UN Climate Change News, 04 October 2024 - The UN Climate Change secretariat has issued its latest edition of the Observer Handbook, ahead of the COP29 Climate Conference in Baku, Azerbaijan.
With the number of observer organizations admitted by the COP continuing to rise each year, and this year's nearing a total of 4,000, the Handbook provides important guidance to help participants make the most of their time at the COP.
"Observer organizations bring diverse experiences, perspectives and ideas from civil society, Indigenous communities, youth and academia, among many others, which are crucial to advancing the global climate agenda," notes Simon Stiell, UN Climate Change Executive Secretary, in his foreword to the Handbook. "Observers are also critical to ensuring transparency in the process," he adds.
Over the last decade, the number of observer organizations admitted into the process has more than doubled, and their participation has more than tripled in the last five COPs - an impressive indicator of interest in and impact of the UN Climate Change Conferences, also known as COPs or Conferences of the Parties.
The Handbook also comes as UN Climate Change implements incremental steps responding to the requests of Parties to boost diversity and regional representation among COP observer participants. These requests reflect the clear need to improve the representation of observer organizations from developing countries.
"We need the COP process and participation to reflect the fact that the climate crisis is hitting communities in every part of the world," Stiell says, noting also that climate impacts often hit hardest the most vulnerable populations, who did by far the least to cause the climate crisis.
As this year's COP venue is substantially smaller in size than last year's COP28 venue - which catered for over 80,000 participants - and given the increased number of organizations admitted this year to COP29, the overall number of badges available per observer organization is more limited than last year.
At the same time, the secretariat has taken initial steps to implement the request of the Parties for more diversity, particularly to include more organizations giving voice to Indigenous Peoples, youth, women, and gender-focused groups.
Acknowledging this will mean fewer badges for many organizations, mostly in developed countries, Stiell notes in his foreword to the Handbook that he hopes "affected organizations will support our efforts this year to move some way towards more balance in the mix of observer organizations at the COP, in a spirit of global solidarity which is so crucial to success, at all levels."
Affected organizations that wish to request a larger allocation of badges have the option - as every year - to submit a request to the secretariat via the Online Registration System (ORS). This can be done in the "Communications" tab of ORS. All requests will be assessed, and the results will be communicated accordingly.
Observers are encouraged to read and consult the Handbook, as a valuable resource and guide to help ensure an inclusive, safe, and productive COP29. The Handbook can be accessed online here.
