26 June 2012: The June issue of the World Bank Institute Climate Change Practice e-Bulletin highlights the launch of the Rio de Janeiro Low Carbon City Development Program, which was announced on the sidelines of the UN Conference on Sustainable Development (UNCSD, or Rio+20) .

This city-level program for climate change mitigation was pioneered by the City of Rio de Janeiro, with support from the Carbon Finance-Assist Program at the World Bank Institute Climate Change Practice (WBICC) and the Latin America Department of the World Bank.

The newsletter also reports on the Carbon Expo in Cologne, Germany, which was co-organized by the World Bank (through WBICC/CF-Assist), the International Emissions Trading Association (IETA) and Koelnmesse, noting that it was a “highly successful event amidst carbon market uncertainties.” In addition, the World Bank hosted a pre-Expo consultation workshop called the World Bank Carbon Market Expert Group, which discussed, inter alia: Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) reform; new market mechanisms; and REDD. It further describes the Carbon and Climate Finance Knowledge Corner, co-organized by the World Bank in partnership with the Inter-American Development Bank (IADB), the Fundación Torcuato Di Tella, the Greenhouse Gas Management Institute (GHGMI), Climate Finance Options/UN Development Programme (UNDP) and the UN Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR). The event drew attention to the quiz it held at the Expo, which granted scholarships by WBICC to take an e-course from the learning portfolio of GHGMI to the five winners, representing Ethiopia, Nepal, Nigeria, Senegal and Turkey.

Another article focuses on the development of a dedicated energy portal to promote open knowledge to achieve the goals of sustainable energy, which will provide access to knowledge on energy efficiency, renewable energy and electrification, to relevant stakeholders. [WBICC Newsletter, June 2012]