What: As governments prepare for the upcoming UN Climate Change Conference in Durban (28 November to 9 December 2011), the United Nations and the South African Department of International Relations and Cooperation (DIRCO) invite media representatives to a one-day interactive pre-COP workshop.
The workshop, which will take place the week after the final international ministerial meeting to prepare for the Durban conference, will update media representatives on the status of the complex negotiations of the 17th Conference of the Parties (COP17) to the United Nations Climate Change Convention (UNFCCC) as they continue the search for common ground on the crucial next steps to design an effective international response to climate change.
Christiana Figueres, Executive Secretary of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and Ambassador NJ Mxakato-Diseko, Ambassador-at-Large for the South African COP Presidency, will shed light on the negotiations, including an update on the preparatory meeting in Panama this October and the ministerial meeting in South Africa. The workshop will also examine some of the most critical climate change challenges facing Africa and discuss innovative solutions already underway.
The workshop will provide substantive resources and logistical and technical advice for media representatives relating to their coverage of COP17. In addition, United Nations speakers will share information and insights regarding climate change itself, especially as it affects Africa.
Who:
- Christiana Figueres, Executive Secretary, UNFCCC Secretariat
- Ambassador NJ Mxakato-Diseko, Ambassador at Large, COP 17/CMP 7 for the COP Presidency (to be confirmed)
- John Hay, Media Liaison Officer, UNFCCC Secretariat on “How to cover COP 17”
- Presentations by United Nations experts on the work of UN agencies on the green economy, including renewable energy; strategies to achieve a low-carbon intensity development; carbon markets; deforestation; and the adverse impacts of climate change on gender.
When: Wednesday, 26 October 2011
Time: 08h00 – 17h00
Where: CSIR Convention Centre, Pretoria
This workshop will also be held in Durban on 28 October 2011. For information and confirmation for the Durban workshop, contact Joanne Hayes, E-mail: weeds@iafrica.com; Cell: 083 627 7249.
The workshop is organised by the Secretariat of the UNFCCC, the Department of International Relations and Cooperation of South Africa and the United Nations Information Centre Pretoria, with the support of the United Nations Institute for Training and Research.
Please RSVP to: Curtis Singo at SingoC@dirco.gov.za by 21 October 2011.
For more information, contact:
Helene Hoedl, UNIC Pretoria,
E-mail: helene.hoedl@unic.org
Tel: 012 354 8504
Cell: 082 313 0051
Nelson Kgwete, DIRCO,
E-mail: KgweteN@dirco.gov.za
Tel: 012 351 1105
Cell: 076 608 8567
Please also visit:
-
The need for strong global action on climate change
-
UNFCCC terminology
-
The Kyoto Protocol
-
Nairobi Framework
-
COP 17/ CMP7 United Nations Climate Change Conference 2011(official conference website)
