Context: 

The Sixth Assembly session of United Nations Environmental Programme (UNEA-6) is being held at their headquarters in Nairobi, Kenya,

UNEA-6/ Sixth Session of United Nations Environment

• Focus: To plan for the role of multilateralism to help tackle the triple planetary crisis of climate change, nature and biodiversity loss, and pollution and waste and shape the global environmental policy.
• Theme: Effective, inclusive and sustainable multilateral actions to tackle climate change, biodiversity loss and pollution. 
• Young Champions of the Earth award: The UNEA launched a call for nominations for its Young Champions of the Earth award by seeking seven people  aged between 18 and 30 years
  • The Young Champions of the Earth is led in partnership with the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration, and in support of the new Global Biodiversity Framework and recognises youth’s contributions to protect the environment.

Highlights of the UNEA-6

• Environmental Multilateralism: 

  • On 28 February 2024, an entire day was devoted to discuss the importance of cooperation and convergence with multilateral environmental agreements (MEAs) for the first time with 2 high level dialogues
    • Dialogue Agenda 1: Strengthening the science policy interface for effective implementation of environmental commitments.
    • Dialogue Agenda 2: Strengthening cooperation between UNEA, UNEP and MEAs to enhance effective implementation at the national level including through means of implementation.

• Session On Energy Transition to Renewable Energy

  • UNEA-6 Theme: Ensuring that the energy transition contributes to a nature and people positive planet.
    • Rapid adoption of Renewable Energy sources: The world needs three times the Renewable Energy compared to present by 2030 
    • Develop globally acceptable RE standards: To standardize the growth and provide a direction, by spelling out  the best practices on how to best  utilize RE for powering development around the world.
    • IUCN is in process to  develop new standards for REs to make sure that projects were environmentally sustainable
    • Resource Circularity and responsible sourcing of minerals: There is a need to move towards the principle of circularity in the mining sector,  with renewed hunt for mineral sources to power the Industrial Revolution 4.0 
      • Example: lithium for batteries 
  • Alternative Business Models: A low return on investment was one of the impediments in the transition to RE with low profitability when compared to traditional energy sources which calls for the adoption of  alternative business models.

• A legally Binding Treaty on Plastics Discussed: 

• • The event is co-hosted by PR3: The Global Alliance to Advance Reuse along with delegations from Chile, Fiji and the European Investment Bank
  • Theme: Incorporating strong reuse provisions by Introducing packaging reuse options is the central theme of the negotiations for  a legally binding instrument on plastic pollution.
    • The updated draft of the plastics treaty will be  presented at the fourth session of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC-4) to be held in  Ottawa, Canada from April 2024.
  • Standards for global scalability of reuse: It should start with harmonizing definitions of reuse and circularity with the reuse mechanism necessitating  a system.

• Role of Nature Based Solutions to the Global Climate Crisis: 

• • Nature based solutions: It  includes reforestation, afforestation and land restoration which have the potential to slow down the climate crisis and build resilience among communities by halting the loss and restoring biodiversity.
    • Underfunded:  The solutions receive only about $200 billion globally a year, which is less than a third of the over $600 billion required annually by 2030
    • Nature -negative finance flows: These are the financing flows for the harmful subsidies and investments to the tune of  $7 trillion,  which negates all the minute efforts in nature based solutions.
  • Debt -for-nature swap as a  solution: They provide a solution to the interconnected challenges of debt, climate and nature loss by opening -up fiscal space, leverage additional finance and develop regional approaches for shared ecosystems.
    • Example:  Latin American country of Ecuador. It made a debt-for-nature swap,and  saved $1.1 billion in loan repayments while providing no less than $450 million for conservation programmes.

News Source: UNEA