Regional Perspectives and Responses to Climate Change

The recent interactive dialogue at UN headquarters “Economic Impact of Climate Change: Regional Perspectives” provided insight into how climate change’s economic impacts vary by region, and into the often marked differences between regions, and their regional commissions, in formulating a response. Senior officials from each of the five United Nations Regional Commissions gave presentations as part of the General Assembly’s Second Committee (Economic and Financial) Interactive Dialogue, sharing their perspectives on region-specific initiatives to tackle the environmental effects and economic impacts of climate change.

Overview

The interactive dialogue highlighted climate change’s differentiated regional impacts, and the various approaches to the issue in each region. While the regional commission for Africa is focusing on presenting a unified political voice and a new consolidated climate change institution (Climdev), the commission for Latin American and the Caribbean has focused efforts on an in-depth, country by country economic survey of the impacts of climate change and the costs of action and inaction in the region.

The geographically vast Economic Commission for Europe (which includes countries of North America, Western, Central and Eastern Europe and Central Asia) functions through overlapping and distinctive regional and national policies, with a self-described “huge potential” to reduce greenhouse gas emissions through energy efficiency and renewable energy supplies. Asia and the Pacific have also taken an energy-focused approach, creating a regional “Green Growth Framework.” Finally, the Arab States have created a series of initiatives that express their regional commitment to combating climate change, while noting their need for a regional assessment “that reflects the realities on the ground.”

The Presentations

Abdoulie Janneh, Executive Secretary of the Economic Commission for Africa (ECA), spoke first, asserting that while the continent has contributed less than 4% of global greenhouse gas emissions, it will be the hardest hit by climate change. Africa is focusing on presenting a “unified political front” at the climate negotiations and beyond, supported by their new regional policy institution, the Climate for Development-Africa (Climdev), which aims to promote the sustainable attainment of the Millennium Development Goals and sustainable development in Africa.

The Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC)’s approach relies on detailed economic studies, assessing the costs of climate change, and the potential costs of action and inaction, on a country by country basis in the region. They have published a new handbook (“Handbook for Estimating the Socio-Economic and Environmental Effects of Disasters”) and are currently working on a regional study which will be ready for the UN Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen this December.

Jan Kubris, Executive Secretary for the Economic Commission for Europe (ECE), stated that the ECE has “led the global effort to combat climate change,” noting that 30 of the 31 Annex 1 [link] countries (committed to the reductions laid out in the Kyoto Protocol) are ECE members. “We are engaged in a number of activities that are already working for adaptation and mitigation of climate changes” he stated. These include their sustainable energy program, Energy Efficiency 21, which aims to assist Eastern European countries in enhancing their energy efficiency and access to renewable energy sources.

K.V. Ramani, Senior Advisor of the (ESCAP) spoke of the “unpreparedness of Asia-Pacific countries to move towards green economies” given that fossil fuels make up 91% of energy production in the region. But he called attention to recent efforts, including the region’s Energy Security Cooperation Framework (also known as the Green Growth initiative), in place since 2005, which hopes to propel the Asia-Pacific region to a leading role in combating climate change by helping “accelerate the transition to a low carbon path.”

Anhar Hegazi, Director of the Sustainable Development and Productivity Division of the Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA), noted the need for a regional assessment - similar to the one done by ECLAC - that would reflect realities on the ground, as all of the information was currently coming from international sources. She presented the series of initiatives the region has created over the past decade, such as the 2007 Arab Declaration on Climate Change, which she said expressed “ the Arab commitment to join the international community in its move towards adaptation and mitigation of Climate Change.”

Conclusions

After the presentations, the floor was opened up for questions and comments, and Brazil drew attention to the differences between the regional approaches, suggesting that each of the economic commissions should perform economic studies using similar methods. South Korea commended the panel, stating that the “coordination between regional and global level was well-documented” and that this would be “one of most critical elements for Copenhagen and in the long run” before suggesting that further coordination mechanisms might be put in place.

The different regional approaches to assessing, mitigating and adapting to climate change, whether through new institutions, economic studies, energy policies, frameworks, or initiatives, are in part responses to the distinctive and disproportionate regional impacts of climate change. The question is whether these regionally disparate approaches, which could make for a more multi-faceted and geographically-sensitive approach to climate change, can also be drawn on and stitched together as part of a comprehensive climate treaty in Copenhagen this December.

Related links:

You can see an overview of the regional commissions here: www.un.org/regionalcommissions

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