The event “Reduce your carbon footprint 2016” took place on 17 September 2016 in the Romanian Capital as part of the activities organised to celebrate the EU Climate Diplomacy Week (9-18 September 2016). It was developed by Environ Association and the Embassy of Germany in Bucharest with the support of the European Commission Representation in Romania.
The event highlighted the efforts by both Romania and Germany to ratify the COP21 Paris Agreement that sets the goals to limit global warming to well below 2°C, or even 1.5°C, and to reach climate neutrality in the second half of the 21st century. Visitors spent the day attending bicycle and roller skate competitions, quiz contests, street drawing, board games, waste-art workshops and other activities developed with the main purpose of raising public awareness regarding climate change.
,,Reduce your carbon footprint 2016” started with a press conference held by Mr. Achim Tröster, Deputy Head of Mission, Embassy of Germany in Bucharest, Ms. Angela Cristea, Head of European Commission Representation in Romania, Mr. Andrei Orban, President of Environ Association, Mr. Raul Pop, the State Secretary at the Ministry of Environment, Water and Forests, and Mr. Remus Cernea, an environmental activist. The guests highlighted climate actions envisaged to implement the first ever legally binding climate agreement adopted in 2015 in Paris.
At the press conference, the Embassy of Germany inaugurated the exhibition “Environment, Conflict and Cooperation” (ECC) that was a real success among the more than 1000 event participants. The ECC Exhibition, created by the Berlin-based think tank adelphi, was organised with the courtesy of the German Federal Foreign Office.
The ECC Exhibition visualises the growing impact of global environmental change on our world. Dealing with themes such as climate change, energy and natural resources, the exhibition shows how environmental degradation and resource scarcity can spark tensions. It also highlights the role that environmental cooperation and sustainable development can play in promoting peace and stability. The exhibition has been shown in more than 40 cities worldwide since 2005.
The event ended with a concert held by the famous Romanian pop artist Smiley, who took on the opportunity to advise his audience, especially the children, to be more aware of their environmental impact and to take care of the planet we call our home.
More information about the event (in Romanian) can be found on the campaign website www.sosclima.ro and on the Facebook page.
Explore the online version of the ECC Exhibition (in English) here.
Initiated in 2015, the French Ministry for the Armed Forces organized the first international conference “Defence and climate: what are the stakes?”. Since then, the Ministry has been constantly adapting and developing its capacity of anticipation.
On 25 January 2019, the UN Security Council held an open debate to discuss the security implications of climate-related disaster events. The meeting, initiated by the Dominican Republic, underscored the global nature of climate-related disasters. Most speakers highlighted the need for better climate risk management as an important contribution to safeguarding international peace and security. The debate marks the beginning of a year in which climate security ranks high on the UN’s agenda.
Today, Friday 25th January 2019, the UN Security Council will hold an open debate addressing the impacts of climate-related disasters on international peace and security (at 4pm CET and 10am EST). President Danilo Medina of the Dominican Republic will chair the meeting, which will also include the participation of several member states at ministerial level.
The unabated growth of natural resource consumption raises risks that we will outstrip the capacities of ecosystems and governance institutions. At the same time, to achieve important global goals related to poverty alleviation, public health, equity and economic development such as those embodied in the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), we will simultaneously need more resources and better management of natural resources everywhere.