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Showing posts from November, 2012

Climate Change and Conflict: Where does the youth constituency fall in the scope of things?

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The nexus… It is really hard to talk about climate change without mentioning conflict. So where is the nexus? It’s pretty easy to see the connection. See, climate change manifests itself through the effects and events that result like droughts and food scarcity. There is one crucial aspect to everything though. Rafael Reuveny talks about migration of people displaced by climate change related occurrences [1] . It is easy to see his point. Migration of people induces conflict. The environment on the other hand majorly contributes to migration of people. Real People, Real Stories….. Musa from Mauritania explains this when he says that back home there is continuous conflict between people of various backgrounds as a result of movement of people. Nomads often move to find food for their animals. They end up having to encroach into areas occupied by farming communities and in the competition for resources, conflict ensues. Kennedy Liti from Kenya also exp

Doha Briefs: Hurdles

Day 3 of COP18 was punctuated with news of numerous hurdles hampering the progress of the search for solutions to combat climate change. Typical of most negotiations, there were parties who were keen on making it near impossible to agree on a number of issues. As you may all understand, one of the biggest issues at COP18 is putting in place a second commitment period for the Kyoto Protocol, which is to take effect from 1 st January 2013. However, the biggest hurdle has been in sorting out the issue of the outstanding carbon emission permits ( AAUs ). The Surplus Issue If you are not familiar with carbon trading issues, you can take a slight detour and check out this primer on carbon emission permits and trade  There are around 13 billion emission permits from the first commitment period of the Kyoto Protocol (2008 - 2012). In the quest for a second commitment period, the issue is what will happen to these permits. Where it all came from : In the first commitment

Doha Briefs: Commitment Issues

Commitment has been one of the buzzwords at COP18 , no doubt, and this is with regard to cutting down on carbon emissions. There have been calls to increase ambition towards committing to the reduction of carbon emissions, especially by Annex 1countries . The Scenario At the start of COP18, the good news was that the EU had already achieved its carbon emission targets it had set for the year 2020; that’s eight years ahead of schedule! The bad news is that the EU indicated that they were considering going for an eight-year lull before considering further measures to cut down on their carbon emissions. Australia caused a stir when it indicated that it was willing to cut down its carbon emissions, but this happened to be only one part of the story. The disappointment emanating from their pledge lay in the numbers: the plan was to cut down their carbon emissions to 0.5% below their 1990 level.  In climate change negotiation circles, that is what is known as ‘A Bi

CLIMATE CHANGE: THE GENDER DIMENSION

Daniel Wasonga,  African Union Youth Volunteer, Ethiopia The global crisis that climate change has become is already taking its toll on development and less than adequate responses have often contributed to the escalation of its impacts. Meaningful responses have been concentrated more on the scientific and economic solutions than on the significant human aspects such as gender dimensions. Women and children are known to bear more of the brunt of climate change related events such as floods, heat waves and hurricanes, yet they contribute the least to its causes. They also have the weakest voice in issues concerning climate change policies and responses. Prior to Rio+20, there were sustained calls to consider and act upon linkages between climate change, sustainable development and gender equality concerns. Practical strategies are still too scarce and uncoordinated to suggest any real headway in this regard. Holistic approaches that address gender and climate change are key to t

Doha Briefs: Expectations

So, its that time of the year again when the world meets to talk about Climate Change  ( COP18 ) and how to tame this menace. This year’s talks are quite unique in that it is the first time a country from the Middle East is hosting the talks. The mood is honestly difficult to pinpoint, with some people quite upbeat that this COP will be a success, while others believe that nothing significant will come out of these talks. All in all, it is quite important to figure out which issues will most definitely shape the climate talks this year.   Issues at stake There are quite a number of issues that will be at stake during COP18; a quick list of these items won’t hurt: ·       Demonstration of ambition to solve the climate issue with guidance from intergenerational justice ·       A second commitment for the Kyoto Protocol, which actually runs out this year ·       The issue of continuing and revamping Fast Track Finance ·       Operationalizing of the Green

Innovation Is The Solution To Climate Change

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I stumbled across this video and found it quite intellectually provoking. But I will not give you a spoiler; check it out! Posted by: Kennedy Liti Mbeva

My confession, how I contributed to climate change today…

My pricey Rollex alarm went on at 0530HRS reminding me of a new day in the lackluster office. You see, working in a Nothing Going on Office aka NGO has taught me a fundamental lesson that it doesn’t really matter how long you work, what matters is your achievement at the end of the day, and in case you achieve nothing, which happens most of the times, your technical appearance in the office serves as a compliment. Convinced with my intelligent reasoning I went back to sleep until 0700 hrs when the sun was already out. Like I always do, I put on everything that could light the house; from my five bedrooms lights, washrooms, kitchen, dining room to security lights, totally ignoring the God’s freely given natural light.  When I made sure that everybody felt that the ‘owner of the house’ is up, I headed to the bathroom, spending over 10 minutes in shower which takes exactly 2½ minutes during a power blackout. It’s high time that KPLC and NWSCo started paying loyalties to those

KCCWG Report

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The best pieces of legislation are those driven by the target community, and the Kenya Climate Change Working Group (KCCWG) - a grouping of government and other stakeholders in the field of environment - has firmly grasped this concept. From 24th - 27th October 2012, Trans-Nzoia County was the host of the 30th such meeting, which started last year. AYICC-K members who took part in these climate change hearings were Susy Wandera and Kennedy Liti. This was going to be quite an interesting session because the County is quite diverse and rich in biodiversity; also, the Climate Change Authority Bill, currently tabled in parliament, was on the list of agenda. On Thursday 25th October, the registration of participants began in earnest, and this was noteworthy because the participants were drawn from all over the County, and they comprised of teachers, farmers, government officials, civic leaders, women group representatives as well as young people, among others. This set the stage for quite