18 March 2015: The Climate Change Expert Group (CCXG) Global Forum, coordinated by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), brought together technical negotiators and experts from OECD and non-OECD countries to discuss issues under negotiation in the UNFCCC. Topics covered by the 2015 Forum included policy ambition, nationally determined contributions (NDCs), adaptation, actions of non-state actors, technology and capacity building, and long-term signals for mitigation.

The CCXG, which convened from 17-18 March 2015 in Paris, France, aimed to facilitate informal sharing of views through focused, thematic discussions among the Forum participants. A summary was prepared from each thematic session, which identified areas of convergence and non-convergence. Speakers included representatives from: Algeria, China, Costa Rica, Indonesia, Maldives, Mali, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Poland, Portugal, the Republic of Korea, Saint Lucia, Senegal, South Africa, and Switzerland.

On NDCs, the forum drew conclusions on a “strategic review” of mitigation contributions and the use of transferred mitigation in NDCs. On the strategic review, the group converged on: its important role as part of “political signals” sent by the Paris Climate Change Conference; that it should take place within the context of a dynamic cycle of contributions; and that enhancing ambition is its ultimate aim. Participants diverged on, inter alia, the scope, timing, basis and process of the review. On the use of transferred mitigation, or markets, the group concluded that markets play an important role, including in engaging the private sector in mitigation action, and agreed on the need for a clear signal for markets to be functioning by 2020.

The Forum also drew conclusions on: pre-2020 mitigation actions and long-term signals for mitigation action; adaptation in the 2015 agreement, including implications of proposals to date; and enhancing climate finance, technology and capacity building, including implications of proposals to date. The conclusions are available via the Forum webpage.

CCXG, founded in 1993, is a forum for promoting dialogue among developed and developing countries on technical issues in the international negotiations on climate change. The group holds biannual meetings, which are currently focused on: the design and elements of a 2015 agreement; climate finance; and a post-2020 accounting framework. The CCXG secretariat is provided by the OECD and the International Energy Agency (IEA). [OECD CCXG Global Forum Webpage] [OECD CCXG Webpage]