20 November 2008: The seventh session of the World
Meteorological Organization (WMO) Observing System Research and Predictability
Experiment (THORPEX) International Core Steering Committee convened at WMO
headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland, from 18-20 November 2008.
19 November 2008: In a speech to the African Conference of
Ministers in Charge of Environment on Climate Change for Post-2012, which
convened in Algiers, Algeria, from 19-20 November 2008, UNFCCC Executive
Secretary Yvo de Boer said an agreed outcome at Copenhagen must be more
Africa-friendly and spur enabling support for the continent.
19 November 2008: The Icelandic singer Björk endorsed
“CoolPlanet2009,” an initiative recently announced by the UN Regional
Information Centre (UNRIC) for Western Europe that aims to raise public
awareness on the impacts of global warming and to mobilize support for new
commitments under climate change agreement, once the Kyoto Protocol’s first
commitment period ends in 2012.
18 November 2008: During his first visit to the World
Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon
reaffirmed WIPO’s unique role within the UN system in promoting intellectual
property, innovations and investment in new technology, which are crucial to
stimulate economic development and to tackle the current financial, climate,
food and oil crisis.
17 November 2008: The World Meteorological Organization
(WMO) Aircraft Meteorological Data Relay (AMDAR) Panel convened from 17-21
November 2008, in Petaling Jaya, Malaysia, to discuss ways to broaden its
global coverage.
19 November 2008: Luc Gnacadja, Executive Secretary of the
UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) addressed the African
Conference of Ministers in Charge of Environment on Climate Change for
Post-2012, and underscored the urgency of incorporating land and soil into the
climate change dialogue.
19 November 2008: Speaking at the 35th Special Session of
the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) Conference, taking place from 18-22
November 2008, in Rome, Italy, FAO Director-General Jacques Diouf outlined a
strategy for a new global system for food security that would ensure that
production meets growing demand in the face of climate change and the need for
environmental conservation.
19 November 2008: Speaking at the Governors’ Global Climate
Summit, taking place from 18-19 November 2008, in Los Angeles, California, US,
UNFCCC Deputy Executive Secretary Richard Kinley highlighted that practical
state-level action can be an important step towards a low-emissions global
economy.
18 November 2008: Alicia Bárcena, Executive Secretary of the
Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC), launched the
book entitled “Sugarcane-based Bioethanol: Energy for Sustainable Development”
during a side event at an International Conference on Biofuels taking place in
São Paulo, Brazil.
19 November 2008: In an address to the 303rd Session of the
Governing Body of the International Labour Organization (ILO) taking place in
Geneva, Switzerland, from 6-21 November 2008, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon
explained that, while in Washington DC, US, for the G-20 summit, he had
stressed that the crisis is an opportunity to promote green economic
development.
