Preparing for COP 24

Developing clean energy projects while reducing fossil fuel-based plants is crucial in achieving the Paris climate targets. However, a peaceful Just Transition requires securing employment for affected workers and communities. Realizing this challenge, FES Vietnam, Vietnam Union of Science and Technology Associations (VUSTA) and the Green Innovation and Development Centre (GreenID) jointly organized an international workshop titled “Fostering Cooperation to Ensure a Just Energy Transition” on September 18th, 2018, to discuss issues related to energy transition, with a focus on the political and social impacts of this process.

“We need immediate and radical climate actions!” This is the call sent by FES Vietnam and the Vietnam Climate Change Working Group (CCWG) at a workshop they hosted together on revising and implementing Vietnam's Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs). While transitioning to a low carbon economy is necessary in order to keep the global temperature increase below 2 degrees, Vietnam is still aiming to achieve annual GDP increases of more than 6%, which makes the transition improbable. In order to raise Vietnam’s ambitions concerning reductions of greenhouse gases, it is important to bring all stakeholders to the table. Over 150 representatives from governmental agencies, embassies, international organizations, academia, trade unions and civil society exchanged knowledge and experiences regarding the opportunities and challenges of the revision process in Vietnam.

Too often climate protection measures are implemented in isolation from other development goals. However, a closer coordination of the Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) with the efforts to achieve the United Nation Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) could promote a more coherent implementation of both. Recognizing the mutually dependent nature of these two policy frameworks, the FES Vietnam and the Vietnam Climate Change Working Group (CCWG) jointly organized an international conference titled “Connection between Implementation of Paris Agreement and the Sustainable Development Goals” in Hanoi. FES Vietnam supports CCWG and its work to foster policy dialogue between different actors on the issue of climate change and energy, particularly in relation to international climate governance and national efforts to implement the Paris Agreement.

How can Trade Unions in Central and Eastern Europe promote a Just Transition? A one-week study tour jointly organized by FES and the DGB dealt with this question. Participants from eight countries visited best practice projects in North Rhine Westphalia, one of the last coal-mining regions in Germany, and discussed their insights with different stakeholders in Berlin.

Simulation & Informal Meetings

At the beginning of the conference, FES organizes a simulation of what a Just Transition actually means. During the conference, we will have two informal meetings during the conference for our international partners. These events aim at capacity building and sharing crucial information.

Events on Just Transition

This year’s FES events at COP 24 will focus on Just Transition from a global perspective.

We start on December 3rd with two events at the EU Pavilion. For the first event, we will join forces with the European Trade Union Confederation to discuss what challenges and potentials are connected to a Just Transition in Europe. In the second event, we will discuss whether the European Union could function as a global climate leader supporting the implementation of the Paris Agreement.

We continue our program on December 8th with a cooperation with Bread for the World in the German Pavilion. Under the headline of “Ensuring a Just Transition Worldwide - Requirements for a Just Transition to a 1.5 World” we want to discuss Just Transition from a global perspecitve. We will bring together different approaches to justice in the transformation processes that lie ahead of us.

On December 10th we are again hosting two events. The first one is the official UN-Side Event “Ensuring a Just Transition to a Sustainable Future” that we are organizing together with two partners from the Global South. As this day marks the 70th birthday of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, we will focus on human rights compliance in ensuring a Just Transition. The second event that day will happen in the Climate Hub of COP 24, a civil society space that is organized by Greenpeace Poland. Together with partners from civil society in Germany, we again want to shed a light on the importance of and the opportunities for ambitious climate action that is closely linked to a Just Transition. 

Last but not least, we will follow the negotiations on the spot and will let you know about the outcomes on our COP 24 website.

To strengthen climate journalism around the globe, the FES Media Fellowship COP 24 cooperates with Climate Tracker. FES supports the participation of four young journalists from Botswana, Hungary, Indonesia and Argentina in this program. They will receive a climate media training by Climate Tracker, report from COP 24 and take part in FES events as well.