Human Development News
Commonwealth leader calls for action on climate change
16 November 2007
ENTEBBE, Uganda: Rich nations must be made accountable for climate change and pay for solutions to mitigate its impact, a key Commonwealth leader said yesterday.
Dr. Mark Collins, Director of the Commonwealth Foundation also called on small and vulnerable states to join together and demand reduction in emissions by the larger industrialized nations.
If unabated, poor countries where there's a high susceptibility to disaster and high prevalence to poverty, will pay for a problem that they have had no part in causing.
"Rich nations should provide serious finances for adaptation," Collins said.
"Adaptation in practice will mean scientific and technological innovation. We need to plan for forest conservation and reforestation; diversification of agriculture; research in fisheries and water management; and much more application of low carbon technologies for energy production."
Dr. Collins was addressing delegates gathered in Kampala for the Commonwealth Youth Forum on the theme Climate Change: a Priority Issue for the Commonwealth.
The Commonwealth Youth Forum is one of a series of meetings that precede and feed into the Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting due in Kampala next week.
"As young people, you have an important part to play in communicating climate change issues and advocating for a different world," said Collins.
The Commonwealth Foundation has taken a lead role in advocating climate change measures in the Commonwealth. Last year it convened climate change meetings in Uganda and Seychelles, and the same subject is on the agenda for the Commonwealth People's Forum which opens on November 18.
Dr. Collins called on governments to exercise their political will if results are to be achieved: "Many politicians seem to feel that we need not worry because the problems will be resolved through technological and engineering innovations. What has now caught government attention, however, is the likely economic impact of climate change.
Climate change experts have warned of effects to the sustainability of human life if no mitigation measures are put in place.
According to the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, climate change is being caused principally by man-made carbon dioxide pollution resulting from transport and industrial emissions.
The UN Panel has already made a call for greater international co-operation and collective action in finding solutions to the problem.
According to the Hadley Centre, a world centre of expertise on climate change, human activities are causing increases in greenhouse gas emissions to well above pre-industrial levels and this has had adverse impacts on the environment.
Melting glaciers, hurricanes and recent flooding in many parts of the world have been attributed to climate change, making it a global phenomenon.
ENDS.
Further information contact:
• International media: Kris Rampersad, +256 75 3263185
• Uganda media: David Obot, +256 77 2501985
• Richard Latigo, +256 77 2846559
