UNCTAD co-sponsors event
Copenhagen, 16 June 2010 - The fifth Latin American and Caribbean Carbon Forum will be held in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, from 13 to 15 October.
Jointly organized by a partnership of key regional and international institutions supporting carbon market developments through finance and capacity development, the forum is expected to attract more than 600 local, regional, and international participants from the private, public, and financial sectors.
The secretariat of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) will hold a regional meeting of designated national authorities prior to the event in Santo Domingo. The forum provides a free-of-charge platform for local, regional and international carbon market stakeholders to share knowledge and experiences as well as to identify and develop business opportunities.
The forum has become a leading conference and trade fair for the UNFCCC´s Clean Development Mechanism (CDM; see below) and carbon finance in the region. This year for the first time it will be hosted in the Caribbean, in recognition of the importance of carbon finance and climate change to this area.
The forum is taking place as climate change experts and authorities work to define and develop the foundations for a post-2012 climate regime, involving the continuation and expansion of market mechanisms that will have significant economic, environmental, political, and social implications for the region.
About the Latin American and Caribbean Carbon Forum (www.latincarbon.com)
The Latin American and Caribbean Carbon Forum is an annual regional platform established to promote knowledge- and information-sharing and improve business environments among the main carbon market stakeholders.
At the forum, project owners and developers, national CDM offices, investment promotion agencies, designated national authorities, service providers, intermediary companies, NGOs, development banks, UN agencies, and investors will share their experiences with CDM projects and programmes; discuss the current status and future of the mechanism; learn about the latest developments in emissions trading schemes, and the role of carbon and climate finance; and analyse national and international climate change mitigation policies, including nationally appropriate mitigation measures and efforts to reduce emissions from deforestation and forest degradation. At the same time, the forum will provide an opportunity for certified emission reduction buyers and sellers from the region to discuss possible business deals. As in previous editions of the forum, there will also be opportunities for exhibitors and sponsors.
The forum´s organizers are the Government of the Dominican Republic, the Latin American Energy Organization (OLADE), the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), the International Emissions Trading Association (IETA), the World Bank Institute (WBI), the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), and the UNEP Risoe Centre.
About the CDM
The Clean Development Mechanism was established under the Kyoto Protocol of the UNFCCC to promote projects to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in developing countries.
There are currently more than 2,200 registered CDM projects in 66 countries, and some 3,000 additional projects are in the validation/registration pipeline.
Latin America´s share of CDM projects under validation/registration is 870, 464 of which are registered projects. These projects cover a wide range of sectors, with an emphasis on renewable energy (47%), methane avoidance (26%), and landfill (14%).
Based on estimates from the CDM pipeline, the CDM will generate approximately 1.8 billion certified emission reduction units by the end of the first commitment period of the Kyoto Protocol in 2012.
Note to journalists
For further information, please contact the following outreach and information officers:
- At UNCTAD in Geneva: Lucas Assuncao, lucas.assuncao@unctad.org
- For international media: Mette Annelie Rasmussen, UNEP RISOE Centre, meta@risoe.dtu.dk
- For national and regional media: Maya Hennerkes, Inter-American Development Bank, MayaH@iadb.orgGabriela Madrid, gabriela.madrid@olade.org
- See also www.latincarbon.com .
