UNFCCC to Prioritize Building Sector at COP 14

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At a June side event in Bonn, Germany, the UNFCCC secretariats requested UNEP-SBCI’s to assist in reviewing how to put the building sector on the agenda at the upcoming Conference of the Parties 14 in Poznan, Poland in December 2008.

The move towards prioritizing the building sector in the context of UNFCCC represents a major step forward for UNEP-SBCI in its mission to advance sustainable building in the post-2012 Kyoto Protocol framework. Sustainable building was one of only a few topics UNFCCC selected as focus areas for COP 14.

UNEP-SUN manager Niclas Svenningsen said UNFCCC country delegations also responded very positively to the sustainable building message.

Svenningsen gave presentations at the side event on the importance of the building sector in climate change mitigation efforts. He also presented the findings of a UNEP-SBCI report-in- progress demonstrating the shortcomings of the flexible mechanisms built into the Kyoto Protocol According to the report, the flexible mechanisms are not well-adapted for building sector applications, and should therefore be revised to take advantage of significant emissions reduction opportunities in buildings.

The events in Bonn were the result of continued UNEP-SBCI efforts in recent months. UNEP-SBCI capitalized on the momentum from the Bali side event highlighting the sustainable building agenda at COP 13 in December 2007.