21 August 2014: The ninth meeting of the Technology Executive Committee (TEC 9) of the UNFCCC discussed, among other things, matters related to: the Climate Technology Centre and Network (CTCN); technology needs assessments (TNAs), including good practices of results and possible linkages between TNAs and other processes; enabling environments and barriers, including preparation of a national systems of innovation workshop; and climate technology financing, including a draft value proposition paper and a thematic dialogue on climate technology financing.

The TEC also discussed: the evaluation of the Poznan Strategic Programme on Technology Transfer; adaptation technologies, including draft TEC briefs and further collaboration with the Adaptation Committee; mitigation technologies; and the outcomes of relevant meetings and events under and outside the Convention, including the June 2014 Bonn Climate Change Conference, the meeting of the Executive Committee of the Warsaw International Mechanism for Loss and Damage, and Working Group III’s contribution to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), which deals with mitigation.

Additionally, the Committee focused on: the joint annual report of the TEC and the CTCN; the TEC’s outreach and communication strategy; and draft guidelines on modalities for the TEC task forces, which, inter alia, will undertake intersessional work on activities of the ‘Rolling workplan of the TEC for 2014‐2015.’

The thematic dialogue on climate technology financing, which was convened by the TEC on 19 August, explored how to improve linkages between the Technology Mechanism and the Convention’s financial mechanism. More specifically, the dialogue brought together international experts on climate technology financing to: discuss experiences and lessons learned from existing clean technology funds; highlight issues related to climate technology financing; identify challenges and opportunities, good practices and lessons learned from financing climate technologies; explore opportunities for enhancing the implementation of developing TNAs; and consider how linkages between the financial and technology communities can be strengthened to enhance implementation of climate technology projects in developing countries. The TEC is currently developing recommendations on these linkages for governments to consider at the UN Climate Change Conference in Lima, Peru, in December 2014.

In a keynote address, Amel-Lee Amin of Third Generation Environmentalism, emphasized the need to enhance coherence between international climate finance and technology mechanisms. A panel discussion included representatives from the Green Climate Fund (GCF) Secretariat, the Climate Investment Funds (CIF), the Global Environment Facility (GEF), the CTCN advisory board, and the Environment and Development Action in the Third World, Senegal. Panelists noted that projects should ensure: sustainability; capacity to deliver impact; scalability; replicability; and stakeholder involvement. They also noted that the Technology Mechanism has the potential to be an incubator mechanism, which supports the development of bankable projects and acts as interface between project developers and financial institutions. They stressed that the TEC has the potential to: provide guidance to the financial mechanism’s operating entities; provide input into the financial mechanism’s periodic review; and support the work undertaken by the Standing Committee on Finance (SCF) on biennial financial flows. Panelists stated that CTCN requests could be shared with financial institutions for the financing of technology project proposals.

TEC 9 convened in Bonn, Germany, from 18-21 August 2014. The TEC, which meets at least twice a year, is the policy arm of the UNFCCC Technology Mechanism, and provides guidance on issues related to the development and transfer of climate technologies. The CTCN, which promotes the transfer of environmentally sound technologies for mitigation and adaptation in developing countries, is the operational arm of the Technology Mechanism and is hosted by the UN Environment Programme (UNEP). [TEC 9 Website and Documents] [Thematic Dialogue on Climate Technology Financing]