the participation of the private sector in forest activities;
Highlighting the importance of forests in Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) and Long-Term Low Emissions Development Strategies (LT-LEDS) as a key element to meet the objectives of the Paris Agreement;
Stocktaking the experiences to date linked to Article 5 of the Paris Agreement; and
Protecting and respecting the rights of local communities, Indigenous Peoples, and workers in forest activities.[14]
Roundtable UNFCCC – CBD – UNCCD
A Roundtable on the three Rio Conventions will take place on December 7th among the Executive Secretaries of the Conventions and representatives of Parties. The event will be a discussion on improving coherence in implementation, particularly in the context of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, with the aim of enhancing policy-making and results at national level.[15]
Outlook
Despite the excitement arising from the sudden change in venue, the international profile of COP 25, so to speak, seems to be fairly low-key in comparison to a number of other COPs. Similar to those in the years immediately following the adoption of the Paris Agreement, this COP is generally meant to work through details of implementing the Agreement and to set the stage for the coming years. However, this does not mean that important decisions will not be made in Madrid under the Chilean Presidency.
The next year is bound to be an eventful one, with 2020 being the year the Paris Agreement takes effect. It is also the year wherein countries Party to the Agreement are expected to submit the second iteration of their NDCs. COP 25 has the potential to produce outcomes that would be key in ensuring the scaling-up of ambition and means of implementation, and not just through traditional State platforms. It has become exceedingly apparent in recent years that increasing ambition, and hastening the pace at which action is being taken to address climate change, require a multi-sectoral approach. Although the role of governments remains critical in ensuring progress, sub-State and non-State actors – such as the environmental and social movements, NGOs, and CSOs strongly making their presence felt at this COP – have been approached and have begun engaging more actively through various platforms as well.
Bridging State, sub-State, and non-State efforts is absolutely critical, highlighted by the most recent IPCC reports undeniably laying out the dire state of the world and the rapid rate at which the window of time for action is shrinking. We must have “all hands on deck,” as the saying goes. But to maximize and sustain all these efforts, the “deck” must be robust and well-made, and the “hands” properly empowered and capacitated. COP 25 is key in strengthening a framework that will see this through.
References
[1] “Organizations Announce Peoples´ Summit 2019,” https://rwr.fm/news/organizations-announce-peoples-summit-2019/. The People’s Summit was organized in response to both COP 25 and the Asia-Pacific Economic (APEC) Forum, also set to take place in Chile in November 2019 and which was also cancelled due to the protests.
[2] “Objetivos de la Cumbre de los Pueblos,” https://cumbredelospueblos2019.org/los-objetivos-de-la-cumbre-de-los-pueblos/
[3] “Call to participate in the Social Summit for Climate in Madrid,” https://cumbresocialclima.net/call/
[4] “About” page, https://cumbredelospueblos2019.org/about-2/
[5] “Ifugao’s ‘muyong’, stakeholders’ support key to a clean, healthy river,” https://businessmirror.com.ph/2019/07/01/ifugaos-muyong-stakeholders-support-key-to-a-clean-healthy-river/
[6] “Small-scale women seaweed farmers ride the rough tides of climate change,” https://news.mongabay.com/2019/06/small-scale-women-seaweed-farmers-ride-the-rough-tides-of-climate-change/
[7] “Strike with the youth for climate justice,” http://manilastandard.net/opinion/columns/eagle-eyes-by-tony-la-vina/304881/strike-with-the-youth-for-climate-justice.html
[8] “Climate change has devastating impact on girls,” https://reliefweb.int/report/world/climate-change-has-devastating-impact-girls
[9] “Indigenous Peoples and Climate Change: From Victims to Change Agents through Decent Work,” https://www.ilo.org/wcmsp5/groups/public/---dgreports/-gender/documents/publication/wcms_534346.pdf
[10] IPCC SRCCL Report Home, https://www.ipcc.ch/srccl/
[11] IPCC SRCCL Technical Summary, https://www.ipcc.ch/site/assets/uploads/sites/4/2019/11/03_Technical-Summary-TS.pdf
[12] Id.
[13] “Information on the special event of the SBSTA and the IPCC: Unpacking the new scientific knowledge and key findings in the IPCC Special Report on Climate Change and Land,” https://unfccc.int/sites/default/files/resource/SRCCL_InfoNote_SBSTA_IPCC_6Nov2019.pdf
[14] COP 25 Agriculture and Forest Day, https://unfccc.int/sites/default/files/resource/Presidency_event_Forests_PLACA_5Dec.pdf
[15] Roundtable Concept Note, https://unfccc.int/sites/default/files/resource/Roundtable_Rio_Conventions_7Dec.pdf