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Talanoa Talks on Climate Change

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The Talanoa Dialogue's purpose is to share stories, build empathy, and help leaders make wise decisions for the collective good. Join The Fijian Prime Minister - President of the COP23 Talks - for a London edition of the “Talanoa Talks”. On 29 November, on the eve of the world convening for major climate talks in Poland - COP24 - extraordinary speakers from all over the world will share their stories and discuss the way forward at the most pivotal time yet.

Bill Nye, Jaden Smith, and Jonathan Scott are spreading the word about 24 Hours of Reality

Every year, we’re lucky to be joined by a long list of thought leaders, policymakers, business innovators, TV, film and music stars, scientists, and on-the-ground climate activists for our annual global broadcast of 24 Hours of Reality.

This year’s show will be no different. We’re still confirming many of the guests who will join former US Vice President Al Gore during the 24 straight hours we’re broadcasting live from Los Angeles, from 6 PM PST on December 3 through 6 PM PST on December 4. But we’re excited to announce that some of our absolute favorites are set to join us for 24 Hours of Reality: Protect Our Planet, Protect Ourselves – and they’re jumping in the ring to help us make sure you join in too!

Read on to see who’s going the extra mile – and be sure to share their exciting messages of support on Facebook by simply clicking the share button below each video.

Bill Nye

Bill Nye “the Science Guy” and Climate Reality go way back. Like, way, way back.

More than seven long years ago, Nye was kind enough to narrate an informative short film for us on the basics of climate change, and he’s joined Climate Reality Founder and Chairman Al Gore for previous iterations of our signature broadcast. The popular mechanical engineer-turned-science communicator and television star will return once again for this year’s 24 Hours of Reality: Protect Our Planet, Protect Ourselves.

Nye has been particularly outspoken on the climate crisis – and its solutions. He’s even dedicated entire episodes of his hit science-centered Netflix show, Bill Nye Saves the World, to the topic, earning an Emmy nomination along the way for a season-one episode titled “Earth Is a Hot Mess.”

Jaden Smith

Getting young people engaged in the fight against climate change is vital. After all, they’re the ones who will be on the front lines as this crisis evolves. And rapper and actor Jaden Smith knows it.

The 20-year-old socially conscious superstar is also an outspoken climate activist. He has called Vice President Gore his “inspiration,” and makes smart use of his millions (and millions and millions) of social media connections to inform young people about our warming world – as well as the solutions with which we can fight back.

Jonathan Scott

Jonathan Scott long has been one of Climate Reality’s most vocal supporters. Despite being one of the busiest guys we know – what with his multiple popular HGTV shows, books, and branded products – he always makes time to talk about climate solutions. And given his famed background in contracting, as well as his experience fighting anti-solar legislation in his now-home state of Nevada, who better to hear from.

Scott has joined us for 24 Hours of Reality in the past, and even hosted several hours of previous broadcasts. Why? We’ll let him explain:

“I love the fact that we’re showcasing that this is not just a US problem, this is not just a Canadian problem or a Chinese problem or an Indian problem – this is a global problem. And it’s also something that will have a global solution. You know, there’s going to always be infighting between governments, and there’s going to be disputes over approaches to these solutions. But at the end of the day, I would like to think that as human beings we all have one goal, and it would be that we have a safe future for the generations to come. I would like to think that’s a goal we all have in common.”

>> Don’t Miss Climate’s Big Day <<

Nations must triple efforts to reach 2°C target, concludes annual review of global emissions, climate action

It is still possible to keep global warming below 2°C, but the technical feasibility of bridging the 1.5°C gap is dwindling.

Global CO2 emissions increased in 2017, after three years of stabilization.

If the emissions gap is not closed by 2030, it is extremely unlikely that the 2°C temperature goal will remain in reach.

Global emissions are on the rise as national commitments to combat climate change come up short. But surging momentum from the private sector and untapped potential from innovation and green financing offer means of bridging the "emissions gap" between current projections of 2030 emission levels and levels consistent with a 2°C / 1.5°C warming target. Those findings, along with a sweeping review of climate action and the latest measurements of global emissions, were presented by authors of UN Environment's 2018 Emissions Gap Report during a recent launch event.

488 companies from 38 countries adopted emission reduction pathways in line with the Paris Agreement.

The findings presented offer the latest accounting of national mitigation efforts and the ambitions countries have presented in their Nationally Determined Contributions, which form the foundation of the Paris Agreement.

This evidence, outlined just days before the start of the 24th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP24), reveals that global emissions have reached historic levels of 53.5 gigatonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent (GtCO2e), with no peak in sight. Authors assessed that only 57 countries (representing 60 percent of global emissions) are on track for 2030.

That analysis and a review of progress against national commitments under the Paris Agreement makes clear that the current pace of national action is insufficient to meet the Paris targets. Increased emissions and lagging action mean the gap number in this year’s report is larger than ever. The authors conclude nations must raise their ambition by 3x to meet the 2°C target and 5x to meet the 1.5°C target.

“If the IPCC report represented a global fire alarm, this report is the arson investigation,” said UN Environment Deputy Executive Director Joyce Msuya. “The science is clear. For all the ambitious climate action we’ve seen, governments need to move faster and with greater urgency. We’re feeding this fire while the means to extinguish it are within reach.”

A continuation of current trends will likely result in global warming of around 3°C by the end of the century, with continued temperature rises after that, according to the report.

While the authors highlight that there is still a possibility for bridging the emissions gap and keeping global warming below 2°C, the assessment issues a clear warning: The kind of drastic, large-scale action we urgently need has yet to been seen, and time is running out.

To fill this void, the 2018 Emissions Gap Report offers new insight into what meaningful climate action will look like. Through new analysis of global emissions in the context of fiscal policymaking and the current pace of innovation, as well as an exhaustive review of climate action from the private sector and subnational level, authors offered a roadmap for implementing the type of transformative action required to harness the potential in each of these sectors.

Ranging from city, state and regional governments to companies, investors, higher education institutions and civil society organizations, non-state actors are increasingly committing to bold climate action. These institutions will be invaluable contributors in the push to reach global emissions goals. Although estimates on the emission reduction potential vary widely, some mention 19 GtCO2e by 2030. This is enough to close the 2°C gap.

If complemented by carefully designed national fiscal policy, the work of these actors could pack an even greater punch.

“When governments embrace fiscal policy measures to subsidize low-emission alternatives and tax fossil fuels, they can stimulate the right investments in the energy sector and significantly reduce carbon emissions,” said Jian Liu, UN Environment’s Chief Scientist. “Thankfully, the potential of using fiscal policy as an incentive is increasingly recognized, with 51 carbon pricing initiatives now in place or scheduled, covering roughly 15 percent of global emissions. If all fossil fuel subsidies were phased out, global carbon emissions could be reduced by up to 10 percent by 2030. Setting the right carbon price is also essential. At the US $70 per ton of CO2, emission reductions of up to 40 percent are possible in some countries.”

These established strategies become even more effective when policymakers embrace innovative solutions. Authors outlined five key principles that should be considered to accelerate low-carbon innovation: risk acceptance, commercial scalability, holistic economic alignment, mission-oriented approaches, and a long-term horizon to increase financial uptake.

The ninth Emissions Gap Report was prepared by an international team of leading scientists, assessing all available information, including that published in the context of the IPCC Special Report as well as in other recent scientific studies.

Gruppo Jobel unveils SmarTalk project

SmarTalk Project is a branded campaign launched in 2018 by the international cultural company Gruppo Jobel, headquartered in Rome. It promotes a range of creative activities aimed at raising awareness, engagement, and commitment across civil society in line with the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) laid out in the United Nations' Agenda 2030.

We recognize that the current development model is no longer sustainable for the planet and humanity. Through this Agenda, we are committed to building a new worldwide sustainable system, one which will allow us to: end poverty and hunger; ensure dignity end equality; protect our planet’s natural resources; fight climate change; provide prosperous, fulfilling lives in harmony with nature; and cultivate peaceful, fair, and inclusive societies for the good of present and future generations.

To achieve this lofty goal, we must implement the Agenda through a comprehensive global partnership encompassing every aspect of civil society (as the UN suggests in Goal 17). One of the most challenging points will be involving local communities in the SDGs program.

The SmarTalk Project aspires to merge high-quality expert knowledge with the communication skills of artists and performers to produce a distinct cultural force capable of impacting as many everyday people as possible. Its prime objective is the fulfillment of the Agenda 2030 strategy by means of creative and artistic languages.

The project strives to produce several independent events in collaboration with local and international partners—events tailor-made for different cities all around the world—to foster a sustainable cultural network to promote knowledge surrounding the SDGs within a few years.

In 2019, we will be delighted to launch the first three platforms: SmarTalk Rome (Italy, Europe), SmarTalk Bangkok (Thailand, Asia) and SmarTalkMontreal (Canada, North America).

The Marshall Islands and Other Climate-Vulnerable Nations Rally for Concerted Action

Women leaders take center stage in a sweeping virtual conference

For many countries around the world, the benchmarks put in place in the Paris Agreement—intended to keep net global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius and certainly below 2 degrees—have fallen by the wayside in the years since, kicked under the rug amid the continual thrum of politics and bureaucracy. For the Marshall Islands and other low-lying nations, however, sidelining the Paris commitments is simply not an option: achieving them could be the difference between life and death.

Watch LIVE: www.virtualclimatesummit.org

The people and government of the Marshall Islands have become known for their unflinching 1.5 to Stay Alive climate campaign, which stresses that if temperature change surpasses 1.5 degrees, let alone 2, rising sea levels would submerge much of their ancestral and current homeland and render their beautiful nation uninhabitable. Given the Marshalls’ cultural emphasis on home, legacy, and the bounties of nature, this loss would be especially dire.

The Marshall Islands sit at the helm of a group of similarly threatened countries known collectively as the Climate Vulnerable Forum, or CVF, which aims to unite disparate voices from smaller countries and amplify their concerns for the rest of the world to hear. The group is proactive its own right too, intent on leading by example on the world stage through pioneering sustainability campaigns. Today and tomorrow, the CVF is conducting an ambitious web-based conference called the Virtual Climate Summit in a push to raise awareness of the severity of warming trends and brainstorm next steps in the ongoing battle against climate change.

H.E. President Hilda Heine of the Marshall Islands - Connect4Climate Quote

Participants in the discussion will include other imperiled island nations such as Tuvalu, Vanuatu, Timor-Leste, Sri Lanka, and Papua New Guinea as well as mainland countries confronting deadly changes in weather patterns, e.g., Nepal, Vietnam, Sudan, Senegal, and Yemen. Under the leadership of president Hilda Heine, the Marshall Islands have taken special care to include female voices in this dialogue, which will be catalyzed by a volunteer panel of all-female Summit Champions.

This collective of climate change Champions comprises European Climate Foundation CEO Laurence Tubiana, Sustainable Energy for All CEO Rachel Kyte, World Bank Sustainable Development VP Laura Tuck, Global Environment Facility CEO Naoko Ishii, former Irish president Mary Robinson, current Philippine senator Loren Legarda, Oxfam International director Winnie Byanyima, and Greenpeace director Jennifer Morgan. Hailing from all corners of the world, the members of the team will aim to ensure women’s perspective on climate change is at the heart of the conference deliberations—where it belongs.

The threats of global warming weigh heaviest on the minds of women, who make up 70% of the world’s poor—a group disproportionately threatened by unchecked climate change. Yet women in many countries also have a unique power to make a positive impact, being as they are invaluable contributors to the cultivation and preparation of food and frequent providers of shelter, warmth, water, and clothes within their families.

The Summit hopes to rekindle a sense of urgency around global warming and to empower the world’s women to defy recent torpor on the world stage and harness their unsuppressed voices to make a real difference.

Nature in the Urban Century: Cities Can Offer Solutions for Biodiversity Loss – If We Act Now

This century will be remembered as the urban century. Our generation will witness the most significant urban growth in human history. By 2050, there will be 2.4 billion more people in cities, the result of a rate of urban growth equivalent to building a city the population of New York City every six weeks. Humanity will have urbanized an area of 1.2 million square kilometers, larger than the nation of Colombia.

Cities have been called humanity’s greatest invention, and urban living can bring many benefits. Relative to more rural areas, cities boast increased economic productivity and innovation, greater opportunities for education and individual enhancement, and more efficient use of resources. But the rapid growth of cities presents a challenge to the global environment, both directly, through the expansion of their footprint, and indirectly, through urban energy and resource use. How can we make space for the natural world in an urban world?

Bukhansan National Park and Seoul, South Korea

Bukhansan National Park rises up behind the cityscape of Seoul, South Korea. Photo Credits: iStock

Dozens of the world’s scientists have united to answer that question in a new effort we call the Nature in the Urban Century Assessment, which finds that urbanization trends could result in significant biodiversity loss if global leaders fail to take timely action to invest in more sustainable cities.

The goal of the Nature in the Urban Century Assessment is to present winning strategies for conserving nature in the face of urban growth around the world, for the benefit of both biodiversity and human well-being. Our report projects that urban growth could threaten 290,000 square kilometers of natural habitat between 2000 and 2030. Habitat loss will be most extensive in temperate and tropical forests, including areas famous for their rich biodiversity. Targeted action in these places facing outsized impact—which include parts of the United States, Brazil, Nigeria and China—could make a real difference in preventing biodiversity loss.

A large proportion of some other biomes, including Mediterranean-type habitats and mangroves, will also be affected. We show that biodiversity loss will be spatially concentrated, with urban growth in a few specific places having an outsized impact on biodiversity globally. Conservation action on just 49,000 square kilometers could help protect Key Biodiversity Areas (KBAs) at risk from urban growth.

Urban growth could also affect parks and other protected natural areas. By 2030, we project that 40 percent of strictly protected areas (where resource harvesting is forbidden) and one in two loosely protected areas will be within 50 km of an urban area. This increased proximity will raise the likelihood of adverse impacts and will augment management costs to boot.

Furthermore, accelerating urban growth—if poorly managed—could undermine the effectiveness of the world’s response to climate change. How cities grow will affect the amount of energy they expend on transportation and heating—statistics with big implications for greenhouse gas emissions. And habitat loss to urban growth could result in the large-scale release of latent carbon currently stored in biomass. Urban growth, if allowed to proceed unchecked, would destroy natural habitat containing 4.35 billion metric tons of carbon dioxide, the equivalent of the cumulative CO2 emissions from 931 million cars on the road in a given year.

Maasai Giraffes in Nairobi National Park, on the outskirts of Nairobi, Kenya. Photo Credits:Boniface Muthoni/TNC Photo Contest 2017

Cities will also be impacted by climate change, from hotter summer temperatures to more extreme rain events to sea level rise. In this report, we indicate where coastal natural habitats play a significant role in reducing coastal hazards during storms. In critical coastal zones, we find that, by 2030, urban areas could more than double in size.

Many of the dire scenarios forecast under our business-as-usual model need not come to pass. At the city level, the solution comes down to better planning and management of urban growth. We advocate in the report for the incorporation of information on biodiversity and the benefits of nature into urban planning decisions, to create a comprehensive vision of how nature can co-exist with and support cities—a greenprint for urban growth. Planning can protect biodiversity in natural habitats and maintain the health of our protected areas. Moreover, incorporating natural features, such as urban parks and street trees, into our cities will maximize the benefits that nature provides to people, from increased shade on a hot day to places to recreate and better our physical and mental health.

Our report specifically focused on actions that national and international decision-makers should take to protect nature. Local governments need to be better integrated in national decision-making to ensure that the benefits of regionally unique natural environments are adequately represented in the urban planning process. International institutions have a role to play as well: they are critical in helping to create the policies and provide the financial resources needed to implement urban greenprints. Finally, the countries of the world need to begin discussing, within the Convention on Biological Diversity, how we can collectively work to make the urban century a positive one for the natural world.

The Nature in the Urban Century report was produced though the partnership of The Nature Conservancy, FutureEarth, The Stockholm Resilience Centre of Stockholm University, the Natural Capital Project, iDiv, The Nature of Cities, Urban Biodiversity Hub and ICLEI, including its Cities Biodiversity Center and the CitiesWithNature initiative.

Banner photo: A suburb of Melbourne at sunrise. Credits to iStock

Our Future Water Berlin: We need to change our view of water

Our Future Water Berlin was held, by Robert C. Brears, on 7 November 2018 at the InterContinental Hotel Berlin. The event was part of the Berlin Science Week. Leading speakers discussed a selection of topics on achieving water security, examples include:

Removing microplastics from wastewater

Dr. Katrin Schuhen, Project Leader R&D at Wasser 3.0, spoke on ‘New materials for the removal of (in)soluble organic-chemical stressors from various waters and how to get them working in a standard wastewater treatment plant process.’ Due to the lack of cleaning performance of the current sewage treatment plants, more and more unwanted trace substances, including microplastics, enter the surface water. More than 250 organisms are known to confuse microplastics with food bioaccumulation. The presentation focused on Wasser 3.0’s solutions for improving water quality, including innovative materials that completely remove residues from wastewater and drinking water such as hybrid silica gels.

Connect4Climate Message

[video:https://vimeo.com/299256998]

Building climate resilient cities

Nanco Dolman, Leading Professional in Urban Flood and Water Resilience at Royal Haskoning DHV spoke on the ‘CATCH project: Applying the Water Sensitive City framework for climate adaptation in the North Sea Region.’ CATCH stands for ‘Water Sensitive Cities: the answer to challenges of extreme weather events.’ Nanco’s presentation focused on the project’s objective of demonstrating and accelerating the redesign of urban water management of midsize cities in the North Sea Region to become climate resilient cities that are sustainable, liveable and productive on the long-term.

[video:https://vimeo.com/299803895]

Underground pipes of the future

Dipl.- Ing. Christoph Bennerscheidt, Managing Director of European Association for Ductile Iron Pipe Systems, spoke on ‘Implementation of the Sponge-City-Principle using a Soil-Pipe-System.’ When building roads and the structures of underground infrastructures, pore spaces are frequently used by the root system of trees, resulting in unintentional interactions with sewers and utility pipelines. With higher requirements for water quality and climate change (e.g., urban heat island effect), increased attention needs to be paid to the storage capacity of the soil so that rainwater can be managed where it falls. The soil-pipe system, consisting of crushed, large-grain bedding materials with a large pore space and robust ductile cast iron pipe systems, can be developed at scale to realize the sponge city principle.

Photo Credits: Pixabay

Perspectives in industrial water management

Dr. Thomas Track, Head of Water Technologies at DECHEMA, spoke on ‘Perspectives in industrial water management.’ Water is vital for the industry sector, both at the national and at the international level. The water technology needs of the industry sector do not only differ fundamentally from those of the municipal sector, but they also vary strongly between industries and locations so that standardized solutions are not feasible. There are many challenges to industrial process water including physical risks, regulatory risks, and strategic risks. As such, there is a need for integrated industrial water management.

Connecting global water and sanitation providers

Dr. Bastian Piltz, Head of Business Development Germany, Isle Utilities, spoke on ‘International Collaboration for the Future of Water - a consultancy approach.’ Collaboration in water- and sanitation industries between developing and developed nations can play a central role in ensuring equitable access to these vital services. However, copy-and-paste transfer of existing solutions is often not applicable since societal and economic conditions with regards to infrastructure vary significantly across the world. Traditional development aid — while carried out with the best of intentions — often fails to deliver on sustainable results. A crucial factor — the involvement and empowerment of local stakeholders — tends to be neglected. This presentation will highlight some of the activities carried out by a commercial consultancy firm, active in the global water and wastewater sector, that are designed to deliver on this matter.

Comparisons of water prices across Europe

Friederike Lauruschkus, Managing Partner civity Management Consultants GmbH & CO. KG spoke on the ‘Comparison of European Water Prices.’ Water supply systems are very different across the EU member states, observing differences in the water industry’s structure, infrastructures, and investments, prices, grants, taxes, and fees as well as standards of service and quality. Nonetheless, there are standards and requirements set on a European level concerning the access to high quality, safe and sufficient drinking water. So the water sector is the only economic sector in Europe for which EU directives lay down rules on the quality of services and pricing with the objective of the recovery of costs. Against this background, comparisons of water prices must take more into account than mere cubic meter prices. The study delivers a systematic approach by not only describing but also quantifying and integrating grants and quality of services into the price comparison. The study compares the water supply systems in Germany, England/Wales, France, the Netherlands, Austria and Poland covering slightly over half of the population of the EU-28. In the course of the study, the comparison leads to differentiated conclusions regarding the extent to which prices are cost-covering and what level of service and quality is achieved with them.

Photo Credits: Pixabay

Financing a water-secure future

Martina Macpherson, Partner, SI Partners Ltd. & President, NFSM & Visiting Fellow, Henley Business School, provided a ‘101’ on sustainable finance. This topic is critical given that water is the most massive climate-aligned theme of sustainable finance and that sustainable investing and green finance has moved from niche to mainstream: Sustainable Investing assets under management has already reached US$ 22.9 trillion and labeled green bonds issuances totaled US$ 101 billion in Dec 2017.

Digitalization to encourage resource savings

Dr. Anabel Ternès, CEO and founder of GetYourWings gGmbH, which is committed to sustainable digital competence, member of the board of NFTE Germany, global ambassador of SameSky, Executive Director of International Institute for Sustainability Management (IISM) and professor in E-Business and International Communications Management at the SRH International Management University Berlin, spoke on ‘How digital competence can support resource-saving behavior’. The careful use of our resources is a topic that concerns everyone. Last but not least, climate change shows how crucial it is to treat this topic from the very beginning. Water is a primary resource as well as the habitat of many animal and plant species. The digital transformation often seems contrary to environmental protection. But with sustainable digital competence, digital tools can help protect our resources. GetYourWings conveys digital competence in education, training and consulting with own, unique methods.

Photo Credits: Pixabay

Developing sustainable, ethical brands

Andrea Henao, the Managing Partner at 360 Agency Berlin, spoke on developing sustainable, ethical brands in a world facing water scarcity. Andrea’s presentation focused on (1) Assessment of our water situation including groundwater scarcity, the micro-plastic in ocean, rivers, etc.; (2) Companies which abused water in the past; (3) Our duty to boycott particular brands; (4) The importance of aligning image with production to avoid greenwashing; and (5) It is our duty now with all the information we have in hand to organize actions as changes start now.

The rise of blue-green cities

Robert C. Brears, the founder of Our Future Water, spoke on ‘Blue and Green Cities: The role of blue-green infrastructure in managing urban water resources.’ Faced with climate change and environmental degradation many cities are turning to Blue-Green Infrastructure (BGI) solutions to enhance climate resilience as well as restore the health of ecosystems. A key aspect of BGI is its multifunctionality, specifically, its ability to perform several functions and provide several benefits within the same spatial area. To enhance resilience to climate change and restore natural habitats, many leading cities around the world are implementing innovative fiscal and non-fiscal policies to encourage the uptake of BGI on the public and private property.

Banner and thumbnail photo credits to Pixabay

2018 winners named in Global Youth Video Competition

Two young activists from India and Mexico, with their video reports on actions to fight climate change, have been selected as the winners of the 2018 Global Youth Video Competition on Climate Change.

The winners, chosen through an online public vote, are Vikas Yadav, 20 years old, from India for the category "Green and climate-friendly jobs” and Andrea Sofia Rosales Vega, 20, from Mexico for the category “Responsible production and consumption.”

They will travel to the UN Climate Change Conference (COP 24) in Katowice, Poland, in December and will work with the UN Climate Change’s Global Climate Action Team covering highlights of the meeting, reporting for a global youth audience.

The video by Sofia Vega shows how we can clean up urban areas while also making a difference in people’s lives. Her video describes the “Eco-Urban” project, which collects and re-uses waste, including plastic and old clothes, helping to clean up the streets. Selling products made from the recycled material raises funds, some of which are reinvested in collection centers, and 60 percent of the income used to fight childhood cancer. As she says at the close of the video, the participants are “ordinary people, making our world extraordinary.”

In his 3-minute entry, Vikas Yadav visits rural areas of India, where he reports that more than 70 percent of the population is engaged in agriculture. As food production is particularly sensitive to climate change, the farmers explain how innovative agriculture practices can play an important role in climate change mitigation and adaption. Vikas encourages people to “Go green” in moving towards more natural growing and management techniques.

“These two young people and their videos are encouraging examples of the global climate action needed to address climate change,” said UN Climate Change Executive Secretary Patricia Espinosa. “I congratulate Sofia and Vikas, and I applaud all the entrants showcasing international youth’s essential response to climate change.”

Entries were received from over 100 countries, from Azerbaijan to Yemen, with young people between the ages of 18 and 30 submitting over 300 videos.

All of the shortlisted entries can be viewed here

The competition was launched by UN Climate Change as part of its work on Action for Climate Empowerment, in partnership with tve (Television for the environment), the Global Environment Facility’s Small Grants Programme, which is implemented by the United Nations Development Programme, and Connect4Climate, and supported by Fondation BNP Paribas and the German Federal Environmental Foundation (Deutsche Bundesstiftung Umwelt DBU).

16th Seoul Eco Film Festival: Call for entries

Seoul Eco Film Festival (SEFF) seeks the co-existence between human and the environment through cinema. Since 2004, as the sole environmental film festival in Korea and the biggest one in Asia, SEFF is dedicated to introduce and promote environmentally significant films to a wide range of audience.

SEFF is open to fiction/non-fiction films and animation of all genres dealing with environmental issues.

The deadline to submit films is January 18, 2019.

Requirements

Films completed after Januray1, 2017 and never been submitted to SEFF before

Both short and feature-length films can be submitted.

Call for Entries

To reduce carbon emissions, SEFF prefers online registration. There are no entry fees.

#1. SEFF Online Submission
#2. SEFF Official E-mail - please download the entry form here
#3. FilmFreeway

Category & Awards

International Competition

       Best Film: 10,000,000 KRW
       Special Jury Award: 5,000.000 KRW
       Audience's Choice: 1,000,000 KRW

Korean Competition

       Grand Prize: 5,000,000 KRW
       Excellence Prize: 3,000,000 KRW
       Special Audience Award: 2,000,000 KRW

Unless otherwise indicated on the entry form, submitted films will be included in the non-competitive sections after pre-selection for the competition.

Banner and thumbnail photo credits: Pixabay.com

Low-carbon cities: exploring new crediting approaches to deliver carbon and climate finance

With accelerated urbanization and growing population density, cities have become centers of global economic activity. Also, the urban sector accounts for a considerable share of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions. Reducing cities’ carbon footprint will become an important factor in meeting the climate change goals of the Paris Agreement. In developing countries, rapidly urbanizing areas hold the largest climate change mitigation opportunities in sectors such as urban development, transport, energy, and buildings.