2010 Calendar
Interactive International Climate Calendar 2010
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Climate Calendar 2010
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January 31: Copenhagen Accord Deadline
January 31, 2010 marked the deadline for parties to the Copenhagen Accord to submit their respective plans for reducing greenhouse gas emissions. As of now, over 80% of global emissions are covered under the Accord, though pledges put forward will not reach the inscribed goal of not exceeding a 2 degree rise in global temperatures.
- UNFCCC
- Understanding the Copenhagen Accord
- CSIS Post-Copenhagen Outlook
- Yvo De Boer Press Conference, Jan 20, 2010. B0nn, Germany
- Who's On Board with the Copenhagen Accord
March 11: : International Conference on Forests: REDD, Paris, France
Environment ministers from more than 60 nations convened in an effort to address the Post-Copenhagen status of efforts to reduce emissions from the destruction of global forests. Highlights from the meeting included raising an additional $1 billion dollars to aid in this effort bringing the total amount to $4.5 billion. Countries also agreed to develop a core team of roughly 10 countries to develop policies around funding and other key issues.
March 31: High-Level Advisory Group on Climate Change Financing, London, England
This group of 19 experts was assembled by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to develop a strategy for increasing revenue for climate financing in developing countries. Membership in this group includes heads of state, high-level officials, and finance experts. Prime Ministers Gordon Brown and Meles Zenawi will Co-chair the group. Larry Summers, Director of the National Economic Council and Assistant to the President for Economic Policy will represent the United States. In the past, Summers has taken a conservative stance on innovative sources of finance and his role in this discussion will be key for the evolution climate finance in 2010.
April 6 and May 12: Rights and Resources Initiative on Forests, Governance, and Climate Change. London, UK and Washington, DC
These meetings are designed to provide civil society, investors and indigenous people with the opportunity to discuss and provide input into the Paris/Oslo process. Webcasts and background information can be found here:
April 9-11: UNFCCC Intercessional Meeting #1, Bonn, Germany
This meeting in Bonn, the first UN intercessional since the Copenhagen Summit, made progress on a number of procedural issues. Delegates gave the LCA Chair permission to draft text ahead of the next UNFCCC intercessional. Whether the Chair could draw on the Copenhagen Accord was hotly debated, but in the end delegates left it to the discretion of the chair. Look for this new text to be released two weeks before the June Bonn meeting. In addition to advancements on the text, two more meetings were agreed to which will be held between the June intercessional and COP 16 (locations TBD).
- Access resources for this session from the Previous Negotiations page
April 19: Major Economies Forum (MEF), Washington, DC
After achieving few concrete outputs in 2009, the U.S. led MEF once again reconvened in 2010. During this negotiation session, ministers spent considerable time working on progress for short-term financing to help developing countries cope with climate change. US Climate Envoy told reporters that a binding agreement may not be possible in Cancun, progress can still be made on many issues such as mitigation, transparency, financing, technology, forests and adaptation. During the MEF, the United States gave participants a document that said its climate-related appropriations for 2010 total $1.3 billion and that the Obama administration will increase this to $1.9 billion for fiscal year 2011.
April 20-22: Peoples' World Conference on Climate Change and Mother Earth's Rights, Cochabamba, Bolivia
In a proposal launched following the lack of progress made at the Copenhagen Climate negotiations, the Bolivian government announced they would be hosting a summit to achieve the following aims: to discuss and agree on the Universal Declaration of Mother Earth Rights; develop proposals for new international agreements; to develop a plan for the holding of an international Climate Justice Tribunal; and define strategies and plans for action and mobilizations for action on climate change. Bolivian president Evo Morales said: “Those most affected by climate change will be the poorest in the world who will see their homes and their sources of survival destroyed, and who will be forced to migrate and seek refuge.” He pointed out that 75% of historic emissions of greenhouse gases came from “the countries of the North that followed a path of irrational industrialization”.
April 23: G20 Meeting of Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors, Washington, DC
The progress made at this meeting on the issue of climate finance will likely set the stage for the issue in June. It is possible that a draft version of the fossil fuel subsidies report could be circulated at this meeting.
April 24-25: Spring Meeting of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank Group, Washington, DC
Dominique Strauss-Khan, the Managing Director of the IMF, has been very active on the issue of climate change financing. Speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, Strauss-Khan proposed the development of a “green fund” to help facilitate a global shift to a green economy that could be raised funded through the issuance of Special Drawing Rights, a reserve asset created by the IMF.
May 27: International Conference on Major Forest Basins Discusses REDD+ Finance, Oslo, Norway
Announcements will be made at this meeting concerning the outcomes of the Paris/Oslo process. Look for advances in funding and forest accounting to be made. It is likely that the announcements here will have a direct impact on the UNFCCC negotiations set to take place just a few days later in Bonn, Germany.
May 31–June 11: UNFCCC Intercessional Meeting #2, Bonn, Germany
This was the first meeting since Copenhagen where full negotiations took place. During all but the closing plenary of the Long Term Cooperative Action (LCA) track, where the chair introduced a ‘non-paper’ that many Parties felt was “unbalanced,” there was very little contention over process or posturing, and progress was made on a few key issues such as finance and MRV.
Submission of the United States to the AWG‐LCA Chair (April 26, 2010)
June 25-26: G8 Summit, Toronto, Canada
After a long battle to hold the issue of climate change from the summit’s agenda, Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper made clear that the issue was a top priority for the world's richest countries. G8 leaders similarly promised to put in place their respective fast-start finance contributions to help address the most urgent and immediate needs of the most vulnerable developing countries. Ironically, while the rhetoric of world leaders seemed committed, no new commitments to address the issue of climate change were made at this meeting.
June 26-27: G20 Summit, Toronto, Canada
Pressure from the Obama administration helped to eliminate the word "voluntary" from the agreement reached by the top 20 industrialized and emerging nations regarding fossil fuel subsidies. However, the talks produced little to no progress on the broader issue of generating funds for climate financing and failed to take advantage of the critical opportunity to shift financial resources from fossil fuel subsidies into clean energy investments.
June 30 - July 1: Major Economies Forum (MEF) Meeting, Rome, Italy
The official announcement explains that parties will convene to build on the results from Copenhagen and work towards a successful outcome in Cancun and beyond.
July 19-20: Clean Energy Ministerial, Washington, D.C.
The first ever Clean Energy Ministerial, hosted by Secretary Chu and the U.S. Department of Energy, saw ministers from 24 different countries convene to discuss clean tech. Overall, 11 new initiatives were launched, ranging from an International Smart Grid Network to a Global Superior Energy Performance Partnership. The ministers believed these initiatives would prevent the need to build 500 midsize power plants over the next 20 years. This looks to be an annual event as the United Arab Emirates agreed to host a CEM meeting in the spring of 2011, and the UK will host one in 2012.
September 20: Millennium Development Goals Summit, New York, USA
Secretary General, Ban Ki-moon has announced that he will hold a summit prior to the annual General Assembly to address the status of the Millennium Development Goals. Because of the urgent state of climate science, the issue of climate change has become more and more prevalent in the MDG discussion. The United States has ratcheted up their level of engagement in the MDGs and one can expect that low-carbon development plans will play a large role in the Environmental Sustainability section of this agenda.
- Latest Statement from Ban Ki-moon
- Ban Ki-moon's representative reading his statement on the MDF summit
September 21-22: United Nations General Assembly, New York, USA
Last year, many parties—including China and the United States—chose to use their country statements during the General Assembly and the High-Level Summit to address the issue of climate change. Statements made during these summits set the tone for much of their negotiating positions in the months and days leading up to Copenhagen. It is likely that parties will once again reveal some of their climate agenda during their addresses.
TBD: Early-Mid October: China likely to announce UNFCCC Intercessional Meeting
The hosting of this meeting will not be taken lightly around the world as it sends an unmistakable signal that China is both serious about the issue of climate change and clean energy and in the absence of U.S. leadership—be it Presidential or Congressional—China is more than happy to lead the way.
October 9-11: Annual IMF-World Bank Meeting, Washington, DC
The World Bank and the IMF have expanded their traditional mandates and begun focusing much more heavily on climate change. Both institutions see the issue as part of their responsibly to support long-term global stability. Look for this meeting to have an impact on finance discussion at Cancun, Mexico.
October/November: Pre-COP meeting, Location TBD
Parties send their Environment Ministers and key members of their negotiating teams to the Pre-Cop making these very important meetings. A communiqué is always released following this meeting which provides one of the best windows into what the COP may have in store.
November 11-12: G-20 Summit, Seoul, Korea
The Korean government is taking their role as G-20 chair very seriously. As a nation, Korea has also made the issue of climate change a top priority. In 2009, nearly 3/4ths of their economic stimulus was invested in clean technology even outpacing China who dedicated 1/3 or their funding to clean technology. Look for climate finance and funding for clean technology to rank high on their agenda.
November 13-14: Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation Leaders Summit, Yokohama, Japan
In 2009, this summit proved to be highly important for the events at Copenhagen. Expect for leaders to once again discuss the upcoming climate negotiations and potentially include a climate-related declaration into their communiqué.
November 29 – December 10: COP16/MOP6, Cancun, Mexico
Although Copenhagen failed to deliver the global agreement that will drastically reduce green house gas emissions and help finance the transition to a low-carbon development, many believe that the elevated level of global awareness following Copenhagen will help provide the momentum needed to deliver critical advances in Cancun.
