Programme Cooperation Agreement 2010 – 2011

Steven Lutz, GRID-Arendal, demonstrating the new iPhone application “Blue and REDD Carbon” at Eye on Earth Summit in Abu Dhabi in December 2011, UAE (photo by Robert Barnes)

in Bonn, Germany. According to the Earth Negotia- tions Bulletin (ENB), 18 Papua New Guinea (PNG) in- troduced the issue of blue carbon on the agenda of the SBSTA, under the heading “On blue carbon: coastal marine systems,” underscoring the need to consider the carbon sequestration potential of wetlands and coastal systems; • The US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Admin- istration (NOAA) launched a Blue Carbon web site . 19 NOAA’s Blue Carbon efforts include exploring how to incorporate carbon services into existing domes- tic and international policies and programs; help- ing to fill the science gaps in our understanding of coastal habitat carbon services; and providing sup- port for efforts to develop protocols for including coastal carbon services in carbon markets. NOAA also initiated interagency Blue Carbon discussions during 2011; • Indonesia established a n ational Blue Carbon Working Group focussed on implementing five demonstration projects; • A flurry of reports were published exploring the sci- ence, economics and policy of Blue Carbon; 20 • In November 2011, the GEF Council approved Blue Carbon in its work programme ; 21 • Also in November, the creation of a Global Blue Car- bon Market was promoted in an interagency paper to- wards Rio+20 issued by UNESCO, UNDP, FAO, and the IMO. 22 The report proposes inter alia that “global acceptance of ocean and coastal habitats as a new form of tradable carbon market” be promoted “via a global blue carbon fund”; and

• In December, Blue Carbon was the subject of a side event at the UNFCCC COP 17 in Durban, South Africa facilitated by Bellona and IUCN. 23 At the conference Belize called for “more research to quantify the role that blue carbon can play in the global fight against climate Change.” 24 The project Ecosystem-based Adaptation to climate change in Small Island Developing States (SIDS) is still at an early stage, with the delivery of significant outputs ex- pected in 2012. During 2011 the project built relationships with key players such as the Caribbean Community Cli- mate Change Centre (CCCCC), the Protected Areas Trust of Belize (PACT) and the UNEP Regional Office for Latin America and the Caribbean (UNEP-ROLAC), as well as with potential donors, such as the International Climate 20. Including: Blue Carbon Policy Options Assessment, produced with support from The Linden Trust for Conservation (Climate Focus, 2011); Mitigating Climate Change through Restoration and Management of Coastal Wetlands and Near-shore Marine Ecosystems: Challenges and Opportunities, supported by the World Bank, (Crooks et al., 2011); Green Payments for Blue Carbon: Economic Incentives for Protecting Threatened Coastal Habitats (Murray et al., 2011); and Blue Carbon Policy Framework, produced by IUCN and Conservation International (Herr et al., 2011). 21. http://biodiversity-l.iisd.org/news/gef-council-approves-projects- on-biodiversity-and-blue-carbon/ 22. A Blueprint for Ocean and Coastal Sustainability - http://www. unesco.org/new/fileadmin/MULTIMEDIA/HQ/SC/pdf/interagency_ blue_paper_ocean_rioPlus20.pdf 23. http://www.bellona.org/articles/articles_2011/oceans_blue 24. http://unfccc.int/files/meetings/durban_nov_2011/application/ pdf/111207_cop17_hls_belize.pdf 18. http://www.iisd.ca/vol12/enb12503e.html 19. http://www.habitat.noaa.gov/noaabluecarbonefforts.html

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