Foreign Affairs Ministers from across the Commonwealth met yesterday for the 21st annual Commonwealth Foreign Affairs Ministers Meeting (CFAMM). The meeting was held virtually for the second year in a row due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.
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Commonwealth Foreign Affairs Ministers meet to discuss COVID19, vaccines and climate change
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IPS spoke to Commonwealth Secretary-General the Rt Hon Patricia Scotland QC about the Association’s climate initiatives, the unique challenges faced by small states, its focus on gender mainstreaming and access to financing for critical adaptation and mitigation projects.
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In a Watershed Year for Climate Change, the Commonwealth Secretary-General calls for Urgent, Decisive and Sustained Climate Action
During a visit to The Bahamas this week, the Commonwealth Secretary-General Patricia Scotland called for urgent action to ensure improved climate resilience of small states and promised to amplify the concerns of small and other vulnerable states at the upcoming United Nations Climate Change Conference COP26 in Glasgow this November.
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Commonwealth to champion climate-vulnerable small states at COP26
A blog by Sharon Ngetich, Climate Change Officer, Climate Change Section, Economic, Youth & Sustainable Development Directorate, Commonwealth Secretariat
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Blog: How nature based solutions could accelerate climate action in Africa
31 October 2021 to 12 November 2021
Event
The United Nations Climate Change Conference COP26 was held in Glasgow from 31 October to 12 November. At COP26, the Commonwealth Secretariat hosted its first ever Commonwealth Pavilion, to serve as an inclusive and collaborative space for member countries and accredited organisations. Watch highlights and events recordings on our COP26 hub. You can also see what the Commonwealth Secretariat achieved at COP26 on social media by following the hashtag #CommonwealthForClimate.
9 September 2021 to 9 September 2021
Event
The Commonwealth Secretariat is hosting a webinar to enhance coordinated action towards sustainable land management (SLM) by increasing awareness and advocating for country-driven climate finance access for Commonwealth member countries.
Statement by The Rt Hon Patricia Scotland, Secretary-General of the Commonwealth on the latest Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report, released today
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Statement by Commonwealth Secretary-General on the latest IPCC climate report
The Government of Belize is focusing on debt-for-climate swaps to tackle the dual threat of mounting public debt and climate change impacts in the country, with the support of the Commonwealth Secretariat.
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Belize explores debt-for-climate swaps with Commonwealth support
It is perhaps fair to say that the world was ambushed by the pandemic in 2020. Global and national plans were derailed, and lives were lost and upended as each new development shocked and traumatised entire populations.
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Blog: Averting a Dual Crisis with One Financial Instrument
22 June 2021 to 22 June 2021
Event
In the face of multiple global crises, debt-for-climate swaps are being widely discussed as an instrument to manage mounting public debts, climate change challenges and Covid-19 recovery. Belize is a small island developing state in the Caribbean region facing these challenges. The Government of Belize has requested the Commonwealth Secretariat to provide assistance to design and implement a ‘Debt for Climate/Nature Swap Mechanism’ for the country.
The Commonwealth Secretariat has launched a discussion paper under the CommonSensing Project to enhance a nascent, yet important, conversation that is taking place around the world.
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Blog: Can satellites help climate vulnerable countries access finance to increase resilience?
Event
The Commonwealth Secretariat is driving the call for increased use of satellite derived technologies and data to enhance access of climate finance. This virtual event will launch a new discussion paper on the topic, highlighting the experiences of countries involved in the IPP CommonSensing Project.
More than 70 delegates from 16 Caribbean countries joined international partners to discuss financing solutions for climate action on land, and share their experiences in tackling the inter-related challenges of desertification, biodiversity loss and climate change.
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Caribbean countries discuss financing for climate action on land
28 May 2021 to 28 May 2021
Event
Together with the University of Cambridge, the Commonwealth Secretariat is hosting a virtual Policy Boot Camp for young people, to support government investment in youth development across Small State countries.
Commonwealth Secretary-General Patricia Scotland has urged member countries to integrate sustainable land use management into their national climate action plans, with a focus on nature-based solutions, on the road to the UN Climate Change Conference COP26 this November.
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Commonwealth to bolster action on sustainable land use management on the road to COP26
Four new Commonwealth National Climate Finance Advisers get to work in the Pacific supporting climate resilience in Fiji, Tonga, Solomon Islands and Vanuatu.
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Blog: Experts Support Pacific Countries to Access Climate Finance
When 197 countries adopted the Paris Agreement on Climate Change in 2015, I remember feeling an extraordinary surge of hope – for multilateralism, for science, for humanity.
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OPINION: Can we rise from the COVID-19 ashes and win the climate battle?
2 December 2020 to 2 December 2020
Event
Youth activists as young as nine will join a momentous session on protecting the planet at a time when global climate talks are put on ice.
Violence against women and girls is a global epidemic, yet one of the least talked-about barriers to climate action.
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How climate finance can address violence against women and girls
More than 90 government officials from 11 nations have gained new skills that will help them make sound decisions on petroleum field development plans submitted by oil companies, to ensure they promote sustainable development.
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Officials trained to assess multi-billion dollar petroleum investments
The Commonwealth Blue Charter, the Commonwealth’s flagship programme on ocean cooperation, has been invited to join a leading line-up of official nominators for the prestigious Earthshot Prize.
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Commonwealth Blue Charter joins the search for first Earthshot Prize winners
Foreign ministers from across the Commonwealth met today in their first ever virtual meeting. The 20th Commonwealth Foreign Affairs Ministers Meeting (CFAMM) would usually take place alongside the United Nations General Assembly but was held virtually this year due to the limitations of the COVID19 pandemic.
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Commonwealth Foreign Affairs Ministers Meeting 2020
21 October 2020 to 23 October 2020
Event
The COVID-19 crisis is wreaking havoc on development progress. It also presents an opportunity for rethinking the economic vulnerability of the Least Developed Countries (LDCs), and developing countries more generally.
The Commonwealth Secretary-General has commended the invaluable contributions of indigenous peoples to the global fight against climate change, calling for more home-grown ‘regenerative’ solutions to be scaled up across the Commonwealth.
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Commonwealth Secretary-General: Indigenous people key to inclusive climate action
A new online portal launched by the Commonwealth Secretariat will help member countries easily find the right type of financial support to prepare for, respond to and recover from natural disasters.
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Disaster funds easier to access with new web portal