Nairobi, 18 January 2014 - The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) announced today the appointment of Jukka Uosukainen as the Director of the Climate Technology Centre and Network (CTCN).
CTCN, the operational arm of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) Technology Mechanism, aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and improve resilience to changing weather patterns, drought, soil erosion, and other impacts of climate change in developing nations.
Achim Steiner, UN Under-Secretary-General and Executive Director of UNEP, congratulated Mr. Uosukainen and said that CTCN is now ready to fulfill its mandate by assisting developing countries to make informed decisions about mitigation and adaptation technologies that suit their needs.
"With the appointment of its new Director, the Climate Technology Centre and Network is now ready to make a substantive contribution to accelerating the use of existing and new technologies that can lead the way towards a low carbon future and improve the lives and livelihoods of millions of people in developing countries, who are dealing with climate change impacts in their daily lives" said Mr. Steiner.
"The facility is a further building block towards building resilience, as the world strides towards a post-2015 climate change agreement."
"Mr. Uosukainen's strong credentials and previous experience in development cooperation, climate change and multilateral environmental frameworks make him an ideal candidate, bringing leadership and vision to this important position'," he added.
The CTCN aims to overcome the historic challenges of mobilizing funds and eliminating policy and technical barriers to promote accelerated, diversified and scaled-up transfer of environmentally sound technologies for climate change mitigation and adaptation, consistent with the national socio-economic and sustainable development priorities of the requesting countries.
Mr. Jukka Uosukainen has worked in the national and international environmental sector for more than two decades, chairing and facilitating various UN committees, including of the UNFCCC and UNEP. More recently, he served as the Special Envoy for Climate Change for the Government of Finland.
Christiana Figueres, the Executive Secretary of the UNFCCC, said, "I would like to congratulate Jukka Uosukainen for being chosen for this important role. I am sure with his leadership the CTCN can proceed to realize its goal of accelerating and scaling up clean energy, energy efficiency and technologies that can assist in combating and coping with climate change," she said.
"As nations work towards a new universal climate agreement in 2015, the fully operational CTCN provides an important signal that the global infrastructure to combat climate change isin place and can deliver," said Ms Figueres.
Expected outcomes of the CTCN's work are reduced greenhouse gas emission intensity and climate vulnerability as well as improved local innovative capacities. Private and public investment in adaptation and mitigation will be mobilized on a greater scale and collaboration and peer learning on technology transfer and deployment across and within developing countries will be the norm.
For more information, please contact:
Shereen Zorba, Head of News and Media, United Nations Environment Programme, Tel: +254 (0) 788 526000, Email: shereen.zorba@unep.org or unepnewsdesk@unep.org
About the CTCN
At the 2010 Climate Change Conference in Cancun, countries agreed on a new Technology Mechanism to improve the development and transfer of climate-related technology, encompassing energy efficiency, renewable energy, early warning systems, and other fields.
Located in Copenhagen, Denmark, the CTCN has three core functions:
Manage and respond to requests from developing countries;
Foster collaboration and access to information and knowledge to accelerate technology transfer; and
Strengthen networks, partnerships and capacity building for climate technology transfer.
The CTCN is guided by an Advisory Board with representatives from developing and developed countries, various UNFCCC committee members as well as representatives from Environmental NGOs, Business and Academia.
Members of the UNEP-led consortium include:
United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO);
Asian Institute of Technology (Thailand);
Bariloche Foundation (Argentina);
Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (South Africa)
The Energy and Resources Institute (India);
Environment and Development Action in the Third World (Senegal);
Tropical Agricultural Research and Higher Education Center (Costa Rica);
World Agroforestry Centre (Kenya);
Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (Germany);
Energy Research Centre of the Netherlands, National Renewable Energy Laboratory (United States);
United Nations Environment Programme Risø Centre (Denmark).
Visit http://www.unep.org/climatechange/ctcn/
About UNEP
Established in 1972, the United Nations Environment Programme is the voice for the environment within the United Nations system.
UNEP acts as a catalyst, advocate, educator and facilitator to promote the wise use and sustainable development of the global environment. To accomplish this, UNEP works with a wide range of partners, including United Nations entities, international organizations, national governments, non-governmental organizations, the private sector and civil society.
UNEP's work encompasses:
Assessing global, regional and national environmental conditions and trends;
-Developing international and national environmental instruments;
Strengthening institutions for the wise management of the environment;
Facilitating the transfer of knowledge and technology for sustainable development;
Encouraging new partnerships and mind-sets within civil society and the private sector.
UNEP's global and cross-sectoral outlook is reflected in its organizational structure, its activities and is personnel. Being based in Africa gives UNEP a clear advantage in understanding the environmental issues facing the world's developing countries.
