Description

At the closing of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) 24th Convention of the Parties (COP 24), held on 2 to 15 December 2018, member states to the Paris Agreement adopted the Paris Rulebook. The Rulebook, delivered by the Ad-hoc Working Group on the Paris Agreement (APA) after three years of negotiations, provides guidance to state parties on the operational aspects of the Paris Agreement.

The guidance includes details on the formulation of nationally determined contributions (NDCs), emission inventory accounting rules, an Enhanced Transparency Framework, establishment of a Katowice Committee of Experts on the Impacts of Implementation of Response Measures, and clarity on an expert-based and facilitative committee to facilitate implementation of and promote compliance with the provisions of the Paris Agreement. However, the Rulebook still remains incomplete. The most notable gaps include common timeframes for NDCs, a new target for climate finance, and Article 6 market and non-market approaches for international cooperation.

This seminar will cover the key outcomes of the UNFCCC COP 25 conference in Madrid, held on 2 to 15 December 2019, and described by conference chairs and observers alike as “extra time” for Rulebook completion. The seminar will also outline the remaining work to be undertaken to complete the Rulebook. Speakers will, additionally, share their own analysis of the outcomes of COP 25 and provide a forecast for COP 26 Glasgow.

Biographies

Eric Bea is a researcher with the Asia-Pacific Centre for Environmental Law at NUS Law, and a recent graduate of the Faculty of Law at the National University of Singapore (NUS) (LLB, Class of 2019).

His work includes both research on the making of international climate change law, with a specific focus on Article 6 of the Paris Agreement, and how it can translate to other environmental issues and natural resources; as well as capacity-building for youth and young professionals, with other partners in Singapore’s environment scene.

While a student, Eric was a Vice-President, and later, Advisor to the President, in the Environmental Law Students Association (ELSA), a NUS Law interest group which seeks to encourage students to get involved in environmental law and policy. He was also part of the student delegation who attended the COP24 conference in Katowice, Poland as observers.

Melissa Low is a Research Fellow with the Energy Studies Institute, National University of Singapore. Her current research areas are on the implications of the Paris Agreement and countries’ progress in meeting their climate pledges. Melissa has participated in the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) Conference of Parties (COP) talks since December 2009 and is the Designated Contact Point for NUS’s accreditation to the UNFCCC. In 2018, she was appointed to the nine-member Steering Committee of the Research and Independent Non-Governmental Organisation (RINGO) Constituency under the UNFCCC.

Melissa holds a Master of Laws (LLM) in Climate Change Law and Policy (with distinction) from the University of Strathclyde and a Master of Science in Environmental Management from the National University of Singapore. For her NUS Master thesis on past and contemporary proposals on equity and differentiation in shaping the 2015 climate agreement, Melissa was awarded the Shell Best Dissertation Award 2013. She received her Bachelor of Social Sciences in Geography degree (with Honors) and a minor in Urban Studies from the National University of Singapore in 2010. In January 2020, she will begin her PhD Candidature (part-time) at the Department of Geography, NUS.