(20 April 2010) "The United Nations seeks dialogue, inclusiveness and transparency in the global climate discourse," said the Secretary-General of the United Nations, Ban Ki-moon, in a message to delegates at the People's World Conference on Climate Change and the Rights of Mother Earth in Bolivia.
The message was read by Alicia Bárcena, Executive Secretary of the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC), in representation of Ban Ki-moon during the inauguration of the meeting this morning in Cochabamba, Bolivia.
"Climate change is an ethical issue, with serious implications for the well-being of our generation and those that will follow. It requires a global solution that takes into account the views and needs of all who share Mother Earth... This week you will hear from those who are on the frontlines of climate change. They have contributed least to the problem but will suffer first and worst from climate impacts," says the message sent by the Secretary-General.
The Conference was convoked by the President of the Plurination State of Bolivia, Evo Morales, as a forum to discuss the causes of climate change and possible solutions among representatives of civil society, the scientific community, governments, academics and social, indigenous, environmental and cultural organizations, among others. About 20,000 people from over 120 countries registered to participate in the event.
The delegates will participate in panels on climate change and poverty, the right to water and lands, the impact on women, the value of tropical forests, community health, human, economic, social and cultural rights and the initiatives of civil society to face the global phenomenon, among other issues.
Several panels will analyze the results of the XV Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP15) held last December in Copenhagen.
Bárcena conveyed the desire of the Secretary-General that the deliberations in this meeting provide constructive, positive and viable inputs for the XVI Conference of the Parties of the Convention (COP16) to take place in Mexico this November.
"I look forward to your suggestions on how to reduce emissions, expand clean energy and build climate resilience. Our efforts must be much more ambitious to satisfy what science tells us is needed to stabilize our climate... Only global cooperation can prevent runaway climate change," said the message by Ban Ki-moon.
For more information, contact ECLAC's Information Services. Email: dpisantiago@cepal.org; telephone: (56-2) 210-2040/2149.
