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IISD Reporting Services (IISD RS) Coverage
IISD RS has provided daily web coverage (including photos and videos from selected side events) and daily reports of the 46th meeting of the GEF Council. In addition, IISD RS has produced 750-word web summary of the CSOs Forum as well as daily web coverage and daily reports of the 5th GEF Assembly. To download our reports, click the HTML or PDF icons below. |
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Forty-sixth meeting of the Global Environment Facility (GEF) Council, Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) Forum, 16th meeting of the Least Developed Countries Fund and the Special Climate Change Fund (LDCF/SCCF) Council, and 5th GEF Assembly
25-30 May 2014 | Cancún, Mexico
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Daily Web Coverage (click on the following links to see our daily web pages)
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Highlights for Thursday, 29 May 2014
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| Members of the GEF Secretariat at the end of the Assembly |
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On Thursday morning three roundtables were held on: nexus of energy, water and food security; sustainable commodities; and multilateral agreements (MEAs) and the post-2015 framework. The fifth GEF Assembly closing plenary convened in the afternoon. Delegates heard statements on behalf of constituencies, representatives of the Conventions, heads of the GEF Agencies, and received the Chair’s summary of the 5th GEF Assembly.
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Roundtables
Multilateral Environmental Agreements and the Post-2015 Framework: A Forward-Looking Agenda
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| L-R: William Moomaw, Tufts University, US; Ibrahim Thiaw, Deputy Executive Director, UN Environment Programme (UNEP); Amina Mohammed, UN Special Adviser on Post-2015 Development Planning; Moderator Homi Kharas, Brookings Institution, US; José Antonio Meade, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mexico; Jeffrey Sachs, Earth Institute; and Rajendra Pachauri, Chair, Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) |
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Nexus of Energy, Water and Food Security
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| L-R: Shenggen Fan, Director-General, International Food Policy Research Institute; Sarah Scherr, President and CEO, EcoAgriculture Partners; Leonardo Beltrán Rodríguez, Ministry of Energy, Mexico; Moderator Andrew Steer, President and CEO, World Resources Institute (WRI); Dan Glickman, Vice-President, Aspen Institute; and Monique Barbut, Executive-Secretary, UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) |
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| Monique Barbut, UNCCD Executive-Secretary |
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| A view of participants during the roundtable |
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Sustainable Commodities
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| L-R: Augustine Mascotena, Roundtable on Responsible Soy Association; Darrel Webber, Secretary-General, Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO); Ana Paula Tavares, Rainforest Alliance; Moderator Andrew Steer, President and CEO, WRI; Leonardo Beltrán, Ministry of Energy, Mexico; Susan Jackson, President, International Seafood Sustainability Foundation; and Carter Roberts, President and CEO, WWF US |
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| Carter Roberts, President and CEO, WWF US |
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| Roundtable participants listening to Andrew Steer’s remarks |
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Press Conference
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| A high level panel convened for a press conference at noon. L-R: Rajendra Pachauri, IPCC Chair; Amina Mohammed, UN Special Adviser on Post-2015 Development Planning; Naoko Ishii, GEF CEO and Chairperson; Jeffrey Sachs, Earth Institute; and Andrew Steer, President and CEO, WRI. |
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Plenary
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| Participants met for the last day of the 5th GEF Assembly |
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| L-R: Jozef Buys and Amb. Hans-Christian Kint, Belgium |
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Exhibition
Around the Venue
GEF Project Site Visits
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On Friday, 30 May 2014, GEF Assembly participants divided into four different groups to spend the day visiting four different sites in the State of Quintana Roo that had benefitted from GEF support, namely: the Isla Contoy National Park; the Yum Balam Protected Area of Wild Flora and Fauna; the Biosphere Reserve of Sian Ka’an; and the Otoch Ma’ax Yetel Kooh Reserve. IISD RS covered the first three visits.
At Contoy Island, a breathtaking small island located around 30 kilometers north of Isla Mujeres that was protected by decree in 1961 and became a National Park in 1998, visitors learned how GEF’s assistance and community participation had helped the Mexican government to successfully implement a management plan to protect the island’s environment and rich natural resources, including over 250 species of fish and more than 150 migrating and resident bird species.
At Yum Balam, a protected area created in 1994 that occupies 150.000 hectares that was also listed in the Ramsar site list in 2004, delegates learned how funding from the GEF Small Grants Programme (SGP), the UN Development Programme and the Ministry of Environment of Mexico, had helped a five-women cooperative to produce beauty products from medicinal plants building on their traditional Mayan knowledge. Delegates learned about two other projects in the region, one on sacred orchids, and another on sea turtle, iguana and crocodile protection launched in 2007 with an SGP grant.
At the Sian Ka’an Biosphere reserve, established in 1986 and listed as both a UNESCO World Heritage Site and a RAMSAR site, participants saw one of Mexico’s five largest protected areas, including mangroves, swamps, forests, large lagoons, coastal zones and coral reefs. They also visited Mayan archeological sites dating from 300 BC and traversed two large lagoons in boats while listening to Mayan history and culture and the various ecosystem services provided by the reserve, including protection for fish hatcheries and habitat for over 100 mammal species and over 300 bird species.
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| Funding for coverage of this event has been provided by the GEF |
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