The Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in New York and Academic Council on the United Nations System (ACUNS) held a seminar on “Entering into Force: Action Needed to Realize the Priorities of the Paris Agreement” and the reception on Wednesday, November 2nd, 2016. The historic Paris Agreement to address climate change will enter into force on 4 November 2016.

Deputy Director-General Brian Su, Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in New York (TECO-NY), gave the opening remarks and also presented a $50,000 check to the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) Vice President Langston James Goree VI to show Taiwan’s support to resolve the issue on climate change and global warming.

At today’s seminar, first Keynote Speech titled “Challenges SIDS face in Accessing Climate Finance” was given by H.E. Amb. Inga Rhonda King, Permanent Representative of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines to the United Nations and second Keynote Speech titled ” Capturing the Momentum: The Role of COP22 in Advancing the Paris Agreement” was presented by Mr. Langston James “Kimo” Goree VI, Vice-President, International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) & Ms. Jennifer Allan,Team Leader/Writer, IISD Reporting Services, International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD).

There was also a very insightful Panel Discussion with presentations by Prof. Michael Gerrard, Director of Sabin Center for Climate Change Law at Columbia University; by Ms. Kate Brown, Executive Director of Global Island Partnership (GLISPA); by Ms. Tara DePorte, Executive Director of The Human Impacts Institute (HII) and by Mr. C.Y. Ling, Director of the Investment and Trade Office of Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in the United States. Both Keynote Speech and Panel Discussion was moderated by Prof. Basilio G. Monteiro, Associate Professor of St. John’s University.

The Paris Agreement, adopted on 12 December 2015 in Paris, marks a watershed moment in global efforts to address climate change. Adopted by 196 parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) last December in Paris, the Paris Agreement’s central aim is to strengthen the global response to the threat of climate change by keeping the global temperature rise this century well below 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels and to pursue efforts to limit it to 1.5 degrees Celsius.

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