NGOs

  A view of the room durring the address from Amina Mohammed, UN Deputy Secretary-General Highlights The Data For Now initiative aims to improve the timeliness, coverage, and quality of SDG data by filling critical data gaps through collaboration and partnership. Telecom companies can play a critical role in providing timely data for policy interventions in emergencies. The World Hunger Map portal developed by the World Food Programme (WFP) and Alibaba will make local data on food security available in near real-time. Data clocks are public art installations visualizing key SDG indicators to support a new movement of “factivism.” Organized by the Global Partnership for Sustainable Development Data and partners, this event launched the Data For Now Initiative, which aims to support collaboration and partnership for the sustainable use of robust methods and tools that improve the timeliness, coverage, and quality of SDG data. Welcoming participants, Rajesh Mirchandani, Chief Communications Officer, UN Ford Foundation, said that “if we don’t count everybody” people die, ecosystems degrade, and climate change continues. Highlighting the Decade of Action and Delivery for Sustainable Development, adopted by the SDG Action Summit the previous day, he said Data For Now will bring together data practitioners and users to “do more with data.” In her keynote, UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed stressed that no country is on track to achieve the SDGs by 2030 and that different approaches are needed for several Goals. Noting that good data is only available for 20% of the SDG indicators, she underlined the importance of timely, disaggregated data for identifying and scaling up effective action and accelerating progress. She said the Data For Now partnership will build a community of data users to maximise the sharing and use of data. She called on countries and organizations to join the partnership and step up data resources to ensure that the people who are still waiting are recognized and counted for the SDGs. Claire Melamed, CEO, Global Partnership for Sustainable Development Data, explained that progress requires access to the right data at the right time, noting that “we can’t navigate by looking in the rear-view mirror.” She said Data For Now will scale up existing tools and efforts to provide data on the world as it is now to improve action. Pledges and Projects In a series of short panels and presentations, speakers from national governments, international organizations, NGOs, and businesses showcased projects that will contribute to Data For Now. Patricia Obo-Nai, CEO Vodafone Ghana, explained how Vodafone, in collaboration with the government, uses anonymized mobile phone data to track population trends and help making life-saving decisions. Noting the importance of data privacy, she called on data providers to come together to enable accurate, timely, and predictive decision-making that saves lives. Mats Granryd, Director General, Global System for Mobile Communication (GSMA), reiterated the challenge of bridging data ethics and data uses, underlining the potential of mobile data for decision making. Noting that big data saves lives, he encouraged companies to be bold and use their data for action. David Beasley, Executive Director, World Food Programme (WFP), and Eric Jing, Alibaba, presented the Hunger Map platform combining information from different sources to monitor and predict the global food security situation in near real-time. Beasley stressed that the platform will allow more efficient use of food aid as it enables identifying people in need at local scale. Jamie Drummond, co-founder, ONE, presented a video on a project to create public “data clocks” showing changes in key indicators in real time. As public art installations, Data Clocks intend to create shared epistemologies between activists and decision makers to support a new movement of “factivism.” Maximo Torrero, Assistant Director-General, Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO), described FAO’s data lab, an initiative to improve the quality and comparability of data from official country sources. He said the lab is helping countries to assess existing data and data collection methods to learn how data can be collected and used more effectively. Rebecca Moore, Director, Google Earth, explained how the Google Earth engine combines different streams of data in real-time to provide knowledge for decision making, such as monitoring the state of forests, visualizing changes in water bodies, or predicting locust outbreaks. She said Google Earth will soon make data cubes available than can be used in other applications. Matthew Rycroft, Permanent Secretary of International Development, UK, provided examples of the work of the Global Data Center of the UK Department for International Development (DFID), including prediction of outbreaks of cholera to improve timely relief action. He said development agencies should focus on building the capacity of countries to enable them to work together on projects like the Hunger Map. Experiences on the Ground The final panel focused on experiences on the ground. Mahmoud Mohieldin, Senior Vice-President, World Bank Group, said the cost of data is often prohibitive, noting that making data publicly available can reduce the costs while improving data quality and usability. Commenting on the role of academia, Shaida Badiee, Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN), highlighted SDSN’s role as independent voice and its commitment to work on the conditions that facilitate data sharing and the specifics of data curation. Omar Seidu, Head of Demographics, Statistical Service, Ghana, told the story of a local community that succeeded in preventing a mining operation by using data that demonstrated operation’s destructive impacts. He described Ghana’s steps to speed up access to new data and explore alternative data sources. Ariunzaya Ayush, Chairwoman, National Statistics Office, Mongolia, reported how improved access to data was used to prevent livestock deaths during a recent harsh winter. She added that national priorities include generating georeferenced data and investing in data literacy. Iván Mauricio Ojeda, Director General, Statistics, Surveys and Censuses, Paraguay, described efforts to modernize Paraguay’s institutions and laws for statistics. He said Paraguay has aligned its national development strategy with the SDGs and mandated the Statistics Office to monitor progress. In her closing statement, Vera Songwe, Executive Secretary, UN Economic Commission for Africa, highlighted the importance of high-frequency, up-to-date data for SDG implementation and the importance of making marginalized populations visible. She urged working together to move towards big data, noting that “we must find 250 million invisible women in Africa alone.”Mirchandani thanked participants and invited them to gather again at the World Data Forum in October 2020 in Bern Switzerland. IISD Reporting Services, through its Earth Negotiations Bulletin on the Side (ENBOTS) meeting coverage, provided web coverage from the side event on Data for Now – Accelerating Progress Through Timely Data. Photos courtesy of Diane Bondareff Rajesh Mirchandani, Chief Communications Officer, UN Ford Foundation Amina Mohammed, UN Deputy Secretary-General L-R: Claire Melamed, CEO, Global Partnership for Sustainable Development Data; Patricia Obo-Nai, CEO, Vodaphone Ghana; and Mats Granryd, Director General, GSMA L-R: Claire Melamed, CEO, Global Partnership for Sustainable Development Data; David Beasley, Executive Director, WFP; and Eric Jing, Alibaba. L-R: Claire Melamed, CEO, Global Partnership for Sustainable Development Data, and Jamie Drummond, co-founder, ONE Vera Songwe, Executive Secretary, UN Economic Commission for Africa L-R: Claire Melamed, CEO, Global Partnership for Sustainable Development Data; Maximo Torrero, Assistant Director-General, FAO; Rebecca Moore, Director, Google Earth; and Matthew Rycroft, Permanent Secretary of International Development, UK L-R: Rajesh Mirchandani, Chief Communications Officer, UN Ford Foundation; Shaida Badiee, Sustainable Development Solutions Network; Mahmoud Mohieldin, Senior Vice-President, World Bank Group; Omar Seidu, Head of Demographics, Statistical Service, Ghana; Ariunzaya Ayush, Chairwoman, National Statistics Office, Mongolia; and Iván Mauricio Ojeda, Director General, Statistics, Surveys and Censuses, Paraguay (with interpreter) CONTACT info@data4sdgs.org Amber Kiwan | Akiwan@data4sdgs.org MORE INFORMATION http://www.data4sdgs.org http://www.data4sdgs.org/data4now  

  Carolina Schmidt, Minister of the Environment, Chile, and COP 25 President-designate, and Shinjiro Koizumi, Minister of the Environment, Japan, show their commitment to the CCAC. The 11th High-Level Assembly (HLA) of the Climate and Clean Air Coalition to reduce Short-lived Climate Pollutants (CCAC), convened to discuss climate and clean air action needed on the ground and their ambition for further implementation. On air pollution and health, speakers stressed the loss of lives and economic costs due to poor air quality, and how this can be a lever for enhanced and fast climate action. They also discussed progress in monitoring air quality and addressing SLCPs, and the need to evaluate the benefits of climate change action through a wellbeing lens. On cooling and efficiency, ministers reported on investments in efficient and climate-friendly refrigeration and cooling, highlighting the rising demand for cooling caused by climate change and growing cities. They drew attention to the Biarritz Pledge initiated at the G7 Summit and its call for support of the CCAC’s Efficient Cooling Initiative. On agriculture and food systems, participants reported on efforts to reduce methane and black carbon emissions, emphasizing the importance of raising awareness on agriculture climate solutions that balance the need for ensuring food security and poverty alleviation. They also noted the importance of healthy, low carbon diets and of reducing food waste. Taking stock of the CCAC’s work launched at the 2014 UN Climate Summit, representatives from the private sector described integrated solutions to reduce methane emissions in the oil and gas industry. They highlighting private sector efforts to reduce climate and air pollutant emissions from freight. and called on countries to join a ‘Global Methane Alliance.’ In the closing session, participants adopted the 2030 Vision Statement committing members to “drive and respond to scientific and political progress to maintain an atmosphere that enables people and the planet to thrive – a stabilized climate with warming limited to 1.5 C and drastically reduced air pollution.” Members agreed to add this statement to the CCAC Framework Document and to extend the duration of the Coalition’s mandate until the end of 2030. Several members pledged additional financial support to the Coalition’s work. The United Arab Emirates was welcomed as the CCAC’s newest CCAC state partner. The 11th meeting of the CCAC HLA took place in New York, US, on 22 September 2019 on the eve of the UN Climate Action Summit. The HLA was attended by high-level representatives of governments and international and non-governmental organizations (NGOs). Photos by IISD/ENB | Kiara Worth For photo reprint permissions, please follow instructions at our Attribution Regulations for Meeting Photo Usage Page Opening Delegates gather for the 11th High Level Assembly of the CCAC. Chair Manuel Sager, Switzerland Miguel Arias Cañete, Commissioner for Climate Action and Energy, European Commission Mary Nichols, Chair of the California Air Resources Board, State of California Joseph Séka Seka, Minister of the Environment and Sustainable Development, Côte d'Ivoire Delegates applaud the work done by the CCAC. How the Coalition is Increasing Ambition and Will Scale-Up Towards 2030 Andrew Steer, President and CEO, World Resources Institute (WRI), facilitates a series of panel sessions on: air pollution and health; cooling and eficiency; agriculture and food systems; and integrated solutions and transitions. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General, World Health Organization (WHO) Qu Dongyu, Director-General, Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO) Patricia Fuller, Climate Ambassador, Canada Vincent Biruta, Minister of Environment, Rwanda Aupito William Sio, Minister for Pacific Peoples, New Zealand Patrick Pouyanne, CEO, Total André Weidenhaupt, Luxembourg Pledges, Launching New Work, Plans, and the Coalition’s “2030 Vision” Xie Zhenhua, Special Representative for Climate Change Affairs, China, delivers a keynote address to launch the UNEP-CCAC-Tsinghua Report. Satya Tripathi, Assistant Secretary-General, UNEP Jane Burston, Executive Director, Clean Air Fund Marcel Beukeboom, Climate Envoy, the Netherlands Krista Mikkonen, Minister of the Environment and Climate Change, Finland Pledges made during the meeting. Closing Michał Kurtyka, COP 24 President, Poland, and Carolina Schmidt, Minister of the Environment, Chile, and COP 25 President-designate Family photo of the high level participants.  

Highlights for Wednesday, 4 September 2019 Delegates attending the 14th Conference of the Parties (COP 14) to the UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) continued their consideration of key Convention themes, meeting in parallel sessions of the Convention’s two subsidiary bodies: the Committee for the Review of the Implementation of the Convention (CRIC); and the Committee on Science and Technology (CST).Key themes of the day included: the development of harmonized indicators to support countries in monitoring drought and enhancing their preparedness; funding for implementation of the Convention and the land degradation neutrality (LDN) target; and the development of targeted capacity-building programmes for countries. Many delegates expressed appreciation for the work of the CST and the Science-Policy Interface in strengthening the role of science, especially through their “pragmatic” guidance on how countries can develop cost-effective drought monitoring programmes that build on existing initiatives at national, regional and global level.The role of the Global Mechanism as the operational arm of the UNCCD came under scrutiny during the CRIC morning session, with some delegations reiterating the perennial call for it not to overreach and stick to its resource mobilization mandate. In the corridors, some observers pointed to the tricky balancing act that the Secretariat has to play between being proactive and effective, while also remaining responsive to the priorities of parties.On the margins of the Conference, more than 15 side events took place exploring, among other topics: natural capital accounting in support of LDN; contribution of global non-governmental organizations (NGOs) to the LDN 2030 target; “pathways for big money to reach local communities”; the land degradation, climate change and migration nexus in the Sahel region; and sustainable land management practices by Indian businesses.For more details on the day’s negotiations and to hear what delegates said in the corridors, see our daily Earth Negotiations Bulletin (ENB). IISD Reporting Services, through its ENB meeting coverage, is providing daily web coverage and daily reports from UNCCD COP 14. In addition, IISD Reporting Services will publish a summary and analyrs report from this session on Monday, 16 September 2019. Photos by IISD/ENB | Ángeles Estrada For photo reprint permissions, please follow instructions at our Attribution Regulations for Meeting Photo Usage Page CRIC Juan Carlos Mendoza, Managing Director, Global Mechanism; Rajeb Boulharouf, and Anja Thust, UNCCD Secretariat Chizuru Aoki, The Global Environment Facility (GEF) Melchiade Bukuru, UNCCD Secretariat Fleury Pabandji, Central African Republic Putera Parthama, Indonesia Participants during the CRIC Martin Kebs and Christina Blank, Switzerland Bala Gukut and Yasuk Aliyu Addy, Nigeria Dominga Polanco, Dominican Republic Heimata Louisa Karika, Cook Islands Imad Almaree, Syria Ahmed Abdelati Ahmed, Egypt CST Mark Svoboda, Science-Policy Interface Barron Orr, UNCCD Lead Scientist Mohamed Qarro, Morocco Taer Rabi, Palestine Nining Wahyuningrum, Indonesia Ajith Silva, Sri Lanka Ahmed Yahu Saleh, Yemen José Camacho, World Meteorological Organization (WMO) Participant during the CST session Jose Felix Pinto-Bazurco, Beate Antonich and Suzi Malan, Earth Negotiations Bulletin Around the Venue COP 14 Security and Jose Felix Pinto-Bazurco, Earth Negotiations Bulletin Wangu Mwangi, Earth Negotiations Bulletin with Jane Marquard, UNCCD Secretariat

Highlights for Wednesday, 28 August 2019 CITES CoP 18 Chair Thomas Jemmi, Switzerland, gavels CITES CoP18 to a close. CITES CoP18 delegates reconvened in plenary on Wednesday 28 August 2019 to adopt remaining proposals, including the listing of Mako sharks, wedgefishes, guitarfishes and sea cucumbers (teatfish) on Appendix II, all of which were formally adopted without reopening of debate.In their closing remarks, several observers praised the CoP for its “collegial spirit” and for adopting decisions that will strengthen global wildlife conservation, while others expressed concern that diverging views on conservation and sustainable use had been inadequately reconciled, highlighting the deepening divisions within the African region.Many parties commended CoP18 for its work, and looked forward to playing their respective roles in implementing the new listings. Japan, Tanzania, and several NGOs stressed that listings should be science-based. Tanzania, on behalf of Southern African Development Community (SADC) countries, argued that the Convention is not aligned with other international agreements and is working in contradiction to principles of national sovereignty, inclusive and equitable development, and the rights of local communities living with wildlife to use those resources.Japan noted that appropriate trade in wildlife can contribute to conservation, and urged parties to undertake wildlife conservation and community development in an integrated way to support custodians in range states. He called for CITES to take a holistic approach and cooperate with other biodiversity conventions.China expressed its support for the Convention and its increased prioritization of conservation objectives, noting that his country is “on the road towards eco-civilization.” The EU and US also expressed full support, and the US recalled that CITES was created to ensure that trade does not negatively impact the survival of wild species. Mauritania called for “better listings, not more listings.”Secretary-General Higuero closed by highlighting accomplishments from CoP18, noting that “this 45-year-old Convention is now on a stronger path” with the collaborative work on the CITES Strategic Vision, to ensure CITES is a leader in transformative change into the future and that it aligns with the 2030 Agenda on sustainable development. She noted the collaborative discussion from over 100 parties about how CITES might better engage indigenous peoples and local communities, and ensure they benefit from trade and conservation, as CITES will struggle to succeed without them. She drew attention to CITES’ increased capacity to fight illegal trade in wildlife, especially as a lot of this trade moves online, noting, as highlights, the strengthened enforcement through International Consortium for Combating Wildlife Crime (ICCWC), and the newly created Big Cats task force.Higuero said that Appendix II listings show that parties increasingly rely on the Convention as “a vital safety net”, most notably for marine and timber species. She reminded the CoP that reptiles, birds, and smaller animals are vital for the survival of life on earth and need just as much attention from the Convention as megafauna.In closing, Higuero noted that CITES provides a space for common goals towards sustainable development and the longtime survival of the world’s endangered species.Chair Jemmi hailed the achievements of parties, noting that in most cases the decisions were agreed by consensus. He thanked all participants for their passion and commitment and closed the Conference at 11:30 am.Please return to this site on Saturday, 31 August for the ENB summary and analysis report. IISD Reporting Services, through its ENB Meeting Coverage, provided daily web coverage and a summary and analysis report from CITES CoP18. Photos by IISD/ENB | Kiara Worth For photo reprint permissions, please follow instructions at our Attribution Regulations for Meeting Photo Usage Page. Closing Plenary Delegates gather for the closing plenary. CITES CoP18 Chair Thomas Jemmi, Switzerland CITES Secretary-General Ivonne Higuero Jose Manuel Mateo Feliz, Dominican Republic Committee I Chair Rod Hay, New Zealand Augustin Ngumbi Amuri, Democratic Republic of the Congo Rosemarie Gnam, US Shara Duncan-Villalobos, Costa Rica, announces that CoP19 will be held in Costa Rica in 2022. Delegates applaud the work done at CoP18. Closing Statements Will Travers, Survival Species Network (SSN) Susan Lieberman, Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) Koikai Oloitiptip, Amboseli Ecosystem Trust Margaret Kinnaird, WWF Heather Noonan, League of American Orchestras Josef Schmuck, Document Center for Species Protection M.G.C. Sooriyabandara, Sri Lanka Jessica Maria Gálvez-Durand Besnard, Peru Zhimin Wu, China Elisante Ombeni Leguma, Tanzania, speaking on behalf of SADC Joshua Wycliffe, Fiji Abba Sonko, Senegal Ali Mansoor Abbas Abdullah, Bahrain Germán Proffen and Vanesa Tossenberger, Argentina CITES CoP 18 Chair Thomas Jemmi, Switzerland, gavels the meeting to a close. Around the Venue Family photo of the CITES Secretariat. Delegates from the Netherlands. Delegates from Nepal. Delegates from the Humane Society International. CITES Secretary-General Ivonne Higuero Melanie Virtue, Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species (CMS), and Ralf Sonntag, International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW) Family photo of the UN Rapporteurs. The International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) Earth Negotiations Bulletin (ENB) team covering CITES CoP18: Mandy Rude, US; Tanya Rosen, Kyrgyzstan; Delia Paul, Australia/Malaysia; Brianna Botchwey, Canada/Ghana; and Kiara Worth, South Africa.