Cancun, Tuesday, December 7, 2010

Yesterday I attended three excellent sessions. The first related to the high level leadership of women in this COP-16. They spoke of how women are more vulnerable to the effects of climate change and are already experiencing more. Half the women in the world still cook over inefficient wood fires that emit considerable greenhouse gases. Providing highly efficient stoves would save much CO2.

But on the other hand, women are more poised to provide solutions. Women are known to be more trustworthy with loans. Here were a few noteworthy quotations:
“If you want something said, ask a man, but if you want something done, ask a woman.”
“A house doesn’t rest on the ground, it rests on a woman.”

Christiana Figueres, the Executive Secretary of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change said she hoped hers is the last generation that has to endure gender bias. This was a very uplifting session with several other women who were in high leadership positions speaking.

Next was the side event sponsored by the Caribbean Community Climate Change Centre (5 Cs). The Centre has only been operational since 2005, but has accomplished much. It was a very impressive presentation with a number of speakers describing projects ongoing in several Caribbean countries. Hon. Gaspar Vega, Deputy Prime Minister of Belize, spoke about the effects of climate change already evident in Belize.

One project showed areas that would be inundated by a one-meter rise in sea level, which included most of Belize City, and seems likely by 2100 even if the temperature rise is kept to 1.5 oC. To get research accepted by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), one must publish in peer-reviewed journals, so the Centre has plans for programmes that will encourage young scientists. 

At the end of the session I taped an interview with Hon. Gaspar Vega, which I uploaded to You Tube <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2d9ZR9hhN0E>.

My third event for the day was the session with H.E. Felipe Calderon, President of Mexico. 
I was impressed that he had all the numbers in his head, the amount of land in Mexico that is protected, the amount wind-generated energy, the gradual process of eliminating subsidies for fossil fuel. 

He gave a very strong statement about the role of women, which rivaled those that were given in the session on women leaders earlier in the day. Then, during the question and answer session there were many hands up, but the only people called upon were obviously indigenous people, women, young people, and only one other man, who was from Singapore. He made the same point that the President of the COP-16 keeps making, that the process will be totally open and transparent.

I was very impressed by his engagement in the process of the COP-16. It appears that he has staked his reputation and Mexico’s on the success of the Conference, that is, the negotiation of a good agreement. He said, “The ideal is the enemy of the good.” Some countries are saying that the agreement must have a target of no more than 1.5 o C rise; while others are talking about no more than 2oC. He said he would like it to be 0, but we have to be practical. He warned Ministers not to take an “all or nothing” approach. I hope that his strong, emphatic statement will lead to a final agreement.