EFFECTS OF CLIMATE CHANGE: Worsening Political Instability and unrest around the world

"We are experiencing a surprising uptick in global insecurity... partially due to our inability to manage climate stress," Columbia University professor Marc Levy, who conducts studies for U.S. government agencies, said on Tuesday at the Global Security Initiative, a research body in Arizona.Ongoing violence in Syria, for example, is connected with climate change, Levy said.A record drought in Syria from 2006 to 2010 wreaked havoc on agriculture, spurring an exodus of unemployed rural residents into urban areas and intensifying dissatisfaction with the government. Refugees fleeing conflict and violence in Syria, Iraq, Afghanistan and Sudan are now streaming into Europe."Some of those migrants are fleeing areas that are hard to live in because of climate stress," he said, adding that global warming is just one of many factors contributing to the recent refugee crisis.Nations grappling with climate change will be "tempted" to pursue policies that benefit themselves in the short term but make others worse off, he said. Russia banned grain exports following a heat wave in 2010, benefiting domestic consumers, but causing a supply crunch, rising prices and hunger in other regions."Countries are buying up long-term access to farmland in sub-Saharan Africa," Levy said. "It's good for their food security, but it's creating problems" for African consumers and small landholders.(Reporting By Chris Arsenault, editing by Alisa Tang; Please credit the Thomson Reuters Foundation, the charitable arm of Thomson Reuters, that covers humanitarian news, women's rights, trafficking, corruption and climate change. Visit www.trust.org) http://in.reuters.com/article/2015/08/26/climatechange-security-aid-idINL5N11044Q20150826

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UPDATE: Water supplies restored to 1,000 villages in India's Rajasthan state, reviving the flow of 5 rivers by integrating Modern Technology with Traditional Methods

A new set of development objectives - known as the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) - is due to be adopted at a U.N. summit in September.

The 17 goals that include eradicating poverty and providing universal access to clean water by 2030 will use numerical indicators to measure progress on achieving its 169 targets.

"The SDGs are not the real way you can reach anything," Rajendra Singh told the Thomson Reuters Foundation on the sidelines of a global water conference in the Swedish capital.

"Creating indicators and setting targets that people can't understand and therefore won't follow only complicates things," the 56-year-old winner of this year's Stockholm Water Prize said.

Working with local residents, Singh has restored water supplies to 1,000 villages in India's Rajasthan state over the past three decades, reviving the flow of five rivers by integrating modern technology with traditional methods that fell out of use during British colonial rule.

"When our lives are connected with nature we draw from indigenous knowledge, which is also science, but with common sense," said Singh, often referred to as the "waterman of India".

"If we make water and rivers available for everyone, we can move forward through the 21st century peacefully and with happiness."
Singh said that consumer lifestyles that focus on comfort and luxury by exploiting natural resources and polluting the atmosphere "fulfill our greed, not our needs".
"It's not just in India or Asia, but the whole planet has changed its lifestyle and lost affection with nature," he said.
However, all is not lost, said Singh, and people can find happiness by reconnecting with five key elements: soil, earth, water, sun and air.
"We're doing nothing for nature and our lives are not sustainable," said Singh, named by the Guardian newspaper in 2008 as one of "50 people who can save the planet".
"We have to change the way we think and look at things in a different way," said Singh. "It's difficult, but it's not impossible."

(Reporting by Magdalena Mis, editing by Ros Russell; Please credit Thomson Reuters Foundation, the charitable arm of Thomson Reuters, that covers humanitarian news, women’s rights, corruption and climate change. Visit www.trust.org)

EFFECTS OF CLIMATE CHANGE: Refugees and Migrants crossing the Mediterranean to reach Europe has surpassed 300,000 this year

LARGE SCALE MIGRATION: Some 2,500 refugees and migrants are estimated to have died or gone missing this year while attempting the crossing to Europe – compared to 3,500 who died or went missing in the Mediterranean in 2014” said Melissa Fleming, spokesperson for the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), at a press briefing. This number, which includes almost 200,000 people landing in Greece and 110,000 in Italy, represents a substantial increase from last year. “In the last few days,” Ms. Fleming continued, “more people have lost their lives in three separate incidents.” In a statement Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said he has been horrified and heartbroken at the latest loss of lives of refugees and migrants in the Mediterranean and Europe.He reminded the international community that a large majority of people undertaking these arduous and dangerous journeys are refugees fleeing from places such as Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan. International law has stipulated – and states have long recognized – the right of refugees to protection and asylum. When considering asylum requests, States cannot make distinctions based on religion or other identity – nor can they force people to return to places from which they have fled if there is a well-founded fear of persecution or attack.“This is not only a matter of international law; it is also our duty as human beings,” said the UN chief, and while he commended those leaders and communities that have “stepped,” he appealed to all governments involved to provide comprehensive responses, expand safe and legal channels of migration and act with humanity, compassion and in accordance with their international obligations.“Let us also remember: the high number of refugees and migrants are a symptom of deeper problems – endless conflict, grave violations of human rights, tangible governance failures and harsh repression. The Syrian war, for example, has just been manifested on a roadside in the heart of Europe.”Mr. Ban said that in addition to upholding responsibilities, the international community must also show greater determination in resolving conflicts and other problems that leave people little choice but to flee. Failing that, the numbers of those displaced – more than 40,000 per day – will only rise.“This is a human tragedy that requires a determined collective political response. It is a crisis of solidarity, not a crisis of numbers,” the Secretary-General declared. According to UNHCR, the Libyan Coast Guard carried out two rescue operations on Thursday morning, seven miles off the port town of Zwara. Two boats carrying approximately 500 refugees and migrants were intercepted and survivors taken to shore. With an estimated 200 people still missing – and feared dead – a still undetermined number of bodies were recovered and taken to shore. The Libyan Red Crescent has been helping with the collection of the bodies. On Wednesday, a rubber dinghy carrying some 145 refugees and migrants ran into trouble when the operator tilted the skiff dangerously to one side. Panic followed as some people fell into the sea and two men jumped into to rescue them. Amidst jostling and shoving, three women on the dinghy were crushed to death. Of those who fell into the water, 18 remain missing and believed to have drowned. According to UNHCR, the survivors were rescued and taken to Lampedusa, including the two-month old baby of one of the dead women. Most of the survivors are in critical condition, suffering from shock, cuts and bruises.That same day rescuers aiding a boat off the Libyan coast found 51 people suffocated to death in the cargo hold. According to survivors, smugglers were charging people money for allowing them to come out in order to breathe.Last week, in a similar incident, the bodies of 49 persons were found in the hold of another boat. They are thought to have died after inhaling poisonous fumes. Despite the concerted efforts of the joint European search and rescue operation under FRONTEX (Frontières extérieures), which has saved tens of thousands of lives this year, the Mediterranean Sea continues to be the deadliest route for refugees and migrants. While these numbers are overwhelming for the already overstretched capacity of single countries, such as Greece, the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Hungary, Serbia or Germany, they are manageable through collaborative and coordinated responses at the European level.All European countries and the European Union must act together in response to the growing emergency and demonstrate responsibility and solidarity. “UNHCR appeals to all governments involved to provide comprehensive responses and act with humanity and in accordance with their international obligations,” Ms. Fleming concluded.

More than 300,000 make perilous Mediterranean crossing in 2015 – UN refugee agency

28 August 2015 – The United Nations refugee agency said today that the number of refugees and migrants crossing the Mediterranean to reach Europe has surpassed 300,000 this year, up from 219,000 during the whole of 2014.

Source: http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=51748

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DISASTER RISK MANAGEMENT: “Hurricane Katrina taught us that disaster risk reduction must be people-centred & engage all sectors of society

The top United Nations disaster resilience official said on the occasion of the 10th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina that the ‘true legacy’ of the costliest United States hurricane disaster, which devastated New Orleans and claimed more than 1,800 lives, was to raise the bar for disaster risk management worldwide. “Hurricane Katrina exposed weaknesses in disaster risk management which are common to many hazard prone locations around the world,” said the head of the UN Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNISDR), Margareta Wahlström. “We can learn a lot from New Orleans if we are to achieve substantial reductions in disaster losses as called for in the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction which was adopted by governments earlier this year,” she said. The Sendai Framework, named after the Japanese city in which it was adopted by Governments earlier this year, is a 15-year, voluntary, non-binding agreement – and the first major agreement of the new UN sustainable development agenda – with seven targets and four priorities for action.Ms. Wahlström said: “New Orleans has transformed itself into a role model for disaster resilience.”
“It continues to invest heavily in improving flood defences and major efforts have been made to engage citizens in the renewal of the city,” she continued. “There is better mapping of the city’s hazards and there is greater awareness among the population about the importance of disaster risk management in ensuring the sustainable social and economic development of the city.” She also said “many lessons learned from New Orleans have been incorporated into the Sendai Framework including the need to engage the elderly and other potentially vulnerable groups in disaster planning and to make adequate provision for their safety when a disaster strikes.” “Hurricane Katrina has taught us that disaster risk reduction must be people-centred and engage all sectors of society,” she said. Ms. Wahlström’s Office is dedicated to disaster risk reduction and supports implementation of the Sendai Framework which seeks “the substantial reduction of disaster risk and losses, in lives, livelihoods and health and in the economic, physical, social, cultural and environmental assets of persons, businesses, communities and countries.”

SOURCE: http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=51745

fCAT by Ambassador Zara Jane Juan: APEC Third Senior Officials’ Meeting (SOM) and Rel...

fCAT by Ambassador Zara Jane Juan: APEC Third Senior Officials’ Meeting (SOM) and Rel...:   SOM 3, traditionally the most heavily attended due to the number of meetings, brings together APEC Working Groups, Sub-fora and Co...

RENEWABLE ENERGY: UGANDA: Signs US$95 Million Agreement to Develop 44.7-MW Muzizi Hydroelectric Project

Uganda Electricity Generation Co. Ltd. (UEGCL) Managing Director, Harisson Mutekanga, said, the project would cover the districts of Kibaale, Kyenjojo, Kabarole and Ntoroko.
UEGCL officials said design development is beginning with engineering studies and the government will begin preparing tender documents after reviewing feasibility studies already on file.
Two large hydro power plants, 600-MW Karuma and 188-MW Isimba, are being developed on the Nile River. Uganda currently has an installed electricity generation capacity of 850 MW. Germany’s state controlled KFW Development Bank, the French Development Agency (AFD) and the government of Uganda, signed a US$95 million agreement this week to construct the 44.7-MW Muzizi hydroelectric project on the Muzizi River in the district of Kibaale, which borders the Ndaiga and Hoima districts in western Uganda.
Earlier this year Information Minister Jim Muhwezi said, Uganda’s Finance Ministry would borrow US$50 million from the AFD and US$44.3 million from KFW to fund the project.
Muzizi is a public project financed under the Mutual Reliance Initiative with KFW, AFD, and Uganda. Groundbreaking on the project is scheduled for Aug. 2016.

 

UPDATE: GERMANY & BRAZIL: Chancellor Angela Merkel and Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff focused on Environmental Cooperation

Germany and Brazil committed themselves to a joint stance on climate change, putting the largest economies in Europe and Latin America on the same page ahead of global climate talks in Paris in December.
Chancellor Angela Merkel and Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff focused mainly on environmental cooperation during a 24-hour visit by the German leader that was also aimed at boosting trade and investment in Brazil's stagnant economy.
"We agreed on common actions to deal with one of the most important challenges of the 21st Century," Rousseff said.
She said Brazil is committed to reducing deforestation in the Amazon to zero by 2030.
Rousseff declared Brazilian support for decarbonizing the global economy by the end of the century, an announcement environmental activists said would boost hopes for such a target being agreed to in Paris.
The COP-21 meeting will seek a binding agreement on how to share the burden of capping global warming at 2 degrees Celsius (3.6 degrees F) above pre-industrial levels or lower.
"As the world’s third largest greenhouse gas emitter, Brazilian support is crucial if the world is going to call time on the age of fossil fuels in Paris," said Iain Keith, of the Avaaz campaign network. "Now we need to see Brazil spelling out how precisely it intends to do this," he said in a statement.
Putting money behind its commitment, the German government announced 550 million euros ($615.78 million) in financing for environmental and clean energy programs in Brazil.
Germany's Development Ministry will provide Brazil 525 million euros ($588 million) in loans to fund the development of renewable energy sources and to preserve tropical forests.
Germany also donated 23 million euros ($25.7 million) to help Brazil establish a rural land registry aimed at enhanced monitoring of deforestation.
($1 = 0.8932 euros)
(Editing by Dan Grebler, Bernard Orr)
http://uk.reuters.com/article/2015/08/21/us-brazil-germany-climatechange-idUKKCN0QQ06320150821