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United Nations Environment Programme
  • Overview
  • Background
  • Agenda

Date:  Friday, 18 October 2024.   Time: 09:30-16:30 CEST

Venue:  Salle Lausanne, International Conference Centre Geneva (CICG) 

Organisers: Co-organized by the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU), the Secretariat of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP)

This knowledge-sharing and learning event aims at equipping parliamentarians with the necessary tools and knowledge to effectively design climate change legislation and help devise measures to counter the devastating impact of climate change in their society and communities. 

Objectives

  • Sensitize parliamentarians and parliamentary staff on the importance and urgency of implementing NDCs and the commitments under the UNFCCC. 
  • Enhance understanding of climate change legislation and how it can be utilized effectively to combat climate change.
  • Provide capacity-building support through expert sessions conducted by the UNFCCC Secretariat and UNEP. 
  • Familiarize parliamentarians on the latest trends in climate action and legislation in preparation for COP29, including the Parliamentary Meeting.
  • Facilitate knowledge sharing and best practices among participants to foster inter-parliamentary cooperation and collaboration.

Expected outcomes 

  • Increased awareness and understanding among parliamentarians regarding the NDCs, their role in achieving the objectives of the Paris Agreement and in dealing with the impacts of climate change.
  • Greater knowledge among parliamentarians on climate change legislation and increased awareness of how they can support the implementation of such legislation. 
  • Increased opportunities for parliaments to develop regional and international networks and partnerships for collaborative climate action
  • Awareness of resources and tools available to parliamentarians to support the development of NDCs and the drafting, strengthening and implementation of climate legislation.

Participants

The target audience for this event is parliamentarians and parliamentary staff (up to 40 participants). Priority will be given to selected parliaments from African countries and Small Island Developing States (SIDS). If additional spots are available, other parliaments will be able to participate, however priority will be given to parliaments from developing countries. English and French interpretation will be available.

For more information, please contact:

Valentina Ricca Associate Legal Officer, UNEP Law Division

Climate change poses a significant threat to global ecosystems, economies and communities. The Paris Agreement sets the course for countries to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions through Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs). Effective implementation of these commitments is critical to limiting global temperature rise and mitigating the impacts of climate change. The first global stocktake recognized the near-universal progress driven by the Paris Agreement on climate action. Despite this progress, the world is not on track to meet the Agreement’s long-term temperature goal, achieve the necessary levels of resilience, or mobilize and align the required financial flows. The NDCs to be submitted in 2025, known as NDCs 3.0, will be informed by the outcomes of this first global stocktake. NDCs 3.0 must be more progressive and ambitious than the current NDCs. This upcoming submission may be the last opportunity to align the global emission trajectory with the Paris Agreement’s 1.5°C above pre-industrial level target, making it crucial for the future of the global response to climate change. Parliamentarians play a crucial role in the NDC process. They can support the development of NDCs, oversee their implementation and hold their governments to account on these commitments. Parliamentarians are well-placed to ensure that these commitments are effectively translated into strong national legislation.

Proposed topics to be explored 

To enhance participants’ understanding of key concepts and issues related to NDCs and climate action, the event proposes to focus on the following topics:

  • Understanding NDCs and their role in achieving the objectives of the Paris Agreement: This includes an overview of the NDCs’ current status, the introduction of NDCs 3.0, and insights from the first Global Stocktake (GST). It also encompasses the challenges faced in implementing NDCs, such as aligning financial flows and building resilience, as well as the opportunities for progress and increased ambition presented by the upcoming NDCs 3.0. 
  • The Montevideo Environmental Law Programme: Objectives, achievements and milestones, technical legal assistance (UNEP-LEAP), success stories, challenges and opportunities.
  • Climate change legislation: Key components, drafting processes, legislative best practices, and successful case studies.
  • Presentation of the Law and Climate Change Toolkit as a tool to implement the NDCs: Introduction, update and expansion undertaken in 2024, practical application, benefits and lessons learnt.
  • Role of parliamentarians in climate action: Legislative advocacy (their role in increasing compliance with climate legislation and ensuring its resilience and sustainability), oversight and stakeholder engagement.
  • Regional and international cooperation: Opportunities for collaboration and sharing best practices among regions and among countries with similar profiles.

This is a Provisional Programme 

09:15–09:30: Registration and welcome coffee 

09:30–09:50: Opening

  • Welcoming remarks 
  • Brief round of introductions by participants

09:50–10:25: The Paris Agreement and the Ambition Cycle

This session will help familiarize parliamentarians with the purpose of the Paris Agreement and its ambition cycle, nationally determined contributions (NDCs) and the Global Stocktake (GST).

  • Presentation Mr. Gianluca Crispi, Legal Officer, Legal Affairs Division
  • UNFCCC Secretariat • Country spotlight: brief MP interventions 
  • Q&A/Interactive discussion 

10:25–10:45: Presentation of Actions for stronger National Climate Commitments (Led by the IPU) 

The new IPU publication on parliamentary actions for strengthening national climate commitments, including NDCs, will be presented. An update on the IPU’s climate campaign Parliaments for the Planet, which is designed to mobilize parliaments to take climate action, will also be given. 

  • Q&A/interactive discussion. 

10:45–11:00: Coffee Break

11:00–12:00: Technical Support for the NDC 3.0 (Led by UNFCCC)

The session will present the diverse efforts of the UNFCCC secretariat in support of the next round of NDCs, including the presentation of the NDC 3.0 Navigator developed in collaboration with the NDC Partnership.

  • Presentation by Ms. Monica Echegoyen, Programme Officer, Mitigation Division, UNFCCC Secretariat
  • Country spotlight: brief MP interventions • Q&A/Interactive discussion 

12:00–12:30: Effective Legislation and Tools to Advance Climate Action and Implement NDCs at the National Level (Led by UNEP) 

This session will Introduce the Montevideo Environmental Law Programme and its digital backbone, the UNEP’s Law and Environment Assistance Platform (UNEP-LEAP)

  • Presentation by Mr. Gracian Banda, Head of Unit, Montevideo Coordination and Delivery Unit, Law Division, UNEP

The session will also provide an overview of UNEP Law Division’s work on climate change and, especially, of the new version of the Climate Change Framework Laws Module of the UN Law and Climate Change Toolkit.

  • Presentation by Ms. Valentina Ricca, Associate Legal Officer, UNEP

12:30–13:30: Lunch Break

13:30–15:30: Designing Climate Change Legislation: A Practical Exercise 

This session aims to build the capacity of parliamentarians to develop and review climate legislation to ensure that it is aligned with, and contributes to, the implementation of NDCs and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

  • Led by Ms. Maria Mousmouti, Associate Research Fellow, Institute of Advanced Legal Studies, University of London and Executive Director, Centre for European Constitutional Law 
  • Presentation of scenarios and tasks
  • Breakout groups
  • Interactive discussion 3 

15:30–15:40: Coffee Break

15:40-16:20: Practical ways forward for Enhancing National Climate Action: Parliamentarians' Reflections

The final session of the day will provide participants with an opportunity to reflect on what they have learned throughout the day and discuss how they will use these insights to strengthen national climate action within their respective countries. 

16:20-16:30: Closing of the Workshop

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