COP 22 came to Morocco in Africa and passed. Reflections were made on how the world as a whole had come so far in pursuit of developments and changes towards a sustainable development enabling climate and our united world journey and resolve to stop if possible the increase in global temperatures by two degrees Celsius.   Resolutions going forward in that regard were also made and 2017 is yet another year that signatory countries around the world will continue their commitment to combating climate change.  I hear from friends in my professional circles and networks that in November, Marrakech in Morocco was the place to be for those who care about climate change. Now that the Marrakech chapter has ended, all eyes are on COP 23, all reads to Bonn and all eyes are on Bonn in Germany.

The 23rd session of the Conference of the Parties (COP 23) to the UN Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) will be organized by one great island, Fiji and hosted at the headquarters of the UNFCCC secretariat in Bonn, Germany. Quite interesting is how many people including the media looks to cover huge conferences like this. Of course they represent a tremendous opportunity to network and witness the perhaps the greatest gathering of world leaders in one place putting their heads together towards a single cause, climate change. Antagonists to the issue of climate change like to call the event a social gathering with the likes of Ezra Lavant equating it to a merrymaking of sorts with a design meant for inclusion and exclusion. Whilst it may be true in the view of these antagonists, it is not equally true to the realities of the world although the fact that conventions since time past have many optional clauses and less of obligatory clauses that every nation should adhere to. As the 23^rd session occurs, I hope to witness a difference in the charter on climate change and their being adhered to throughout 2018.

Whilst everyone looks forward to COP 23, below are some important events and conferences I look forward to following as closely as possible. Mainly for the reason that they are important to our quest to combat climate change and will shape the sustainability of the world as we know it.

The below information was copied from the site http://www.iisd.ca/upcoming/ with confirmations made by reference to other site including http://www.conferenceseries.com/ and http://unfccc.int/2860.php

June 2017

Expo 2017: Future Energy

The international Expo 2017 will take place in Astana, Kazakhstan, and will aim to promote the most appropriate and viable sustainability-driven action plans to address the possibilities of future energy. The Expo, organized under the theme 'Future Energy' and the sub-theme 'Solutions for Tackling Humankind's Greatest Challenge,' will address future energy from several perspectives, including: exploration of strategies, programmes and technologies for sustainable energy development promotion of energy security and efficiency and the encouragement of renewable energy use. Venues for the World's Fairs and their themes are determined by taking into account political, economic, geographical and cultural contexts. The history of World's Fairs extends back to ?the Great Exhibition of the Works of Industry of all Nations,? which took place in London in 1851. The EXPO will also include an Energy Ministerial Conference, convening within the Eighth International Forum on Energy for Sustainable Development.  

30th Meeting of the Adaptation Fund Board

This meeting will convene in Bonn, Germany. The Adaptation Fund finances projects and programmes that help vulnerable communities in developing countries adapt to climate change. It was established under the Kyoto Protocol of the UNFCCC. The Fund is financed in part by government and private donors, and also from a 2% share of proceeds of Certified Emission Reductions (CERs) issued under the Protocol's Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) projects.The Fund is supervised and managed by the Adaptation Fund Board, which is composed of 16 members and 16 alternates and convenes meetings throughout the year. The World Bank serves as trustee of the Adaptation Fund on an interim basis

February 2017

World Ocean Summit 2017

This Economist event will be the fourth World Ocean Summit, and will discuss how to finance a sustainable ocean economy, including consideration of the types of investment frameworks and capital necessary to bring the blue economy to scale. The event will convene over 360 global leaders from government, industry, multilateral organizations, the scientific community, and civil society to address the risks and opportunities involved in pursuing a blue economy approach and showcase examples of businesses, governments, scientists and others who have successfully aligned economic activity with sustainable management of the oceans. Additional discussion topics include: the global demand for seafood over time the economic case for addressing marine pollution and areas for new investments in the ocean economy.  

March 2017

IWRA XVI World Water Congress

The International Water Resources Association (IWRA) organizes a World Water Congress every three years. The Congress provides a meeting place to share experiences, promote discussion, and present new knowledge, research and developments in the field of water sciences around the world, bringing together a large cross-section of stakeholders. The sixteenth Congress (XVI) will take place on the theme, 'Bridging Science and Policy.' Specific sub-themes to be addressed at the Congress include: water, sanitation and health water quality, wastewater and reuse water security in a changing world water policy and governance water ecosystems and physical regimes and water and sustainable growth. The crosscutting issues of bridging science and policy, building capacity, and stakeholder participation will also be addressed. A call for papers is open from 16 March to 1 September 2016, and abstracts of less than 500 words may be submitted through the Congress website. An international scientific committee will review submissions. Full papers will be due on 1 January 2017, and proposals for side events should be submitted by 1 November 2016. The previous Congress took place in Edinburgh, Scotland.