AWF Blog

• Can Africa’s Wildlife Wait For A Global Deal?

  Posted: December 20, 2011, 9:57 pm by Danny McGahey

  The following post was written by AWF Program Design Officer for Europe Danny McGahey. Danny was part of an AWF delegation that attended the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, 17th Conference of Parties (UNFCCC COP 17), in Durban, South Africa.

  Returning home from Durban we hear the news that negotiations were extended by two days in order to secure agreement for the “Durban platform for advanced action” on climate change. This commitment to secure renewed consensus among all parties is a positive sign that countries are aware of the seriousness of the issues at stake. Over the course of the UNFCCC COP 17 we have reflected on what these discussions might mean for the African continent, it’s people and it’s wildlife.

  The AWF delegation at the 2011 Climate Change Conference in Durban, South Africa. From left: Kathleen Fitzgerald, Harry van der Linde, Helen Gichohi, Danny McGahey, Andrea Athanas (front).

  Essentially, under the Durban platform all countries have agreed to negotiate a multilateral agreement by 2015 to be operational by 2020. This was in return for the commitment of the EU and several other developed countries to extend the Kyoto protocol by five to eight years. It is welcome news that there is still hope in reaching a multilateral agreement, but with the science suggesting that emissions must be curbed by 2017 at the latest to avoid runaway climate change, this could be too late for many of the most vulnerable wildlife and people.

  Throughout the COP AWF has been emphasizing the urgency of the situation. At the CIFOR Forest Day 5 AWF President Helen Gichohi through her keynote address stressed the reduced adaptive capacity of many African ecosystems following the loss of key habitats or refugia.  Africa’s wildlife and ecosystems are already being impacted by an increase in extreme climatic events such as droughts and floods. At the same time Africa’s forests are being lost at four times the global average releasing a significant amount of carbon into the atmosphere.

  Some positive progress has also emerged from discussions on REDD+ at Durban, particularly over the measurement of baseline emissions levels. These are important developments for AWF as we continue to work with forest-dependent people to develop REDD+ certified projects across Africa.  Financing the required forest conservation to achieve reduced emissions from deforestation remains an issue, however. Private finance will be essential and at the COP the private sector reiterated the need for governments to provide the right policy signals. Establishing a regulatory market will be essential for REDD to move from a marginal investment to mainstream.

• Global Talks, Urgent Local Issues

  Posted: December 5, 2011, 7:03 pm by Andrea Athanas

  My trip to Durban started on a shuttle bus from Arusha to Nairobi…wrong direction, I know, but lower emissions than the flight AND you take a 0 off the price tag!

  The savannah is a lush green because we have had healthy rains this season. But a chat with a Maasai at the Kenyan boarder reminded me of the urgency of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change discussions…and the relevance of the topic to the people here who depend on the rains for their lives and livelihoods. He lost over 20% of his cows in the last 3 years to drought.
  

  Andrea Athanas at an exhibit at the climate change conference.

  So here I sit…trying to connect these global talks to such urgent local…individual…issues. And in a sense it strikes me that they are intrinsically linked. The decisions we each make every day ultimately link us to that Maasai man in Namanga. Let us have compassion for his plight and find bold and brave agreement to limit climate change and find ways to adapt to its impacts that put us all on a healthier path to development.

  Danny McGahey at another exhibit at the conference.

  AWF partners South Africa Parks, SANBI, and the Department of Environmental Affairs South Africa are linking biodiversity to a green economy. They estimate that over 1 million jobs in the country are from economic activities supported by biodiversity. Some of those jobs are in wetland rehabilitation, and over 800 wetlands have now been restored. In the discussions today, Ecosystem Based Adaptation featured as a topic of debate. Can nature provide the kind of infrastructure we need to adapt to climate change impacts? How can we restore natural systems like the savannahs of Kenya and Tanzania or the tropical forests of the Democratic Republic of Congo so that they are resilient to the changes brought about by rising temperatures and more variable rain patterns…and provide for the livelihoods of the people who depend upon them. See how we are working on these issues on the ground with communities on our African Heartlands pages.

  Danny McGahey at the Good News Stand.

   

• Forest Day in Durban South Africa

  Posted: December 5, 2011, 6:57 pm by Kathleen

  It’s Sunday. Today is CIFOR’s (Centre for International Forestry Research) Forest Day. 1200 people are gathering to discuss the value and future of forests. The focus is global, but the fact that the COP 17 is in South Africa is a great opportunity to highlight the major plight of Africa’s forests. AWF President Helen Gichohi is giving the keynote address.

  It’s already been a long week and it continues until the 9th of December. The negotiations have been tough. Countries have put their stakes in the ground. Canada said it is pulling out of the Kyoto Protocol and would not sign a second one. Bolivia has opposed REDD (Reducing Emissions from Forest Degradation and Deforestation). The structure and funding source of the Green Climate Fund, a major funding mechanism, is in question. Ideally, as the senior political teams and negotiators arrive this week, countries will begin to pull back together and agree to some consensus. It is a fascinating and frustrating process.

  The United Nations designated 2011 as the International Year of Forests. This has helped to raise awareness about deforestation and forest degradation.

  One evening I attended a panel with representatives from India, China, Brazil and Singapore. Another evening, Rothschild Financial Advisory Company presented a model for a cap and trade structure. Yesterday, AWF hosted an event with government, private financiers and civil society on REDD markets and their futures. It’s only been 11 months since the last COP in Cancun, where significant progress was made, some question whether it is feasible to emerge with another monumental agreement.

  In the meantime, groups like AWF are implementing projects on the ground. Hoping to stop deforestation and degradation, help communities adapt to the impact of climate change, and hoping that some of the lessons we have learned will help shape policy.

  AWF has been working with communities in the Kolo Hills of Tanzania to halt deforestation and forest degradation by helping to increase the productivity of agriculture. Photo courtesy of Andrea Athanas.

  Whether there will be a regulatory carbon market is up in the air. If the voluntary market will sustain programs is a matter of debate, and how do you manage the risk of land tenure, policy and market variability? What are the best methodologies to help communities and wildlife adapt to the already felt impacts of climate change is a key question.

  Today and tomorrow the World Economic Forum gathers to discuss similar issues. We wait to see what emerges from these high level discussions and in the meantime push for policies that will support the reduction of emissions and the establishment of structures that enable effective REDD and adaptation programs.

Blah blah blah

Fish cakes

Alas a fish cake.

Yet more fish cakes

Guess what ... yeah ... fish cakes.

The end of the fish cakes