The tenth Meeting at the leaders' representative level of the Major Economies Forum on Energy and Climate expressed full support for concluding a package of decisions at the Cancun Climate Change Conference in late 2010, including on adaptation, mitigation, MRV/ICA, finance and technology.
18 November 2010: The tenth Meeting at the leaders’ representative level of the Major Economies Forum on Energy and Climate, held in Crystal City, US, from 17-18 November 2010, expressed full support for agreeing on a package of decisions at the Cancun Climate Change Conference in late 2010.
Participants indicated that a “Cancun package” could include decisions on: adaptation; mitigation; monitoring, reporting and verification (MRV)/International Consultation and Analysis (ICA); finance; and technology. In addition, many participants recommended inclusion of agreement on future Kyoto commitments. Participants noted that the technology mechanism to be established under the international climate change regime should consist of a technology executive committee and a clean technology center and network. They debated which aspects of the two bodies might be left for further discussion after Cancun, with a view to their establishment at the Durban Climate Change Conference in 2011.
On finance, participants discussed fast-start finance, a new green fund and sources of long-term funding, debating whether to note in the Cancun outcome the report of the Advisory Group on Climate Finance and donors’ commitment based on the Copenhagen Accord. On adaptation, participants agreed that existing institutions should be strengthened, noting the inherent linkages between adaptation and development. They disagreed on whether a new adaptation institution is needed, in part due to diverging views on what functions it would serve, including with respect to finance.
On MRV and ICA, discussion revolved around a non-paper put forward by Indian Minister Ramesh, outlining general principles as well as scope and application of ICA, its purpose, frequency and its operations. Participants discussed a possible follow-on process, through a dedicated ad hoc committee, the LCA, or the SBI, aimed at agreeing on operational guidance in Durban. Several countries emphasized that a Cancun outcome would also need to include enhanced MRV for developed countries.
On mitigation, participants discussed how to “anchor” submissions from the Copenhagen Accord in the Cancun outcome, as well as any additional submissions by other parties and a subsequent process to consider them. The importance and role of market mechanisms were also discussed. [US State Department Press Release]