UNIFEM News: UNIFEM Joins “Seal the Deal” Campaign

UNIFEM News: UNIFEM Joins “Seal the Deal” Campaign

UNIFEM Executive Director Inés Alberdi today signed on to the United Nations Seal the Deal campaign, joining a number of UN agencies and organizations that are encouraging governments to reach an ambitious and effective global climate agreement in Copenhagen this December.

“UNIFEM calls upon all world leaders to agree on much needed emission targets, with appropriate timetables, to help ensure the vitality of ecosystems on which humanity depends,” Alberdi said. “This is a critical step to ensure the welfare of the planet and its people, now and in the future.”

Ms. Alberdi stressed women are often on the frontlines of environmental change and frequently the first to face impacts on their livelihoods. However, as farmers, entrepreneurs, managers of household resources, scientists and politicians, women are equally poised to drive positive change and contribute to a global response.

Signing onto the global campaign, Ms. Alberdi stressed, “Equally important is to enhance the capacity of all people — women and men — to cope with this unprecedented challenge that threatens national and global efforts to eradicate poverty.”

Mr. Ricardo Sánchez Sosa, Officer-in-Charge of the UNEP office in New York, welcomed UNIFEM’s support. He added that UNEP has a number of environmental projects that incorporate gender and poverty reduction, including in Guatemala and Nicaragua. For example, women in rural communities, particularly indigenous women, are trained in rainwater catchment techniques, which are an alternative water supply to boost agriculture and generate income.

The Seal the Deal campaign — launched by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon in April 2009 and supported by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) — encourages users to sign an online global petition and remind world leaders to work together to seal the deal on an equitable and effective climate agreement that will bolster the resiliency of vulnerable countries and protect the lives and livelihoods of all. Time is pressing as talks lead up to the Conference of the Parties (COP-15) of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) in Copenhagen, December 2009.

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University World News (UK): GLOBAL: Universities join UN climate change network
02 August 2009

Six universities from the US, UK, Spain and China have become the first academic institutions to come on board the Climate Neutral Network (CN Net) - an initiative led by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) to promote global action to de-carbonise economies and societies.

UNEP said they are the pioneers among hundreds of universities, colleges and other academic institutions worldwide that are taking steps to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, promote 'greening' of their campuses and invest in low-carbon research and development.
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Pakistan Daily Mail (Pakistan): Mercury harmful for human health: Afridi
31 July 2009
The government is fully committed to replace the mercury based technology into environment friendly technology in Pakistan as mercury is harmful chemical that has adverse impacts on human health particularly central nervous system, kidney and fetus.

“The ministry of environment is making all out efforts in this regard,” said Federal Minister for Environment Hameed Ullah Jan Afridi while inaugurating the Inception Workshop of National Stakeholders on “Management of Mercury and Mercury containing Waste Project in Pakistan” organized in collaboration with United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).

However, due to our technological constraints, it is not possible for us to address this gigantic challenge alone without the technical support and guidance from the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and other relevant international agencies. Keeping in view the urgency of the issue, there is also dire need to sensitize the people on the hazards of mercury.

The workshop has brought together the representatives of Environmental Protection Agencies, line ministries, researchers, academia, industries and NGOs, he said.

The minister said that the government is fully committed to contribute towards the global efforts for the conservation of environment to ensure sustained life on the Earth Planet for our existing and future generations. In this regard, Pakistan is a signatory to a number of international conventions and protocols on various environmental issues especially hazardous chemicals.

The Minister said that the declaration of 2009 as the National Year of Environment and successful execution of programmes and projects in accordance with a well planned calendar of activities speaks commitment of the government. The setting of the Guinness Book of World Record of planting maximum number of trees in 24 hours at Keti Bander in Thatta District this month is a pride for the entire nation.

This activity, on one hand, will achieve the national objective of increasing forest cover, and on the other hand, it will raise awareness among masses besides creating a soft image of the country in the world. Afridi said that there is a dire need to hold a series of awareness workshops and publish awareness material to sensitize the people on the hazards of mercury.

He urged upon the funding agencies to explore feasibility of the allocation of maximum funds for mass awareness on this toxic chemical. He expressed the hope that this workshop will make useful recommendations to formulate a comprehensive policy on the Mercury Waste Project in Pakistan. Earlier, Joint Secretary International Cooperation, Ministry of Environment, Abid Ali in his well come address said that mercury is a highly toxic chemical and used all over the world including Pakistan in many products and processes such as thermometers, electrical switches, lamps, dental amalgams, batteries, chlor-alkali plants and some pharmaceuticals.