XIC US Consulate Presentation on Climate Change
06-September-2016
XIC along with U. S. Consulate organised a talk and interaction by the US Climate Envoy Jonathan Pershing at XIC on 2.9.2016.
The event was extensively covered by a number of newspapers.
Clipings are reproduced hereunder.
PTI
English Service
Press Trust of India
India's Premier News Agency
Date: September 2, 2016 Language: English
Paris accord may be in force this yr: US climate change envoy
Press Trust of India | Mumbai
September 2, 2016 Last Updated at 21:57 IST
The Paris Agreement on climate change is likely to enter into force by the end of this year, US Special Envoy for Climate Change Jonathan Pershing indicated here today.
"The Prime Minister of Indiawas one of the key partners in this exercise, along with my (US) President and other global leaders," he said, interacting with students of the Xavier Institute of Communications in south Mumbai.
"We are now at a stage where we see this agreement likely to be in force this year itself," Pershing said.
The Paris Agreement will enter into force when at least 55 countries/parties to the UN climate convention accounting for at least 55 percent of the total global greenhouse gas emissions submit their instruments of ratification, acceptance, approval or accession.
"We have to reduce our greenhouse gas emissions to the order of 80 to 100 per cent," Pershing, who is part of a small team of senior Obama administration officials trying to cement durable regulations on climate change, said.
He lauded the leadership by Indiaand the US in implementing the Paris Agreement and in other multilateral climate fora, as well as the importance of climate and clean energy cooperation in the two countries mutual relation.
Pershing was in Mumbaifor meetings with members of the finance sector on how to catalyse investment in clean energy.
Earlier, Pershing had travelled to Cairo (Egypt) and Dubai (United Arab Emirates) where he met with government officials to discuss next steps to address global climate change, including rapid entry-into-force of the Paris Agreement, implementation of countries' Nationally Determined Contributions, mobilising private sector finance for low-carbon climate resilient solutions and clean energy, and climate adaptation and resilience
The Times of India
Date: September 3, 2016 Edition: Mumbai Language: English
Circulation: 700,000 Page: Online
Use carbon free fuel to reduce Green House Gas emissions, says US envoy
Clara Lewis | TNN | Sep 3, 2016, 11.37 AM IST
MUMBAI: India must opt for a fuel that is carbon free to reduce its Green House Gas (GHG) emissions, said Jonathan Pershing, special envoy for Climate Change, US department of state.
Pershing who is currently in India as part of the US-India Strategic and Commercial dialogue said part of the reason for the US and China being number 1 and 2 respectively in GHG emissions was on account of their failure to address the carbon issue.
Pershing spoke on the impact of climate change and the urgent need to address it at the St Xavier's Institute of Communication, Mumbai, on Friday. He said though electricity contributes one-third to GHG emissions, a collective effort at the global level is necessary to reduce the emissions from electricity. He said this can be done through use of better technology and also from the use of renewable sources of energy such as solar, wind, hydro and nuclear energy.
"I am agnostic about nuclear energy. It is for each country to decide on which source to use. It is necessary to ensure the source does not produce carbon," he said.
The US government to ensure that temperatures do not rise above 1.5 degree Celsius has made it mandatory for all manufacturers to incorporate climate change in every decision. Similarly it agriculture department is working on processes for farming which lower GHG emissions.
"Climate Change makes everything we worry about such as high tides, rains, droughts worse. We are at the edge and a small tip would lead to chaos," he said.
Hindustan Times
Date: September 3, 2016 Edition: Mumbai Language: English
Circulation: 550,000 Page: 4
India and US focus on climate change
Ankita Sengupta, Hindustan Times, Mumbai|
Following the third US-India Strategic and Commercial Dialogue in New Delhi on Wednesday, US special envoy for climate change Jonathan Pershing said that apart from working on measures to combat climate change, both countries are also focusing on the need to be resilient to the effects of climate change. Pershing, who has co-chaired the US-India joint working group on combating climate change, said that "resilience” is an important component of climate change, but unfortunately, does not receive the kind of attention it deserves. "With climate change, we are bound to see extreme weather events. Places that receive heavy rainfall will get even heavier rain, while drought-prone areas will witness more acute dry spells,” he said. Referring to his experience in Delhi last week which has been receiving extremely heavy rainfall, he said, "For countries that are already experiencing the adverse effects of climate change, the ability to withstand or recover quickly will be crucial.” Elaborating on the details of the dialogue between both the countries, the US diplomat said that monitoring air quality, gathering data on the existing forests and providing for exchange of technological information related to climate change through fellowships were the key points that US and India are working on. Speaking to HT, Pershing said, "There is a lot of research on forest health. The forest cover in India is declining. These issues can be resolved with better forest management, which is one of the things we are working on.” Trees are considered as carbon sinks that absorb carbon dioxide, which is one of the components that causes global warming. "To bring down the emission rate, we are promoting the use of alternative sources of energy such as nuclear and solar to reduce the use of fossil fuels,” Pershing said. The US special envoy was in the city on Friday to meet with members of the financial sector on measures to encourage and boost investment in clean energy.
The Economic Times
Date: September 3, 2016 Edition: Mumbai Language: English
Circulation: 550,000 Page: 4
India and US focus on climate change
Ankita Sengupta, Hindustan Times, Mumbai|
Following the third US-India Strategic and Commercial Dialogue in New Delhi on Wednesday, US special envoy for climate change Jonathan Pershing said that apart from working on measures to combat climate change, both countries are also focusing on the need to be resilient to the effects of climate change. Pershing, who has co-chaired the US-India joint working group on combating climate change, said that "resilience” is an important component of climate change, but unfortunately, does not receive the kind of attention it deserves. "With climate change, we are bound to see extreme weather events. Places that receive heavy rainfall will get even heavier rain, while drought-prone areas will witness more acute dry spells,” he said. Referring to his experience in Delhi last week which has been receiving extremely heavy rainfall, he said, "For countries that are already experiencing the adverse effects of climate change, the ability to withstand or recover quickly will be crucial.” Elaborating on the details of the dialogue between both the countries, the US diplomat said that monitoring air quality, gathering data on the existing forests and providing for exchange of technological information related to climate change through fellowships were the key points that US and India are working on. Speaking to HT, Pershing said, "There is a lot of research on forest health. The forest cover in India is declining. These issues can be resolved with better forest management, which is one of the things we are working on.” Trees are considered as carbon sinks that absorb carbon dioxide, which is one of the components that causes global warming. "To bring down the emission rate, we are promoting the use of alternative sources of energy such as nuclear and solar to reduce the use of fossil fuels,” Pershing said. The US special envoy was in the city on Friday to meet with members of the financial sector on measures to encourage and boost investment in clean energy.
The Indian Express
Date: September 3, 2016 Edition: Mumbai Language: English
Circulation: 3,00,000 Page: Online
Climate change: Important to establish authority to implement agreements, says US Special Envoy Jonathan Pershing
"The most important aspect is to establish an authority to implement agreements,” said Jonathan Pershing, the US Special Envoy for Climate Change.
By: Express News Service | Mumbai | Published:September 3, 2016 3:24 am
REDUCING POWER consumption and switching to greener energy sources will help avoid the consequences of climate change, said Jonathan Pershing, the US Special Envoy for Climate Change on Friday, addressing students of Xavier Institute of Communications, Mumbai.
Pershing said the increasing efficiency of electronic gadgets, and lifestyle changes could help reduce 30 per cent of power consumption.
He emphasized on importance of research and development (R&D) for technologies that could help reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
"There are technologies available but they are expensive. More work needs to be done to bring costs down,” said Pershing. Talking about the United Nations Climate Change Conference, 2015, in Paris, Pershing said countries now needed to work on how to implement the new global agreements to cut down carbon emissions.
"The most important aspect is to establish an authority to implement agreements,” he said
When asked how a country like India, where a very large section of society didn’t have access to electricity, should work on climate change mitigation plans, Pershing said environment-friendly solutions should be considered while providing basic facilities to people.
Pershing shed light on climate-related outcomes of the US-India Strategic and Commercial Dialogue in New Delhi earlier this week. He said there were exhaustive discussions on academic and technical solutions to mitigate the impact of climate change. He said that the Indian government was committed to the cause of climate change. "The priority is to incorporate climate change implications in decision-making,” he said.
The Hindu
Date: September 3, 2016 Edition: National Language: English
Circulation: 1,450,000 Page: Online
‘Development should factor in climate change’
Dr. Pershing was speaking to students at the Xavier Institute of Communication
Climate change treaties have been notoriously hard to implement in the past, but the Paris Agreement, signed at the United Nations Climate Change Conference last year, could be a different story.
That’s according to U.S. Special Envoy for Climate Change Dr. Jonathan Pershing who says that the will of countries, such as India and the United States, to expedite change could see the agreement come into force as early as this year.
Dr. Pershing was speaking to students at the Xavier Institute of Communication on Friday, days after he had arrived in India to attend the U.S.-India Strategic and Commercial Dialogue as co-chair of the U.S.-India Joint Working Group on Combating Climate Change.
The group was formed to review progress made in the bilateral relationship on climate resilience, air quality, forestry, capacity building and clean energy, and to discuss opportunities for future collaboration in shared climate priorities.
Dr. Pershing said, "The conversation between India and the U.S. is strongly focused on advancing our work. It is both technical and academic, with interactions between experts and academics on both sides.”
The meetings between the two governments, he said, focused on how the two sides could increase interactions in terms of experts travelling each way for fellowships. He highlighted that the talks looked at the question of climate resilience in a new light.
‘It’s already here’
"The question of resilience has often not been given that much importance as countries have focused more on the policy changes they can make to combat climate change, but in some cases it has to be acknowledged that climate change is already happening and we have to look at ways to manage it.”
Dr. Pershing said, "While we were speaking about resilience, there was a massive rain in New Delhi when it looked like we were walking out into rivers of water. So the immediacy of the question of climate resilience was evident right there.”
In the area of resilience, Dr. Pershing said, discussions were held about water, agriculture, food, energy systems, and the focus once again was on the kind of expertise each side can contribute to the other.
The Indian government under Prime Minister Modi, he said, has been committed to looking for solutions to climate change problems.
He said, "Each department has been given a clear mandate that they cannot think about development without factoring in the question of climate change. Decisions will not be made that keep the question of climate change separate.”
The Te Cake
Date: September 5, 2016 Edition: Mumbai Language: English
Here’s what US envoy Dr Pershing spoke on Climate Change on his visit to India
US Envoy emphasized the idea of using electricity sources that do not emit carbon dioxide to contaminate environment. He believes this way we can suppress global warming by a large extent.
By Shivangi Sharma -Sep 5, 2016
Dr. Jonathan Pershing, a US envoy, who is currently in India to attend US-India strategic and commercial dialogue for Paris Agreement talked about climate change at St Xavier’s Institute of Communication, Mumbai on Friday. His talking session revolved around the idea of using such electricity resources that do not exhale carbon-dioxide in the environment for reducing Green House Gas (GHG).
Climate change treaties are important and must be followed for the betterment of the environment, but as seen in the past years, these treaties are hard to implement and countries at one or the other point loose tracks, therefore India and U.S are jointly working upon on Combating Climate Change, co-chaired by Pershing.
The group will check the quality of air, and all other factors related with climate change. Resilience in the process must be given attention.
Mr. Pershing said "The conversation between India and the U.S. is strongly focused on advancing our work. It is both technical and academic, with interactions between experts and academics on both sides. The question of resilience has often not been given that much importance as countries have focused more on the policy changes they can make to combat climate change, but in some cases it has to be acknowledged that climate change is already happening and we have to look at ways to manage it”.
US stands first in GHG Emission followed by China, the reason is that they do not address the carbon issue. US is now taking measures to keep the changes climate under check by asking the manufactures to keep in mind the climate change in every decision they will take during manufacturing, at the same time the agriculture department is asked to carry out farming with low GHG Emission.
He also suggested that India must focus on its Forest management as the Forest of the country is declining.
Realty Plus
Date: September 2, 2016 Edition: Mumbai Language: English
Circulation: 70,000 Page: Online
U.S. diplomat on climate change in Mumbai
On Friday, September 02, Realty Plus attended the address of U.S. Special Envoy for Climate Change Dr. Jonathan Pershing, the Co-chair of the U.S.-India Joint Working Group on combating climate change. Speaking to the select media and students of Xavier Institute of Communications in Mumbai, he spoke about the environmental and the climate-related outcomes of U.S.- India Strategic and Commercial Dialogue in New Delhi. According to him, the present generation was the first to experience the effects of climate destruction and the last to do something to correct the environmental damage.
Answering the query of the Realty Plus editor on how to help the bottom of the pyramid, which is the most impacted segment by the socio-economic fallout of environmental change, Dr. Pershing said the combination of technology with the low cost on ground solutions could be one of the answers. He added, "The bottom of the pyramid individuals in any country harm the environment the least but are affected the most by the policies governing the climate change across the globe. The Paris Agreement in a way has been a success as in a very short period of time countries voluntarily submitted their own individual efforts towards reducing climate damage. Once ratified, it would be a big step in the right direction.”
Dr. Pershing explaining the U.S.-India Joint Working Group policy focus said that the emphasis is on the bilateral exchange of ideas, technology and experts & academicians in the areas of air quality, forestry, capacity building and clean energy. "The countries till now have been resilient, concentrating more on policy formulations but we need to acknowledge the fact that the climate change is already happening and we have to start taking proactive measures to manage it”, he stated emphatically.
Maharashtra Times
Date: September 3, 2016 Edition: All Editions Language: Marathi
Circulation: 350,000 Page:
कार्बन उत्सर्बनाचे भान र्ाळगले नाही!
Maharashtra Times | Sep 3, 2016, 03.23 AM IST
कार्बन उत्सर्बनाचे भान र्ाळगले नाही! अमेरिकेचे विशेष दूत र्ोनाथन पिशशिंग यािंची कर्ुली म. टा. विशेष प्रतततनधी, मुिंर्ई
र्नतेला मुर्लक प्रमाणात िीर् उपलब्ध करून देताना ऊर्ाबतनशमबतीच्या क्षेत्रात कार्बन उत्सर्बनाचे भान आम्ही र्ाळगले नाही. गेल्या ६० िषाांत चीननेदेखील ५०० दशलक्ष लोकािंना िीर् देण्याचे उद्दिष्ट गाठताना तोच ककत्ता गगिविला. त्यामुळेच आर् चीन ि अमेरिका हे प्रदूषणकािी हरितगृह िायू उत्सर्बन किण्यात र्गात अनुक्रमे पद्दहल्या आणण दुसऱ्या क्रमािंकाचे देश ठिले आहेत, अशी कर्ुली अमेरिकेचे हिामान र्दल या विषयाििील विशेष दूत डॉ. र्ोनाथन पिशशिंग यािंनी शुक्रिािी मुिंर्ईभेटीत द्ददली. ओर्ामा प्रशासनात हिामान र्दल या विषयात डॉ. र्ोनाथन पिशशिंग यािंचे स्थान खूप ििचे आहे ि सध्या याच शमशनसाठी ते भाितदौऱ्यािि आहेत. प्रदूषणकािी ग्रीनहाऊस गॅसतनशमबतीत ऊर्ाबतनशमबतीतील हेळसािंडीचा िाटा एक तृतीयािंशच असला, तिीही र्ागततक स्तिािि यार्ार्तीत एकत्रत्रत प्रयत्न गिर्ेचे आहेत, असे प्रततपादन त्यािंनी सेंट झेविअसब कॉलेर्मधील िाताबलापात केले. कार्बनउत्सर्बन िोखण्यासाठी अमेरिकेने कोणते उपाय योर्ले, या प्रश्नािि ते म्हणाले की, आमच्या प्रत्येक तनणबयाच्या मुळाशी आता हिामान र्दल हा विषय आहे. कायाबलयातील कम््युटिसह कोणत्याही चीर्िस्तू खिेदी किताना कार्बनउत्सर्बन आटोक्यात ठेिून त्यािंची तनशमबती झाली आहे ना, यािि आमचा कटाक्ष असतो. भािताचे पिंतप्रधान निेंद्र मोदी यािंनीही हिामान र्दलाचा मुिा तनणबयप्रकक्रयेत अग्रस्थानी ठेिला आहे, हे स्िागताहब आहे. महािाष्र, उत्ति प्रदेश येथेही हेच होताना द्ददसत आहे.
कार्बन उत्सर्बन थािंर्िण्यासाठी सािेच देश काम कित आहेत़ अमेरिकेने सुरुिात केली आहेे़ र्े साद्दहत्य कार्बन उत्सर्बनाचे तनयम पाळून तयाि किण्यात आले आहेत तेच साद्दहत्य खिेदी किण्याचा आमच्या सिकािचा कल असतो, असेही डॉे़ पिशसिंग यािंनी स्पष्ट केलेे़ पयाबयी उर्ेचा िापि िाढिािा लागेल चीनमध्ये ५० कोटी लोकािंपयांत िीर् पोहोचलीे़ मात्र हे उद्दिष्ट गाठताना तेथे कार्बन उत्सर्बनाचे भान ठेिले गेले नाहीे़ भाितातही र्ि गािोगािी अशाच प्रकािे िीर् पोहोचिली गेली ति येथेही विर्तनशमबती िाढेल, पयाबयाने कार्बन उत्सर्बनही िाढेल़ कािण भाितात औव्ष्णक उर्ाबतनशमबतीचे प्रमाण अगधक आहेे़ नितिंत्रज्ञानाद्िािे याला पयाबय शोधािा लागेल़ पयाबयी उर्ेचा िापि िाढिािा लागेल आणण सौि-पिन उर्ेचे तिंत्रज्ञान पििडणाऱ्या दिात उपर्ल्ध किािे लागतील, असेही डॉे़ पिशसिंग यािंनी सािंगगतलेे़
Loksatta
LOKSATTA
Date: September 3, 2016 Edition: Mumbai Language: Marathi
Circulation: 2,50,000 Page:
भारताकडून पयाावरणस्नेही ऊजाा पयाायाांची अमेररकेची अपेक्षा
वीजेच्या ननर्मातीसाठी कोळसा हा सवाात स्वस्त पयााय आहे
खास प्रनतननधी, म ांबई | September 3, 2016 2:27 AM
र्गातील एकूण कार्बन उत्सर्बनात चीन आणण अमेरिकेचा िाटा तब्र्ल ४५ टक्के असल्याचे कर्ूल कितानाच पाच टक्क््ािंहून कमी उत्सर्बन किणाऱ्या भािताने पयाबििणस्नेही उर्ाबपयाबयािंचा िापि किािा, अशी अपेक्षा हिामानर्दलाचे अमेरिकेचे विशेष िार्दूत डॉ. र्ोनाथन पेिशशिंग यािंनी हयक्त केली. अमेरिकी िककलातीने सेंट झेवियसब महाविद्यालयात शुक्रिािी आयोव्र्त केलेल्या कायबक्रमात ते र्ोलत होते. र्ागततक तापमानर्दलार्ार्त पॅरिस येथे झालेल्या किािासहीत इति र्ार्ीिंिि सिकािशी चचाब किण्यासाठी डॉ. पेिशशिंग भाितदौऱ्यािि आले असून हिामानर्दलाचा िेग कमी किण्यासाठी भाित ि र्गातील इति िाष्रािंकडून अपेक्षक्षत उपक्रमािंची त्यािंनी माद्दहती द्ददली.
िीर्ेच्या तनशमबतीसाठी कोळसा हा सिाबत स्िस्त पयाबय आहे आणण त्यामुळे अमेरिका, चीनसह र्गभिात कोळशाचाच प्रामुख्याने िापि होतो. मात्र कार्बन उत्सर्बनात एक तृतीयािंश द्दहस्सा हा कोळशापासून िीर्तनशमबतीतून िाताििणात पसिणाऱ्या कार्बनचा आहे. भाितातील प्रत्येक घिात िीर् पोहोचिणे पिंतप्रधान मोदीिंचे स्ि्न सत्यात आणताना कोळशाला पयाबय ठिणाऱ्या अपाििंपरिक उर्ाबस्रोतािंचा िापि किायला हिा, असे डॉ. पेिशशिंग म्हणाले. चीनपाठोपाठ अमेरिकेचा कार्बन उत्सर्बनात मोठा िाटा आहे. मात्र अमेरिकेने कोळशापासून िीर्तनशमबती केली तेहहा अन्य पयाबय समोि नहहते. गेल्या दहा िषाांत सौिउर्ेचा खचब तनम्माहून कमी झाला असल्याने अगधकागधक द्दठकाणी हा पयाबय िापिता येईल, असेही ते म्हणाले.
भाितासोर्त होत असलेल्या चचेत प्रदूषण कमी किण्यािि भि, त्यासाठी अमेरिका ि भाितीय तज्जज्ञािंचे हयिस्थापन, उर्ाबतनशमबती, र्िंगले आदी विविध विषयािंिि चचाब केली र्ाईल. पयाबििणपुिक होण्यासाठी प्रत्येक प्रकल्पात आिश्यक ते मुिे टाकण्याचे धोिण सिकािने तयाि किािे आणण सामान्यािंनी कोणतेही उत्पादन िापिण्यापूिी त्याच्यामुळे पयाबििणािि होणाऱ्या परिणामाचा विचाि किािा असेही डॉ. पेिशशिंग यािंनी स्पष्ट केले. हिामानर्दलाच्या परिणामािंचे िास्ति सगळयािंना पटल्याचे स्पष्ट होत आहे. पॅरिस किािातील मुिे आता प्रत्यक्षात आणण्यासाठी प्रयत्न किणे गिर्ेचे आहे, असेही पेिशशिंग म्हणाले.