The Virtual Thematic Sessions of Asia-Pacific Climate Week 2021 (APCW 2021) kicked off today. APCW 2021 will be held from 6 to 9 July and is hosted by the Government of Japan.
The sessions are designed to boost the climate change response of countries in Asia and the Pacific and build momentum for the crucial UN Climate Change Conference COP26 in November in Glasgow.
Speaking ahead of APCW 2021, Mr. Hiroshi Ono, Director General, Global Environment Bureau, Ministry of the Environment of Japan, said, “The next ten years will be decisive in limiting temperature rise to 1.5 degrees. To overcome the climate crisis, we need all actors in the world to work together.”
“We look forward to working with all actors in the Asia-Pacific region, including international organisations, local governments, the private sector and civil society, to make 2021 a year of redesigning our socio-economic systems and to make COP26 a success. Let’s trigger a huge wave of ‘decarbonisation dominos’ in the Asia-Pacific region,” he added.
UN Climate Change Deputy Executive Secretary Ovais Sarmad praised APCW2021 host country Japan for announcing plans to achieve net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 and said he was encouraged by the recent virtual UNFCCC Subsidiary Body discussions held just a few weeks ago.
“While some differences still exist in some areas on the agenda, parties have demonstrated the willingness to engage and advance and this is important in these last crucial months before COP26,” he said.
The wide array of regional stakeholders gathering for the virtual meeting will showcase climate action and share progress ahead of COP26 on the submission of stronger national climate plans – Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) – under the Paris Agreement .
A further focus of APCW 2021 is to provide information on the UN’s Race to Zero and Race to Resilience campaigns, while ensuring that regional voices are heard in the multilateral climate process.
“Private businesses and investors — some amongst the largest in the world — understand this and have also pledged net-zero commitments and to put sustainability at the heart of their business models,” Mr. Sarmad said. “We encourage all nations to follow this lead and to be even more ambitious. It is a race to zero emissions, but it’s also a race to this grand transition to a clean, green, climate-resilient economy and lead the next great growth opportunity of this century.“
APCW 2021 will focus on three key areas:
-Integrating ambitious action in key economic sectors into national planning
-Adapting to climate risks and building resilience
-Seizing transformational opportunities to put the region on a low-emission and highly resilient development pathway
The APCW 2021 Virtual Thematic Sessions are part of a series of three Regional Climate Weeks leading up to the COP26 UN Climate Change Conference in November. They include virtual meetings for the Asia-Pacific region, Latin America and the Caribbean (LACCW 2021) and Africa (ACW 2021). Middle East North Africa Climate Week 2022 (MENA 2022) will follow COP26.
A dedicated high-level session later this year will ensure that outcomes from all Virtual Thematic Sessions are captured and framed within the larger context of COP26.
More than 2500 people have registered for the Virtual Thematic Sessions of APCW 2021 and the number is growing fast. All stakeholders are invited to join government ministers and senior representatives of multilateral agencies and non-governmental organizations, as well as civil society, including indigenous leaders and youth at APCW 2021.