Gov. Swarzenegger hosts Climate Action Coalition
At the conclusion of the Governors’ Global Climate Summit 3 ( GGCS 3 ), Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger joined several prominent leaders from around the world to announce a first-of-its-kind, innovative subnational public-private alliance that will work toward climate change solutions and building the global green economy: R20 — Regions of Climate Action. Composed of subnational governments and private and nongovernment partners, R20 is a global coalition committed to fast tracking the development of clean technologies, climate resilient projects and green investment, and influencing national and international policies.
“We can’t afford to wait for national and international movement. Action is needed now, and action is what we’re taking with R20,” said Governor Schwarzenegger. “The role of subnational governments is more important than ever, and California has shown that state and regional governments can institute policies that will grow the green economy, create jobs and clean our environment. With this unprecedented level of cooperation and collaboration, R20 will continue this leadership around the world and will help influence national and international action.”
The mission of the R20 will be to develop and implement low-carbon and climate resilient projects through cooperation among subnational governments from around the world. This new, innovative coalition will catalyze partnerships between developed and developing subnational regions to fast track actions in energy efficiency, renewable energy and clean transportation.
During its first year, the R20 will facilitate public-private partnerships, share best practices, accelerate the development of green innovations and begin implementing clean energy demonstration projects. Within five years, the R20 aims to have at least 20 subnational governments enact comprehensive low-carbon policies and implement projects, using successful models from progressive subnational leaders as a guide. Through these efforts, the R20 will expand the global green economy, create new green jobs and build commitments to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
The coalition includes an expanding and globally diverse group of subnational government members from developed and developing countries that are committed to taking real action on climate change. In addition, the R20 is partnering with organizations and individuals from the private sector, academia, national governments, international organizations and civil society to build momentum for climate action at the national and international levels. The R20 will work with the United Nations Development Programme ( UNDP ) and the United Nations Environment Programme ( UNEP ) to demonstrate the critical role that subnational governments play in the fight to mitigate and adapt to climate change.
“UNEP is pleased to be part of the R20 Initiative, and is committed to working with all sectors of society, including sub-national governments, to help in the transition to a low carbon, green economy,” said Amy Fraenkel, Director of UNEP’s Regional Office for North America.
The concept of R20 was first announced by Governor Schwarzenegger at COP15 in Copenhagen last December in order to influence the international negotiations that had come to an impasse and show that subnational government actions can produce results and create a global green economy. The R20 coalition is an extension of the Global Climate Solutions Declaration signed at Governor Schwarzenegger’s Governors’ Global Climate Summit 2 in October 2009. For more information on R20, click here.
Today’s announcement marks the end of the GGSC 3, which featured bold climate leaders from around the world discussing how climate policies can create green jobs, drive innovation and investment, and spur a global green economy. This was the third annual summit co-hosted by Governor Schwarzenegger, which drew over 1,500 participants from more than 80 states, provinces and countries. The Summit provided states and provinces an opportunity to collaborate on climate solutions and build partnerships to influence the position of their national governments leading up to the United Nations COP 16 in Cancun, Mexico later this year, including:
Governor Schwarzenegger joined Oregon Governor Ted Kulongoski and British Columbia Premier Gordon Campbell at the Pacific Coast Collaborative Leaders Forum in announcing actions to protect the Pacific Coast environment and economy including efforts to improve the health of the Pacific Ocean and address sustainability issues such as developing infrastructure to support electric vehicles and laying the foundation for the future of high-speed rail along the Pacific Coast.
Governor Schwarzenegger signed a Memorandum of Understanding ( MOU ) with Governor Arnóbio Marques de Almeida Júnior from Acre, Brazil and Governor Juan José Sabines Guerrero from Chiapas, Mexico to combat climate change and protect tropical forests. This groundbreaking agreement builds off of the progress made through the Governors’ Climate and Forests Taskforce which grew out of the first Governors Summit in 2008 and helps accelerate collaborative work to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from deforestation and land degradation in the worlds’ tropical forests.
The following members and partners are signing on to the R20 Charter:
Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, California, USA; Governor Juan Sabines Guerrero of Chiapas, Mexico; Governor Jim Doyle of Wisconsin, USA; Director General Jin-Soo, Lee, Gyeonggi Provincial Government, South Korea; Teruyuki Ohno, Director General of the Bureau of Environment for the Tokyo Metropolitan Government; Governor Kabahizi Celestin of the Western Province, Republic of Rwanda; r. L. Verbeek, Queens’s Commissioner, Province of Flevoland, The Netherlands; Premier Gordon Campbell of British Columbia, Canada; Nicola Vendola is the President of Puglia ( Italy ) and Leader of the Sinistra Ecologia Libertà party; Michele Sabban, Regional council of Ill-de-France and President, Assembly of European Regions ( AER ); Mr. Dan Popescu, Director of Technical Department of Alba County Council; Mr. Gustavo Baroja, Prefect of the Pichincha Province of Ecuador; Governor Gwendolyn Garcia, Philippines; Governor Uduaghan: Governor of Delta State, Nigeria; Dr. Rajendra K. Pachauri, Chair of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and Director-General of The Energy and Resources Institute; Terry Tamminen, Founder of Seventh Generation Advisors and Strategic Advisor to the R20; Amy Fraenkel, Director and Regional Representative, United Nations Environmental Programme, Regional Office for North America; Governor Ted Kulongoski; Lower Austrias Governor Erwin Proell; Fernando Eutinio Ortega Berns, Gobernador Constitucional del Estado de Campeche, Mexico; Governor Jennifer Granholm of Michigan, USA; President of Iceland, Olafur Ragnar Grimsson; Nichole Anderson, R20 Youth Advisory Council; Special Representative Reta Jo Lewis, U.S. State Department, Office of Global Intergovernmental Affairs; Mr. Oriano Otoan, Head of the Department for International Cooperation and EU Integration Region of Istria, Croatia; Azores, Portugal, Azores ( P ), M. Jose Gabriel Alamo de Meneses, Regional environment for the environment and the Sea ; Prince Hussain Aga Khan, Aga Khan Development Network; Mr. Pacôme-Ruffin Ondzounga, Minister of Environment of Gabon; Consortium Evolution, CC education NGO, Christophe Dossarps, President; World LP Gas Association, Kimball Chen, First Vice President; Jean Luc Allard, Vice President Environment and Climate Change, SNC Lavalin; Dr. Linda P.B. Katehi, Chancellor, University of California, Davis; James L. Buizer, American College and University Presidents’ Climate Commitment; Feng An, Innovation Center for Energy and Transportation; Denise Sheehan, Executive Director, The Climate Registry; Frances Beinecke, President, NRDC; Christophe Nuttall, Director, Hub for Innovative Partnership, UNDP; Seethapathy Chander, Chair of the Energy Committee, Asian Development Bank; Kimball Chen, First Vice President, World LP Gas Association; Gary Gero, Climate Action Reserve; Dominique Heron, Director of Veolia Environment; Governor Chris Gregoire of Washington, USA; Mr. El Hadj Malick Gakou, President Region Dakar, Senegal; Linda Adams, California Secretary for Environmental Protection; Ali El Heddi Belhaj Bouabdallah, President of the “Region de l’Oriental” Morocco Best Regards Fatima-Zahra Zahraoui; Margret Kim, International Advisor, California Environmental Protection Agency; Richard H. Jones, Deputy Executive Director, International Energy Agency; Robert Jones, President Ecolinx Foundation; Reliwende Aboubacar Savadogo; President du Conseil Regional du Nord, Burkina Faso; Monsieur Abdoulaye Drame, President du Conseil Regional de Matam; The World Bank; Craig Cogut, Founder, Pegasus Capital Advisors and R20 Financial Advisor; Kent Gren, Landstingsr d ( President of the Board ) and County Council Commissioner, Norrbottens Läns Landsting; Art Rosenfeld, White Roofs Alliance/100 Cool Cities, Distinguished Scientist Emeritus at the Lawrence Berkeley National Lab; Derek Walker, Director, California Climate Initiative, Environmental Defense Fund; Rona Yircarli, Chair, ICC-World Chambers Federation; Elizabeth Carty, Oxfam America; Alexandre Vial, CEO, Enarcap; Jean Paul Huchon, President, Metropolis; Hüseyin Avni Mutlu, Governor of the Province of Istanbul; and Jose Antonio Grinan Martinez, President Region Andalucia, Spain.
Disclaimer: Articles featured on Oregon Report are the creation, responsibility and opinion of the authoring individual or organization which is featured at the top of every article.