UNEP

Advancing the Blue Economy in Kenya

This UNOC2022 side event aims to promote awareness and discussion on how actors can contribute to unlock the full economic possibilities of coastal and marine resources through interventions that involve effective participation of all relevant people while protecting these resources for present and future generation, while developing ecosystem resilience.

The event is aligned with UNOC22 interactive dialogue “Promoting and strengthening sustainable ocean-based economies, in particular for small island developing States and least developed countries” and it will be centered on a technical debate with the thematic focus “How innovative solutions applied to the blue economy sector can help harnessing its potential and be beneficial for coastal communities in an inclusive, participatory, and sustainable manner?

Please register by 27th June 2022 here: https://forms.gle/nyhoS5MJtWdm5QrLA

After successful registration confirmation, you will receive a guest link. All confirmed guests are requested to login 10 minutes before the event time using the link that will be provided after registration confirmation. Please note that the event will be conducted in English.

The Go Blue Kenya project is a partnership between the European Union and the Government of Kenya to advance the blue economy agenda in Kenya through coastal development.  The overall objective of the 4 year Go Blue project is to contribute to coastal economic development in an inclusive, integrated, participatory, and sustainable manner. The project is funded by the European Union.

Contacts:
Camões — Instituto da Cooperação e da Língua, I. P.
Paula Alexandra Ribeiro Mota Vilela de Oliveira
Tourism and Cultural Heritage Go Blue Component Leader
Paula.Oliveira@camoes.mne.pt

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CoNGO Notes: For more information on the NGO Committee on Financing for Development, please visit ngosonffd.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Sustainable Development-NY, please visit ngocsd-ny.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Sustainable Development-Vienna, please visit congocsd.wordpress.com

International Day of Awareness of Food Loss and Waste

Reducing food losses and waste is essential in a world where the number of people affected by hunger has been slowly on the rise since 2014, and tons and tons of edible food are lost and/or wasted every day. Globally, around 14 percent of food produced is lost between harvest and retail, while an estimated 17 percent of total global food production is wasted (11 percent in households, 5 percent in the food service and 2 percent in retail).

The International Day of Awareness of Food Loss and Waste is an opportunity to call to action both the public (national or local authorities) and the private sector (businesses and individuals), to prioritise actions and move ahead with innovation to reduce food loss and waste towards restoring and building back better and resilient-ready, food systems.

Check how you can help us through FAO, the leading agency for this International Day, and discover what you can do. Take action, start something. Stop food loss and waste. For the people. For the planet. And on Sept. 29th, join the global virtual event, where FAO and UNEP experts will share their perspectives on the issues and actions required to stem the problem of food loss and waste. Register here!

To share your event, download the logo and other social media materials in different languages, check the guide that will help you to spread the message, or just get more information, at FAO’s official page for the Observance. To learn more about how and why the UN commemorates the International Day of Awareness of Food Loss and Waste, please visit un.org/en/observances/end-food-waste-day.

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CoNGO Notes: For more information on the NGO Committee on Sustainable Development-NY, please visit ngocsd-ny.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Sustainable Development-Vienna, please visit congocsd.wordpress.com. For more information on the NGO Committee on Education, Learning, and Literacy, please visit facebook.com/NGOCELLatUN.

Addressing the tensions between extreme poverty & environmental conservation

Join us July 8 for “Addressing the tensions between extreme poverty and environmental conservation,” an ATD Fourth World webinar at HLPF, in collaboration with the Maryknoll Sisters.

Register here!

This fascinating dialogue will bring together:

  • Activists from the Quilombola community in Brazil and the Maasai community in Tanzania, both facing
    threats to their lands, identities and cultures
  • Professionals in the field of social and environmental justice and human rights
  • International policy-makers in the realm of environmental conservation and management

Together, panelists will discuss how environmental conservation should not be used against the human
rights of people and communities living in poverty and will highlight examples of communities acting to
protect and preserve their environment and culture.

Speakers:

  • Seela John Sainyeye: Coordinator of Women Empowerment and Gender Equality at the Pilot Light Development Organization in Arusha, Tanzania
  • Leidyane Quilombola: Activist from Quilombo Nazaré, Maranhão, Brazil
  • David Smith: Chief Economist and Regional Coordinator – Africa. UNDP-UNEP, Poverty-Environment Action for the SDGs (PEA), UNEP

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CoNGO Notes: For more information on the NGO Committee on Financing for Development, please visit ngosonffd.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Sustainable Development-NY, please visit ngocsd-ny.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Sustainable Development-Vienna, please visit ngocsdvienna.org. For more information on the Committee of Religious NGOs at the United Nations, please visit rngos.wordpress.com

The Resilience Paradox: The Role of Faith Actors in Addressing Climate Challenges and Vulnerabilities Faced by Small Island States

Dear partners,

Greetings from the Anglican Communion Office at the United Nations!

We are proud to share with you the event we are co-sponsoring at the margins of the High-Level Political Forum: The Resilience Paradox: Faith Actors in Addressing Climate Challenges and Vulnerabilities Faced by Small Island States. This event is the result of a partnership between the Anglican Communion Office at the United Nations, The Episcopal Church, the Anglican Alliance, Episcopal Relief and Development, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS).

During an hour and a half, we will focus on challenges to building resilience and sustainable development faced by Small Island Developing States (SIDS) and spotlight the work of faith actors as prophetic voices on environmental and sustainable development issues. We will also interrogate the role of faith actors in building climate resilience, SDGs, COVID response, and advocating to and partnering with governments.

The event will be held on 12th of July from 10:00 to 11:30 EDT/ 14:00 to 15:30 UTC via Zoom.

To register please visit: bit.ly/FaithAtHLPF

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CoNGO Notes: For more information on the Committee of Religious NGOs at the United Nations, please visit rngos.wordpress.com. For more information on the NGO Committee on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, please visit facebook.com/NGOCoRIP.

Re-imagining The Future We Need: Community voices for a healthy, green and just recovery

NGO Major Group Side Event

This side event at the UN’s High Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (HLPF) 2021 will hear directly from community voices from different parts of the world on action steps needed for a sustainable and resilient recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic. A priority of this session is to ensure the lived experiences of those who are most severely affected by the pandemic are directly included in national assessments of the inter-connected challenges faced by us all; and in setting priorities for a fairer and more sustainable future.

Register here: https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_OI59RbzfQuWbXXLRG4PJwA

Agenda

Opening keynote: One planet, one health: healthy people, healthy nature and healthy planet: Ambassador Christian Frutiger, Assistant Director General, Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation, Federal Department of Foreign Affairs, Switzerland

Panel includes:

  • Fatimatou Sall, President, Association of young water and sanitation professionals of Senegal
  • Naeem Abbas, Advocacy Manager, The Brooke, Pakistan
  • Sanjoy Hazarika, International Director, Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative (CHRI)
  • Ingrid Rostad, Co-chair of the MG Facilitating Committee at UNEP

Q&A with participants and inputs from NGO Major Group regional partners to share specific experiences from regional and national contexts

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CoNGO Notes: For more information on the NGO Major Group, please visit ngomg.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Human Rights, please email the co-chairs at bobbinassar@gmail.com or bknotts@uua.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Financing for Development, please visit ngosonffd.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Sustainable Development-NY, please visit ngocsd-ny.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Sustainable Development-Vienna, please visit ngocsdvienna.org.

Supporting Implementation of the Post-2020 Global Diversity Framework [English and Spanish]

The Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity, the Group on Earth Observations Biodiversity Observation Network (GEO BON), the United Nations Statistics Division (UNSD) and United Nations Environment Programme World Conservation Monitoring Centre (UNEP-WCMC) in collaboration with the UN Regional Commissions are organizing a series of webinars to increase the understanding of the monitoring framework of the post 2020 Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF), to foster collaboration between national statistical offices, Parties to the CBD and experts in the biological sciences for its operationalization and to discuss the current activities and technical aspects of implementation of the GBF monitoring framework at the global and national level.

Considering the development of EBV, BONs and Biodiversity Change indicators endorsed by GEOBON, and recent adoption of the SEEA EA and their relevance to the GBF, this webinar series will bring together relevant stakeholders from the CBD Parties, scientific communities and statistical communities to advance a shared understanding and have an initial discussion on implementing the GBF Monitoring Framework.

The high-level regional webinars will be  conducted according to the official language or the region. Registered participants will receive the connection links for the webinars.

Register here!

To read the full concept note and view recordings of the June 28 webinar pertaining to Africa, Europe, North America, and the Caribbean region, visit seea.un.org/events/webinars-supporting-implementation-post-2020-global-biodiversity-framework.

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CoNGO Notes: For more information on the NGO Committee on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, please visit facebook.com/NGOCoRIP. For more information on the NGO Committee on Financing for Development, please visit ngosonffd.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Sustainable Development-NY, please visit ngocsd-ny.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Sustainable Development-Vienna, please visit ngocsdvienna.org

Virtual CINE-ONU presents “The Great Green Wall”

To mark the launch of the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration and the World Day to Combat Desertification and Drought, the United Nations and the European Commission present: “The Great Green Wall.”

After a short introduction from Veronika Hunt Safrankova,  Head of Brussels Office, United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and Camilla Nordheim-Larsen, Senior Partnerships and Resource Mobilization Coordinator at UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) and Producer of the film, we will have a discussion and Q&A with the speakers below:

  • Elvis Tangem – Coordinator of The Great Green Wall Initiative for the Sahara and Sahel, African Union
  • Sandra Kramer – European Commission, Director Africa, Department of International Partnerships (DG INTPA)
  • Nora Berrahmouni – Senior forestry officer for Africa at the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) 
  • Deborah Seward (moderator) – Director of the UN Regional Information Centre (UNRIC)

About/Synopsis:

Imagine if we could restore a piece of land 3 times the size of the Great Barrier Reef! The African-led initiative referred to as the Great Green Wall, is growing an 8,000km natural ‘wonder of the world ‘ across the entire width of Africa. Discover how this project is providing a future for over 60 million people in the region.

The Great Green Wall provides a refreshing story of resilience, optimism and collective action. As Inna Modja passionately pursues an African Dream for a generation seeking to control their own destiny, she reminds us of the enormity of the task ahead and that time is not on our side. The resulting journey of hope, hardship and perseverance reveals our shared human condition, reflecting a deeper moral and existential question we all must confront: “Will we take action before it’s too late?

Watch the trailer here: youtube.com/watch?v=kB1qK_yBVxU

Register for the discussion here: https://fao.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_pxFKjLqyQxiJcKesdnZ3LQ

This event is organised in collaboration with Cine-ONU Vienna and Cine-ONU Geneva

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CoNGO Notes: For more information on the NGO Committee on Financing for Development, please visit ngosonffd.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Sustainable Development-NY, please visit ngocsd-ny.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Sustainable Development-Vienna, please visit ngocsdvienna.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, please visit facebook.com/NGOCoRIP. For more information on the Committee of Religious NGOs at the United Nations, please visit rngos.wordpress.com.

CRNGO Climate Working Group advocacy meeting

Good afternoon colleagues,
Eid Mubaak to those of you celebrating / recognizing Eid ul Fitr. As discussed on at the 3 May meeting, the Committee of Religious NGOs at the United Nations’ Working Group on Climate will have an informal, 60-min meeting to discuss COP26 Advocacy this coming Monday, 17 May, at 10:00 am EDT.
The agenda will be simple:
  • Bring along your organization’s plans / ideas  for Advocacy to share (or if you don’t have a plan, come and learn and support others who do!)
PS – just FYI, here’s some info on the upcoming UN Decade of Ecological Restoration:

Even amidst the global pandemic and climate crisis challenges, the Good News is that it’s almost time for the launch of the United Nations Decade on Ecosystem Restoration 2021-2030.  In an effort to prevent, halt and reverse the degradation of ecosystems worldwide, the UN Environment Program (UNEP) has developed many resources to share on June 5, 2021, which is World Environment Day. (See more information here: worldenvironmentday.global)

To help us take action in this next decade, UNEP has published a practical guide to ecosystem restoration called the Ecosystem Restoration Playbook – it provides an introduction to a range of actions that can slow the degradation of ecosystems and foster their recovery. Designed for all interested individuals and stakeholder groups, this guide outlines three pathways to getting involved in ecosystem restoration during the UN Decade and beyond:

· Taking action such as starting or support an on-the-ground restoration project

· Making smart choices like buying only sustainable products and changing diets

· Raising your voice in support of ecosystem conservation and restoration

You can find more information, as well as a link to this 21-page guide, here:  https://www.decadeonrestoration.org/

So join in on restoring one or more of the eight key types of ecosystems – forests, farmlands, grassland and savannahs, rivers and lakes, oceans and coasts, towns and cities, peatlands, and mountains – and become part of #GenerationRestoration !

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CoNGO Notes: For more information on the Committee of Religious NGOs at the United Nations, please visit rngos.wordpress.com. For more information on the NGO Committee on Financing for Development, please visit ngosonffd.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Spirituality, Values, and Global Concerns-NY, please visit csvgc-ny.org.

Financing Nature-based Solutions is Path to Holistic and Equitable Recovery from Pandemic

Financing Nature-based Solutions is Path to Holistic and Equitable Recovery from Pandemic: COVID recovery and our planet’s repair must be the two sides of the same coin

A Side-Event of the ECOSOC 2021 Financing for Development Forum from the NGO Committee on Financing for Development – Climate Finance Working Group, Co-Sponsored by the Permanent Mission of Costa Rica to the United Nations & the Permanent Mission of Jamaica to the United Nations

This side-event will showcase climate adaptation finance focusing on nature-based solutions as holistic and greener path to restore well-being of peoples and recovery from COVID-19 pandemic.  Panelists will speak  to their organizational initiative on financing NbS, current initiative, success as well as challenges and gaps. It is the hope of this forum to present recommendations calling all stakeholders to finance a more robust and stronger holistic and greener response to pandemic recovery and protection of nature while addressing the socio-economic aspects. 

Speakers: 

  • Introduction & Welcome: Marvie L. Misolas, Lead Organizer 
  • Moderator: Ms. Gail Davis-Carter
  • Keynote Speaker: Ms. Zdenka Piskulich, Executive Director, Costa Rica Por Siempre –
  • H.E. Ambassador Rodrigo A. Carazo, Permanent Representative, Mission of Costa Rica to the UN
  • H. E. Ambassador E. Courtenay Rattray, Permanent Representative,  Mission of Jamaica to the UN
  • Glaston White,  Director, Half Moon Bay Fishermen’s Cooperative, a Community-based Reef Restoration Initiative in Jamaica 
  • Brandon Hay, Science Officer, Caribbean Coastal Area Management Foundation
  • Paul Smith,  Adaptation Finance Team Lead, UNEP Finance Initiative
  • Martina Dorigo, Program Analyst, Adaptation Fund  

Organizers:  

Maryknoll Sisters of St. Dominic, Inc., United  Religions Initiative, ManUpCampaign, ListenGive Initiative & The Creators 2020 UN SDGs Arts & Youth Initiative, Global Distribution Advocates, Inc., United Methodist Church – General Board of Church and Society, Africa Development Interchange Network 

Co-Sponsoring Organizations: Misean Cara, Don Bosco Aid Ireland, Salesian Missions, Inc. 

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CoNGO Notes: For more information on the NGO Committee on Financing for Development, please visit ngosonffd.org. For more ngocsdvienna.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Sustainable Development-NY, please visit ngocsd-ny.org.