UN Climate Change News, 28 July 2020 - The 8th Dialogue on Action for Climate Empowerment (ACE) is kicking off off its first ever virtual regional dialogue for Europe and Central Asia on 29 July 2020.

This multi-stakeholder dialogue will see participation from more than 40 countries and will bring together diverse actors such as representatives from ministries of education and environment, university associations, youth organizations, and NGOs to exchange good practices and recommend ways to enhance implementation of the Paris Agreement through Action for Climate Empowerment (ACE)

Under the Convention (UNFCCC) and the Paris Agreement, countries spelled out the need for Action for Climate Empowerment – education, training, public awareness, public participation, public access to information and international and regional cooperation.

Educating and empowering people on climate change is crucial to achieving the goals of the Paris Agreement. ACE aims to leave no one behind and inspires and encourages everyone to amplify efforts for a just transition to a climate-friendly and sustainable future for present and future generations.

The timing of the Dialogue is important given that this year, governments will review the achievements of the Doha work programme and recommend the direction and way forward for the future work of ACE. 2020 is also the year when countries will submit their new or updated nationally determined contributions (NDCs). The Katowice Package of 2018 encourages Parties to systematically integrate  ACE  when designing and implementing their NDCs. In this regard, UNESCO, our co-organizer of this year’s dialogue, will present the recently published guide for countries on integrating ACE into NDCs outlining how governments can include ACE elements in their respective national commitments.

Focus of ACE Dialogue on Regions

Each regional dialogue aims to focus on cross-sectoral collaboration and knowledge-sharing on ACE by highlighting good practices from across the region. For instance, at the Europe and Central Asia dialogue, Sweden will share its process of developing the national ACE strategy while the Italian Ministry of Education will present on their policy to make climate change education mandatory in schools by integrating it into the formal curriculum. Civil society stakeholders will also actively participate in the dialogue to share their experience and views. For example, representative from YOUNGO, the Children and Youth Constituency of the UNFCCC, will share how youth movements have fostered public awareness on climate change within Europe. Full agenda and the list of speakers are accessible here.

Recommendations and views shared by speakers and participants throughout all regional dialogues will inform the countries in shaping the future work of ACE towards 2030.

The schedule for the regional dialogues is as follows:

More information on the 8^th Dialogue on ACE can be found here.