UNFCCC Structure

United Nations General Assembly (UNGA)

Established in 1945 under the Charter of the United Nations, the General Assembly occupies a central position as the chief deliberative, policymaking and representative organ of the United Nations. Comprising all 192 Members of the United Nations, it provides a unique forum for multilateral discussion of the full spectrum of international issues covered by the Charter.

It also plays a significant role in the process of standard-setting and the codification of international law. The Assembly meets in regular session intensively from September to December each year, and thereafter as required.

(Above information from UN.org.)

Highlights from the UN Special Summit on Climate Change, UN Headquarters (September 22nd)

United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC)

The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change was finalized in Rio de Janeiro at the Earth Summit in 1992, as an international treaty which established the framework for how the international community will work together to address climate protection.   Article 2 of the UNFCCC Treaty (the Convention) states:

The ultimate objective of this Convention and any related legal instruments that the Conference of the Parties may adopt is to achieve, in accordance with the relevant provisions of the Convention, stabilization of greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere at a level that would prevent dangerous anthropogenic interference with the climate system. Such a level should be achieved within a time frame sufficient to allow ecosystems to adapt naturally to climate change, to ensure that food production is not threatened and to enable economic development to proceed in a sustainable manner.

The Convention has been ratified by 194 countries.

UNFCCC Secretariat:  (The Secretariat)
As outlined under Article 8 of the Convention, the Secretariat is an impartial UN institution charged with arranging the meetings and negotiations held under the  Convention, Kyoto Protocol, compiling greenhouse gas inventory data, coordinating in-depth reviews of Annex I Party national communications, and other tasks outlined by the Convention, Kyoto Protocol, by assigned to it within its defined mandate.   The Secretariat is based in Bonn, Germany, and is headed by the Executive Secretary.

Conference of the Parties (COP)
The Conference of the Parties (COP) is the association of all countries who have ratified the Convention, and as outlined under Article 7 of the Convention, is the “supreme body” of the Convention, with its highest decision-making authority. ?The COP meets every year, unless the Parties decide otherwise. The COP meets in Bonn, the seat of the secretariat, unless a Party offers to host the session. The COP Presidency rotates among the five recognized UN regions(Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean, Central and Eastern Europe and Western Europe and Others), with the custom for the venue of the COP to rotate among these regions.

The Convention established two permanent subsidiary bodies to give advise to the COP: the Subsidiary Body for Scientific and Technological Advice (SBSTA) and the Subsidiary Body for Implementation (SBI).

Executive Secretary Yvo de Boer, who was appointed by UN Secretary General Kofi Annan in 2006, and is from the Netherlands.  The Executive Secretary  plays a key role in managing the negotiating process throughout the year, supported by the Secretariat staff. During the COP the Executive Secretary works to provide support to the COP President.

COP President
The COP President plays a critical role in shepherding discussions among the 1000s of negotiators in attendance, working with the working group chairs to steer the process to a successful outcome.  The president’s main duties are to provide political leadership, to consult on issues and to chair meetings of the Bureau and the COP Plenary.  The president is officially elected at the beginning of each COP, and when the COP held outside of Bonn, the custom is to elect the President from the host country.  If held in Bonn, than the President would be nominated by the region next in line of rotation.  The President works in consultation with the rest of the COP Bureau, and with the support of the Secretariat.

The incoming President for COP 15 is Connie Hedegaard, Danish Minister for Climate and Energy.

Subsidiary Body for Scientific and Technological Advice (SBSTA)
SBSTA’s role is to provide advice to the COP on scientific, technological and methodological issues. Two key areas of work in this regard are promoting the development and transfer of environmentally-friendly technologies, and conducting technical work to improve the guidelines for preparing national communications and emission inventories. The SBSTA also carries out methodological work in specific areas, such as the LULUCF sector, HFCs and PFCs, and adaptation and vulnerability.

Subsidiary Body on Implementation (SBI)
SBI role is to advise the COP on issues that arise related to implementation of the Convention. Two key tasks for SBI include the examination of national communications and emission inventories submitted by Parties, as well as to reviews the financial assistance given to non-Annex I Parties to help them implement their Convention commitments.

COP Bureau
The COP Bureau is responsible for advising the President and taking decisions with regard to the overall management of the intergovernmental process. The Bureau has overall responsibility for questions of process. Bureau members often consult with their regional groups on issues. The Bureau is not a forum for political negotiations

The Kyoto Protocol

The Kyoto Protocol is linked to the UNFCCC, and establishes binding targets for 37 industrialized countries and the European community for reducing GHGs .  When adopted, these targets amounted to an average of five per cent against 1990 levels over the five-year period 2008-2012 for industrialized countries.   The Kyoto Protocol was adopted in Kyoto, Japan, on 11 December 1997 and entered into force on 16 February 2005. 184 Parties of the Convention have ratified its Protocol to date.

The Kyoto Protocol established three market based mechanisms to help parties achieve their targets, creating global carbon trading markets.

  • Emissions Trading
  • The Clean Development Mechanism
  • Joint Implementation

Conference of the Parties Serving as the Meeting of the Parties to the Kyoto Protocol (CMP) Parties to the Kyoto Protocol meet in conjunction with the COP to the UNFCCC to increase coordination and decrease cost, but are convened separately as the CMP.  Parties to the UNFCCC that are not a party  to  the Kyoto Protocol (such as the United States) may participate as observers to the CMP.   The CMP will meet in its 5th Session at COP15 in Copenhagen.   Agenda to CMP5 in Copenhagen can be found here.

Country Groupings Established Formally under UFCCC/Kyoto Protocol

Annex I Parties include the industrialized countries that were members of the OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development) in 1992, plus countries with economies in transition (the EIT Parties), including the Russian Federation, the Baltic States, and several Central and Eastern European States.

Annex II Parties consist of the OECD members of Annex I, but not the EIT Parties. They are required to provide financial resources to enable developing countries to undertake emissions reduction activities under the Convention and to help them adapt to adverse effects of climate change. In addition, they have to “take all practicable steps” to promote the development and transfer of environmentally friendly technologies to EIT Parties and developing countries. Funding provided by Annex II Parties is channeled mostly through the Convention’s financial mechanism.

Non-Annex I Parties are mostly developing countries. Certain groups of developing countries are recognized by the Convention as being especially vulnerable to the adverse impacts of climate change, including countries with low-lying coastal areas and those prone to desertification and drought. Others (such as countries that rely heavily on income from fossil fuel production and commerce) feel more vulnerable to the potential economic impacts of climate change response measures. The Convention emphasizes activities that promise to answer the special needs and concerns of these vulnerable countries, such as investment, insurance and technology transfer.

Annex B: Countries who have quantified emission reduction commitment under the Kyoto Protocol.