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May 2024 | Newsletter No.2
We are once again pleased to share the latest news, events, and exciting developments within, and relevant to, the INPACC Hub community. The collated items are just a snapshot of the wealth and breadth of activity taking place across the region and we thank those in the network who have submitted content. We welcome your contributions for future issues!
Australia Awards Fellowship Program: Advancing Climate Change Adaptation, Resilience and the Just Energy Transition in the Indo-Pacific
Melbourne Climate Futures and the Pacific Climate Change Centre (PCCC) are pleased to be launching a second round of fellowships under the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT)'s Australia Awards program. Titled Advancing Climate Change Adaptation, Resilience and the Just Energy Transition in the Indo-Pacific, the program aims to empower talented individuals in Indo-Pacific communities and beyond through high-quality education experiences.
Following the success of last year's program, the 2024 fellows will engage in a six-week program (Nov-Dec 2024) at the University of Melbourne, focusing on leadership, capacity building, and networking. The program has been designed to equip fellows with skills, networks, and resources to drive climate action in their respective countries across the Indo-Pacific, and they will be supported to develop climate policy outputs tailored to their countries' needs, with a focus on climate adaptation, resilience, and energy transition. Cultural learning experiences and presentations on Australia's First Nations history are integrated into the program. The six weeks in Melbourne will be followed by a week-long implementation workshop hosted by PCCC in Samoa in early 2025.
The program is co-hosted by Melbourne Climate Futures, the Melbourne School of Population and Global Health, and PCCC, and funded by DFAT's Australia Awards Scheme.
Above: The 2023 Australia Awards Fellows, along with UoM, PCCC and SPREP colleagues in Samoa for the second stage of the Advancing Climate, Health, and Equity Outcomes through Local Action in the Indo-Pacific programme, from 18 – 22 March 2024.
Addressing Climate Action Through Integrated Approaches: Linking Adaptation and Mitigation
ESCAP’s Environment and Development Division invites you to complete a survey to contribute your knowledge and experience to a study on integration of adaptation and mitigation in climate action. The study is intended to help strengthen ESCAP's support to the 2025 update to the NDCs, including through the preparation of the annual Review of Climate Ambition in Asia and Pacific.
News from the network
From Climate Change Evidence to Action: Accelerating pathways for healthy people and a healthy planet
Prof Kathryn Bowen (Melbourne Climate Futures) and A/Prof Renzo Guinto (National University of Singapore) presented last month at the World Health Summit Regional Meeting in Melbourne. The two, pictured below, sat on a panel which challenged us to consider how diverse sources of knowledge can accelerate action to protect and improve human health while not harming planetary systems on which all our health depends.
Left: Kathryn Bowen and Renzo Guinto. Above: The Grand Challenges Plenary Panel at the WHS Regional Meeting (Image credit: Dr Stefanie Vaccher on X.)
Heat Resilience & Performance Centre established at Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore
Announced at COP28 last December, the Heat Resilience & Performance Centre (HRPC) at Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore has been appointed as the Southeast Asia node of the Global Heat Health Information Network (GHHIN). An initiative of the World Health Organization (WHO) and World Meteorological Organization (WMO), the GHHIN aims to establish a regional community for collaborations, knowledge-sharing and capacity building on issues pertaining to heat and
health.
The appointment enables the HRPC to work closely with international and regional partners to create and amplify efforts to protect populations from the adverse health impacts of extreme ambient heat in the SEA region.
Grounded in evidence-based practices, the HRPC is dedicated to enhancing awareness, preparedness, and intervention policies to address extreme heat challenges in Southeast Asia, which are expected to worsen in the future. Through its node, the Centre will identify knowledge gaps, assess preparedness efforts, and implement effective strategies to serve as a reliable resource hub for the region, actively responding to emerging needs and opportunities arising from rising temperatures
Above: Photo supplied by NUS via Facebook.
Asia-Pacific Youth Leading Climate Resilience and Solutions for Indigenous Peoples Empowerment The 23rd session of the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues, the largest global annual gathering of Indigenous Peoples, was held from 15-26 April 2024 in the UN Headquarters in New York.
CALL FOR PAPERS: 'Preparing for a Changing Climate' Conference The Stanford Graduate School of Business and the Doerr School of Sustainability invite submissions of empirical papers focused on the evaluation of adaptation strategies and/or focused on whether emissions for specific emitters can be linked to specific damages.
Asia-Pacific Youth Celebrated Earth Day at YECAP Regional Dialogue 2024 Young people, government representatives, multilateral agencies, NGOs, and intergovernmental organizations across the Asia-Pacific region united at the YECAP Regional Dialogue to address pressing climate issues and explore youth-led solutions on Earth Day.
SPREP and the Government of Australia strengthen partnership for a resilient Pacific The Australian Government and the Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme (SPREP) met last month to discuss ways in which their partnership can be further strengthened, during bilateral meetings held at the Pacific Climate Change Centre (PCCC).
Revised tariffs make clean energy compelling for Bangladesh In the wake of electricity and gas price hikes, different energy consumers will now find clean energy investment more compelling in Bangladesh.
NUS, SPREP-PCCC and VUW strengthen collaboration ahead of 4th Pacific Climate Change Conference A continued partnership was further bolstered and reinforced early this month via a visit to Wellington by a contingent from the Samoan-based institutions.
UNDP Climate Promises' Climate Action Explained video series The UNDP’s new video series Climate Action Explained, takes viewers on a tour around the world to witness many impressive efforts and climate solutions already underway.
Blog Post: What is ESG? How does it benefit the Youth Climate Movement? The latest blog by Carly Leung, Co-Founder of Climate Incubator invites us to explore the untapped potential of Environmental, Social, and Governance strategies in empowering young changemakers.
Strengthening legislation to build climate change resilience in the Cook Islands The national Cook Islands Climate Change Response Bill is being drafted to address the increased risks of extreme weather events and natural disasters brought about by climate change.
Do you have content for sharing in our newsletter? Please email enquiries@inpacchub.org with a link to your story/opportunity/event.
Member publications
Unlocking UNCLOS - How the ITLOS Advisory Opinion Delivers a Holistic Vision of Climate-relevant International Law by Prof Jacqueline Peel.
Synchronizing energy transitions toward possible Net Zero for India:
Affordable and clean energy for all prepared by the Indian Institute of Management Ahmedabad (co-authored by Prof Amit Garg).
Upcoming events
27 - 30 May 2024
4th International Conference on Small Island Developing States (SIDS), Antigua & Barbuda
26 - 30 August 2024
53rd Pacific Islands Forum Leaders Meeting, Tonga
29 July - 02 August 2024
61st Session of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), Sofia, Bulgaria
10 - 11 October, 2024
'Preparing for a Changing Climate' Conference, Stanford University, California
Member profile
Julie Amoroso-Garbin
INPACC Hub Steering Committee member Julie Amoroso-Garbin is an international relations, public policy and project management professional with over fifteen years of experience in the climate change and environment sectors. Julie is currently Regional Lead at the UNFCCC Regional Collaboration Center for Asia and the Pacific. Prior to starting with the UN in 2014, Julie worked for the Philippines Climate Change Commission and the Department of Natural Resources.
Julie's career in climate change was instigated by early experiences of disaster response in her home province of Albay in the eastern seaboard of the Philippines. As she shares in this interview with Climate Tracker Asia, Julie has memories of being carried by her grandmother through waist-deep flood waters during typhoon evacuations when she was a young child.
In her role at the UNFCCC, Julie leads a team which focuses on capacity building in the Asia Pacific region by equipping countries with the knowledge and tools they need to develop and implement their Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) and National Adaptation Plans (NAPs). This involves organizing workshops, webinars, and knowledge-sharing platforms to strengthen technical expertise on climate policy, mitigation and adaptation strategies.
Julie's team also focuses on fostering collaboration and connection between different stakeholders such as governments, research institutions, NGOs, and private sector partners, creating an environment for sharing best practices and raising awareness about the urgency of climate change and the opportunities presented by climate action.
Submit an impact story, opportunity or event to be featured in the next issue of this newsletter by emailing the team at enquiries@inpacchub.org.
Accelerating transformative climate resilient development and igniting change for a sustainable future in the Indo-Pacific.
