A virtual ministerial meeting convened to highlight countries’ climate actions and environmental protection measures taken as part of COVID-19 recovery. The meeting launched an online platform to showcase such actions to build the global momentum towards the Glasgow Climate Change Conference in 2021.
The ministerial, held virtually on 3 September 2020 and hosted by Japan’s Minister of the Environment, Koizumi Shinjiro, brought together ministers and representatives from more than 65 countries as well as non-state stakeholders, including youth, civil society, the private sector, and local governments.
The meeting highlighted the role of climate, financial, and environmental protection policies in fostering transitions towards decarbonization, circular economy, and decentralization, which are “the cornerstone of our recovery from COVID-19.” Ministers exchanged information on their countries’ actions related to climate change and environmental protection as part of their recovery from COVID-19 in several key sectors and areas, including energy, transportation, urban planning, and adaptation. Non-state representatives offered perspectives on their roles in facilitating the socioeconomic transitions.
Speaking at the ministerial, UN Secretary-General António Guterres recalled six climate-positive actions to recover better: invest in green jobs; do not bail out polluting industries; end fossil-fuel subsidies; take climate risks into account in all financial and policy decisions; work together; and leave no one behind. The Secretary-General originally proposed the six climate-positive actions for building back from COVID-19 on Earth Day on 22 April 2020.
Launched during the meeting, the Online Platform for Sustainable and Resilient Recovery from COVID-19, ‘Platform for Redesign 2020,’ showcases policies and actions taken by national governments to contribute to a sustainable and resilient recovery from COVID-19 and “build back better” to achieve transformative change by redesigning economies and making societies more sustainable, resilient, and inclusive. Led by Japan’s Ministry of the Environment, supported by the UNFCCC, and managed by the Institute for Global Environmental Strategies (IGES), the platform builds on the 11th Petersberg Climate Dialogue and the UNFCCC’s June Momentum for Climate Change, and features messages from state leaders, ministers, and non-state stakeholders. [Japan’s Ministry of the Environment Press Release] [Platform for Redesign 2020]