The international political response to climate change began with the
adoption of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change
(UNFCCC) in 1992. The UNFCCC sets out a framework for action aimed
at stabilizing atmospheric concentrations of greenhouse gases in
order to avoid "dangerous anthropogenic interference" with
the climate system. Controlled gases include methane, nitrous oxide
and, in particular, carbon dioxide. The 193 parties (as of October
2005) to the UNFCCC typically convene once a year in a Conference
of the Parties (COP), and twice a year in meetings of its subsidiary
bodies.
From the start, work under the Convention has
given high priority to mitigation actions. While COP 1 in
1995 addressed funding for adaptation (decision 11/CP.1),
it was not until the adoption of the Marrakesh Accords in
2001 that adaptation began to be more widely seen as a prominent
area for action complementing work on mitigation, as set
out in decision 5/CP.7 (adverse effects of climate change).
The importance of adaptation was reaffirmed in the Delhi
Ministerial Declaration.
The actual process for the development of a
structured programme of work on adaptation began in Milan
at COP 9 in December 2003, following the conclusion of consideration
of the Third Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel
on Climate Change (IPCC). In what is sometimes referred to
as the "Milan process on adaptation," COP 9 requested
the SBSTA to initiate work on scientific, technical and socioeconomic
aspects of, and vulnerability and adaptation to, climate
change (decision 10/CP.9). SBSTA conducted one pre-sessional
workshop on this matter at SBSTA 19 in December 2003, and
two in-session workshops
at SBSTA 20 and 21.
With decision 1/CP.10 (Buenos Aires Programme
of Work on Adaptation and Response Measures), parties reached
a new milestone in terms of work on adaptation, as the COP
called for SBSTA to develop a structured five-year programme
of work on the scientific, technical and socioeconomic aspects,
vulnerability and adaptation to climate change. The programme
should be adopted at COP 11 and should address three thematic
areas, namely impacts and vulnerability; adaptation planning,
measures and actions; and integration; methodologies, data
and modelling appearing as a cross-cutting issue.
The Buenos Aires programme emphasizes the need
to build capacity, including institutional capacity, for
preventive measures, planning, preparedness and management
of disasters relating to climate change, as well as for contingency
planning, in particular for droughts and floods and extreme
weather events. It furthers the implementation of activities
contained in decision 5/CP.7, including early warning systems
and work on insurance and risk assessments to highlight a
few.
Funding under the FCCC process is operated
by the GEF; sources for adaptation include the GEF strategic
priority “Piloting an Operational Approach to Adaptation”;
the small grants programme; efforts to address adaptation
in the climate change focal area and to mainstream it into
other focal areas of the GEF; the Least Developed Countries
Fund and efforts to finance the preparation of national adaptation
programmes of action; the Special Climate Change Fund (SCCF).
The Adaptation Fund was established under the
Kyoto Protocol to support the implementation of concrete
adaptation projects and programmes as well as activities
identified in 5/CP.7. GEF is initiating steps to mobilize
resources for the Fund.
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