SDG Update – 17 November 2017

Jay OwenSustainability News

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Informals Continue on Finance, APA at COP 23: 16 November Highlights

16 November 2017: The UN Climate Change Conference in Bonn, Germany, continued on Thursday, 16 November 2017. Contact groups and informal consultations under the Conference of the Parties (COP) and the COP serving as the meeting of the Parties to the Kyoto Protocol (CMP) convened during the day. Throughout the day, the COP Presidency conducted consultations on several outstanding issues, and the joint high-level segment continued.

NEWS

‘Why Wait?’: Report Explores SDG Dividends from Accelerated Access to Decentralized Electricity

16 November 2017: On the sidelines of the UN Climate Change Conference in Bonn, Germany, Sustainable Energy for All (SEforALL) and Power for All released a report that presents a framework for understanding and quantifying financial, educational and environmental dividends for households through accelerated access to decentralized electricity.

UN, Partners Build Capacity in Climate Vulnerable Countries, Highlight Tech for Climate Solutions 16 November 2017: Throughout the UN Climate Change Conference, taking place in Bonn, Germany, from 6-17 November 2017, the UN and partners launched initiatives and organized events to promote the role of technology in addressing climate change-related challenges. Various other developments sought to build stakeholders’ capacity for climate action.

COP 23 Side Events Address Climate Finance in Asia-Pacific, Environmental Integrity of Carbon Markets: 16 November Highlights

16 November 2017: Side events on Thursday, 16 November, addressed: climate finance, during an event hosted by the Global Environment Facility (GEF) and the Green Climate Fund (GCF); how to ensure that carbon markets maintain environmental integrity; and linkages between biodiversity conservation and climate change.

SDG Compass Expands Inventory of Tools for Businesses

16 November 2017: The UN Global Compact, the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD), and the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) announced an expansion of their inventory of SDG measurement tools for businesses. The organizations invite submissions of tools to be added to the inventory.

Reports Explore Climate Change Impacts in Arctic, Climate Displacement

14 November 2017: The Arctic Council’s Arctic Monitoring and Assessment Programme (AMAP) has issued a report titled, ‘Snow, Water, Ice and Permafrost in the Arctic (SWIPA) 2017,’ which presents the findings of the fourth AMAP assessment addressing Arctic climate issues. And Oxfam International has published a report titled, ‘Uprooted by Climate Change: Responding to the growing risk of displacement,’ which explores the relationship between climate change and displacement.

COP 23 Water Action Day Estimates US$295 Billion Needed, Calls for Nature-Based Solutions

10 November 2017: Water agencies at the UN Climate Change Conference in Bonn, Germany, estimated that approximately US$295 billion would be needed for countries to take action on adaptation to climate change in the water sector – a tripling of current investment levels. They launched an International Declaration on Nature-Based Solutions for Water Management Under Climate Change, signed by many water alliances supporting the integration of nature-based solutions into the Marrakech Partnership for Global Climate Action.