United Nations Climate Conference (Paris, 2015)
Alphabet soup definitions
While the United Nations is a wonderful organization, they are sometimes a bit hard to follow…all those acronyms. Below you will find explanations of every acronym found on the agenda of the Climate Conference in Paris.
- ADP: Ad Hoc Working Group on the Durban Platform for Enhanced Action
- AWG-KP: Ad Hoc Working Group on Further Commitments for Annex I Parties under the Kyoto Protocol
- CDM: Clean Development Mechanism (This allows emission-reduction projects in developing countries to earn certified emission reduction (CER) credits, each equivalent to one ton of CO2. These CERs can be traded and sold, and used by industrialized countries to a meet a part of their emission reduction targets under the Kyoto Protocol.)
- CER: Certified Emission Reduction
- CMP: Conference of the Parties serving as the Meeting of the Parties
- COP: Conference of the Parties
- HLS: High Level Segment
- INDCs: Intended Nationally Determined Contributions (Leading up to the 2015 United Nations Climate Change Conference to be held in Paris in 2015, countries have been asked to publicly declare what actions they intend to take under a new global agreement. The country commitments, or INDCs, are expected to indicate through their form and strength what shape any 2015 agreement might take.)
- IPCC: Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (A scientific intergovernmental body under the auspices of the United Nations set up at the request of member governments. The IPCC produces reports that support the UNFCCC.)
- LDC: Least Developed Country (This is a country that, according to the United Nations, exhibits the lowest indicators of socioeconomic development, with the lowest Human Development Index ratings of all countries in the world.)
- LEG: Least Developed Countries Expert Group
- LPAA: Lima-Paris Action Agenda (This is a joint undertaking of the Peruvian and French COP presidencies, the Office of the Secretary-General of the United Nations and the UNFCCC Secretariat. It is aimed at strengthening climate action throughout 2015, in Paris in December and beyond.)
- NAMAs: Nationally Appropriate Mitigation Actions (Theses are country-driven initiatives that developing nations are implementing to achieve sustainable development while contributing towards global efforts in reducing greenhouse gas emissions.)
- NAPs: National Adaptation Plan (A means of identifying medium- and long-term adaptation needs and developing and implementing strategies and programs to address those needs.)
- NAPAs: National Adaptation Programs of Action (Provides a process for Least Developed Countries (LDCs) to identify priority activities that respond to their urgent and immediate needs to adapt to climate change – those for which further delay would increase vulnerability and/or costs at a later stage.)
- REDD: Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation (United Nations collaborative initiative in developing countries; launched in 2008.)
- SBI: Subsidiary Body for Implementation (One of two permanent subsidiary bodies to the Convention established by the COP/CMP. It supports the work of the COP and the CMP through the assessment and review of the effective implementation of the Convention and its Kyoto Protocol. The SBI also advises the COP on budgetary and administrative matters.)
- SBSTA: Subsidiary Body for Scientific and Technological Advice (A subsidiary body of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) Conference of the Parties (COP). It meets at least twice a year to advise the COP on matters of science, technology and methodology.)
- UNEP: United Nations Environment Program
- UNFCCC: United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (The main international treaty on climate change.)