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UN climate change chief urges nations to find common ground at climate talks

by unep | UNEP
Monday, 4 October 2010 10:52 GMT

* Any views expressed in this article are those of the author and not of Thomson Reuters Foundation.

UNFCCC Executive Secretary Christiana Figueres

Tianjin (China), 4 October 2010 - The Executive Secretary of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) Christiana Figueres has called on governments meeting in Tianjin, China, to accelerate their search for common ground to achieve strong action on climate change.

With less than two months to go before the UN Climate Change Conference in Cancun, Mexico, Ms. Figueres said that a concrete outcome in December was urgently needed to restore faith in the ability of Parties to take the negotiations forward.

"Governments have restored their own trust in the process, but they must ensure that the rest of the world believes in a future of ever increasing government commitment to combat climate change," she said.

"Governments need to agree on what is doable in Cancun, and how it will be achievable in a politically balanced manner," she added.

Ms. Figueres said there is a growing convergence in the negotiations that Cancun could deliver a balanced package of decisions that define the pillars of action to address climate change.

This could include a new global framework to help countries adapt to the already inevitable changes to the climate system, the launch of a new mechanism to drive faster deployment of technology to developing nations, a decision to establish a new fund to oversee the long-term money raised for the specific climate needs of developing nations and a decision on early and large-scale action to protect forests and the livelihoods of those who live in them.

"The agreements that can be reached in Cancun may not be exhaustive in their details, but as a balanced package they must be comprehensive in their scope and they can deliver strong results in the short term as well as set the stage for long term commitments to address climate change in an effective and fair manner," Ms. Figueres said.

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