An Assignment on International Agreements on Climate Change : A Special Emphasis to Paris Agreement Course Title. Environmental Management Course No. PAD-473 Semester 4/1 Name Reg. No Biback Das 2015237019 Aklima Akther 2015237026 Taslima Zannat 2015237032 Antara Parvine Liza 2015237061 A.S.M Mohaimin 2015237067 Submitted By Submitted To Mustofa Kamal Lecturer Department of Public Administration Submission: 03/04/2019 Department of Public Administration Shahjalal University of Science and technology, Sylhet-3114  Introduction Without a healthy and clean environment, human beings will be deprived of their right to a healthy and productive life. We have learnt substantially how environmental pollution is taking away our rights to such life. So, to keep the biodiversity and environment in a healthy condition is the need of the hour. Environment and more specifically environmental pollution has no political boundaries. The air polluted in one region can be transmitted to thousands of miles without the manmade barriers. Thus, environmental pollution, global warming, climate change and other related issues have been given more weight at international forums and symposia. A number of efforts are being made at international and national levels to maintain the equilibrium and resilience characteristics of the ecosystems with the objective to make them sustainable and productive. These efforts are given the nomenclature of international conventions or conferences and protocols. Sometimes those efforts are going into in vain because of various nations on the based on their own motives. A good number of conferences, treaties, protocols are held at various parts of the world for protecting our nature. Protecting our nature is of our concern as well as global issues. Climate change may be caused to sea level rise, global warming, melting ice-burg at the poles which is to detrimental for human beings because of our adaptability on earth will be vanished if keeping the present status of our environment. Due to rapid industrialization, developed countries as well as other countries are trying to set up industries and making their economy powerful and change their production and consumption level which falls impact of environment and increasing the Green House Gases whose are the main culprits of global warming. Conceptual framework Agreement: A negotiated and usually legally enforceable understanding between two or more legally competent parties. Convention: A convention begins as an international meeting of representatives from many nations that results in general agreements about procedures or actions they will take on specific topics. Treaty: A treaty is an agreement where the parties to it negotiate to reach common ground and avoid further conflict or disagreement. It is normally ratified by the law making authority of government whose representative has signed it. Protocol: A protocol is an agreement that diplomatic negotiator formulates and signs as the basis for a final convention or treaty. Distinguish Between Treaty and Agreement Treaty Agreement A formally concluded ratified and binding agreement between sovereign state and international organizations A agreement between the government heads of two or more nations Legally binding between two states Politically binding between the heads of two states. Purpose varies – peace, trade, independence, reparations, territorial boundaries, human rights, immigration etc. Purpose is political negotiations with other nations and trade agreements Between two sovereign states and between states and international organizations or between international organizations. Only between the heads of two or more states or nations. Ratified by legislature Not necessarily ratified by legislature. Mainly two types of treaties as bilateral treaties and multilateral treaties. Types include those authorize by a previous formal treaty or by a previous law those subsequently approve by law and those relating to matters over which is the executive branch has special executive authority. Ex: Treaty of Versailles, UN Charter, Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, Tokyo Convention Ex: Yalta agreement, NAFTA, and G.H.W, Bush’s trade agreement with Japan. Earth Summit the Earth Summit brought together representatives of 172 governments from all over the world to address key environmental and sustainability issues. Documents emerging from the conference included the Rio Declaration on Environment and Development comprising of 27 principles of sustainable development, the action plan Agenda 21 and the Forest Principles, a set of recommendations for managing the world's forests. Although it could be argued that these documents lacked legal clout, they represented a declaration of intent and a step toward establishing a global sustainability agenda. Two legally relevant agreements were opened for signature, the Convention on Biological Diversity and the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). Background: The relationship between economic development and environmental degradation was first placed on the international agenda in 1972, at the UN Conference on the Human Environment, held in Stockholm. After the Conference, Governments set up the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), which today continues to act as a global catalyst for action to protect the environment. Little, however, was done in the succeeding years to integrate environmental concerns into national economic planning and decision-making. Overall, the environment continued to deteriorate, and such problems as ozone depletion, global warming and water pollution grew more serious, while the destruction of natural resources accelerated at an alarming rate. By 1983, when the UN set up the World Commission on Environment and Development, environmental degradation, which had been seen as a side effect of industrial wealth with only a limited impact, was understood to be a matter of survival for developing nations. Led by Gro Harlem Brundtland of Norway, the Commission put forward the concept of sustainable development as an alternative approach to one simply based on economic growth — one “which meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs”. After considering the 1987 Brundtland report, the UN General Assembly called for the UN Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED). The primary goals of the Summit were to come to an understanding of “development” that would support socio-economic development and prevent the continued deterioration of the environment, and to lay a foundation for a global partnership between the developing and the more industrialized countries, based on mutual needs and common interests, that would ensure a healthy future for the planet. The Earth Summit Agreements In Rio, Governments — 108 represented by heads of State or Government — adopted three major agreements aimed at changing the traditional approach to development: Agenda 21 — a comprehensive programme of action for global action in all areas of sustainable development; The Rio Declaration on Environment and Development — a series of principles defining the rights and responsibilities of States; The Statement of Forest Principles — a set of principles to underlie the sustainable management of forests worldwide. In addition, two legally binding Conventions aimed at preventing global climate change and the eradication of the diversity of biological species were opened for signature at the Summit, giving high profile to these efforts: The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change – this is held annually since 1992. and The Convention on Biological Diversity – this is held after 2 years since 1994. Agenda 21 Agenda 21 is a global action plan for sustainable development into the 21st century. Sustainable development is a process that aims to meets the needs of the present generation without harming the ability of future generations to meet their needs. It is not only about particular environmental issues such as species extinction and pollution but also about economic progress which meets all our needs without leaving future generations with fewer resources than we enjoy. It can be seen as a way of living from nature's income rather than its capital account. Sustainable development is not easy to achieve; it often demands changes in lifestyle particularly if we continue to use up non-renewable natural resources, as we do at present, if we ignore the plight of the poor or if we continue to pollute and waste, then we can expect a decline in the quality of life. Agenda 21 forms the basis for a "global partnership" to encourages cooperation among nations as they support a transition to sustaining life on earth. The central belief is that all countries can protect the environment while simultaneously experiencing growth. The Agenda is a non-binding programme of action, which was adopted by more than 178 Governments at the 'Earth Summit' in 1992. Although the Agenda lacks the force of international law, the adoption of the texts carries with it a strong moral obligation to ensure implementation of the strategies. The implementation of the Agenda is primarily the responsibility of governments, through national strategies, plans, policies and procedures. International and regional organizations are also called upon to contribute to this effort. Critical to the effective implementation of the objectives, policies and mechanisms agreed by the governments in all programme areas of Agenda 21 will be the commitment and genuine involvement of all institutions and social groups. The Agenda comprises 40 chapters (arranged in 4 Sections), which address all levels of social organisation, from national and local governments through to development agencies, non-governmental organizations and community-based organizations, in every area in which human activity impacts upon the environment. Each chapter describes a programme area and comprises four parts: the basis for action, objectives, activities and means of implementation. Agenda 21 is a 350-page document divided into 40 chapters that have been grouped into 4 sections:  Section I: Social and Economic Dimensions is directed toward combating poverty, especially in developing countries, changing consumption patterns, promoting health, achieving a more sustainable population, and sustainable settlement in decision making.  Section II: Conservation and Management of Resources for Development includes atmospheric protection, combating deforestation, protecting fragile environments, conservation of biological diversity (biodiversity), control of pollution and the management of biotechnology, and radioactive wastes.  Section III: Strengthening the Role of Major Groups includes the roles of children and youth, women, NGOs, local authorities, business and industry, and workers; and strengthening the role of indigenous peoples, their communities, and farmers.  Section IV: Means of Implementation includes science, technology transfer, education, international institutions and financial mechanisms. The Rio Declaration on Environment and Development The 1992 Rio Declaration on Environment and Development defines the rights of the people to be involved in the development of their economies, and the responsibilities of human beings to safeguard the common environment. The declaration builds upon the basic ideas concerning the attitudes of individuals and nations towards the environment and development, first identified at the United Nations Conference on the Human Environment (1972). The Rio Declaration states that long term economic progress is only ensured if it is linked with the protection of the environment. If this is to be achieved, then nations must establish a new global partnership involving governments, their people and the key sectors of society. Together human society must assemble international agreements that protect the global environment with responsible development. There are a number of principles to the Rio Declaration. People are entitled to a healthy and productive life in harmony with nature. Development today must not threaten the needs of present and future generations. Nations have the right to exploit their own resources, but without causing environmental damage beyond their borders. Environmental protection shall constitute an integral part of the development process. Eradicating poverty and reducing disparities in living standards in different parts of the world are essential if we are to achieve sustainable development whilst meeting the needs of the majority of the people. Environmental issues are best handled with the participation of all concerned citizens. The polluter should, in principle, bear the cost of pollution. Sustainable development requires better scientific understanding of the problems. Nations should share knowledge and technologies to achieve the goal of sustainability. The Statement of Forest Principles In addition to Agenda 21, the conference also issued a detailed statement of principles for a global consensus on the management, conservation and sustainable development of all types of forest. As with Chapter 11 of Agenda 21, the overall focus was to stress a balance between conservation and sustainable exploitation. UNCED called for these to be kept under „assessment for their adequacy with regard to further international cooperation on forest issues" The Statement of Forest Principles, the non–legally binding statement of principles for the sustainable management of forests, was the first global consensus reached on forests. Among its provisions: That all countries, notably developed countries, should make an effort to “green the world” through reforestation and forest conservation; That States have a right to develop forests according to their socio-economic needs, in keeping with national sustainable development policies; and That specific financial resources should be provided to develop programmes that encourage economic and social substitution policies. The United Nation’s Framework Convention on Climate Change The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC or FCCC) is an international environmental treaty created at the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED), informally known as the Earth Summit, held in Rio de Janeiro from June 3 to 14, 1992. The United Nations Climate Change Conferences are annual events held in the framework of UNFCCC. The conferences are held to assess the progress made in efforts to deal with climate change. These conferences serve as the formal meeting of the UNFCCC Parties and are popularly called Conference of Parties (COP). Palestine became the 197th party to UNFCCC in 2016. Objectives of UNFCCC To stabilize Greenhouse Gas concentration to such a level that would prevent human induced interference with the climate system within a timeframe. To enable the ecosystems to adapt naturally to climate change to ensure that food production is not threatened and to enable economic development to proceed in a sustainable manner. Conference of The Parties ( COP ): The COP is the supreme decision making body of the convention. All states that are parties to the convention are represented at which the review the implementation of the convention and any other legal instrument that the COP adopts and take decisions necessary to promote the effective implementation of the convention, including institutional and administrative arrangements. The first UN Climate Change Conference or Conference of Parties (COP 1) was held in 1995 in Berlin. Conference of Parties 1 1995: COP 1, Berlin, Germany 2 1996: COP 2, Geneva, Switzerland 3 1997: COP 3, Kyoto, Japan 4 1998: COP 4, Buenos Aires, Argentina 5 1999: COP 5, Bonn, Germany 6 2000: COP 6, The Hague, Netherlands 7 2001: COP 6, Bonn, Germany 8 2001: COP 7, Marrakech, Morocco 9 2002: COP 8, New Delhi, India 10 2003: COP 9, Milan, Italy 11 2004: COP 10, Buenos Aires, Argentina 12 2005: COP 11/CMP 1, Montreal, Canada 13 2006: COP 12/CMP 2, Nairobi, Kenya 14 2007: COP 13/CMP 3, Bali, Indonesia 15 2008: COP 14/CMP 4, Poznań, Poland 16 2009: COP 15/CMP 5, Copenhagen, Denmark 17 2010: COP 16/CMP 6, Cancún, Mexico 18 2011: COP 17/CMP 7, Durban, South Africa 19 2012: COP 18/CMP 8, Doha, Qatar 20 2013: COP 19/CMP 9, Warsaw, Poland 21 2014: COP 20/CMP 10, Lima, Peru 22 2015: COP 21/CMP 11, Paris, France 23 2016: COP 22/CMP 12/CMA 1-1, Marrakech, Morocco 24 2017: COP 23/CMP 13/CMA 1-2, Bonn, Germany 25 2018: COP 24/CMP 14/CMA 1-3, Katowice, Poland 26 2019: COP 25/CMP 15/CMA 2, Santiago, Chile 27 2020 and onwards The Convention on Biological Diversity The Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), known informally as the Biodiversity Convention, is a multilateral treaty. The Convention has three main goals including: the conservation of biological diversity (or biodiversity); the sustainable use of its components; and the fair and equitable sharing of benefits arising from genetic resources. In other words, its objective is to develop national strategies for the conservation and sustainable use of biological diversity. It is often seen as the key document regarding sustainable development. The Convention was opened for signature at the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro on 5 June 1992 and entered into force on 29 December 1993. CBD has two supplementary agreements - Cartagena Protocol and Nagoya Protocol. The Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety to the Convention on Biological Diversity is an international treaty governing the movements of living modified organisms (LMOs) resulting from modern biotechnology from one country to another. It was adopted on 29 January 2000 as a supplementary agreement to the Convention on Biological Diversity and entered into force on 11 September 2003. The Nagoya Protocol on Access to Genetic Resources and the Fair and Equitable Sharing of Benefits Arising from their Utilization (ABS) to the Convention on Biological Diversity is a supplementary agreement to the Convention on Biological Diversity. It provides a transparent legal framework for the effective implementation of one of the three objectives of the CBD: the fair and equitable sharing of benefits arising out of the utilization of genetic resources. The Nagoya Protocol on ABS was adopted on 29 October 2010 in Nagoya, Japan and entered into force on 12 October 2014, 90 days after the deposit of the fiftieth instrument of ratification. Its objective is the fair and equitable sharing of benefits arising from the utilization of genetic resources, thereby contributing to the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity. Kyoto Protocol The Kyoto Protocol is an international agreement linked to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, which commits its Parties by setting internationally binding emission reduction targets. Recognizing that developed countries are principally responsible for the current high levels of GHG emissions in the atmosphere as a result of more than 150 years of industrial activity, the Protocol places a heavier burden on developed nations under the principle of "common but differentiated responsibilities." The detailed rules for the implementation of the Protocol were adopted at COP 7 in Marrakesh, Morocco, in 2001, and are referred to as the "Marrakesh Accords." Its first commitment period started in 2008 and ended in 2012. Background Between 1979 and 1990, the issue of climate change was brought up and discussed in various scientific and intergovernmental conferences. In 1991, the intergovernmental Negotiating Committee for a Framework Convention on Climate Change (INC) under the United Nations was established to prepare a convention and the United nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (The Convention) was adopted in May 1992. In June 1992, the Convention was opened for signature at the Earth Summit held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. One Hundred and fifty four Parties signed the Convention at the Earth Summit, and the number of parties was increased to 188 in mid-February 2003. The Convention entered into force in 1994. In 1995, INC was dissolved and COP became the convention’s decision making body. At the first session of COP held in 1995, delegates agreed that commitments of developed countries were inadequate, and thus COP launched the Berlin Mandate talks on additional commitments of developed countries. In 1997, Kyoto Protocol, a legal instrument, was adopted at the third session of COP to consolidate commitments of developed countries on climate change. Objectives of Kyoto Protocol 1) To intend to cut global emissions of Green-house gases 2) To stabilize the atmospheric concentration of CO2 emissions worldwide would need to be dramatically reduced from their present level. Commitment Periods: The Kyoto Protocol has had two commitment periods, the first of which lasted from from 2008-2012. The second one runs from 2013-2020 and is based on the Doha Amendment to the protocol, which has not entered into force. Paris Agreement The Paris Agreement builds upon the Convention and for the first time brings all nations into a common cause to undertake ambitious efforts to combat climate change and adapt to its effects, with enhanced support to assist developing countries to do so. As such, it charts a new course in the global climate effort. Background The twenty-first Conference of Parties or CoP21 of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) came to an end with all the 195 member countries of the planet agreeing to the “Paris Agreement” after a long session from November 29 to December 11, 2015 at Le Bourget in Paris. As the gavel came down on the last and extended session of CoP21, all the countries and citizens of the world breathed a sigh of relief. Because CoP21 came against the backdrop of two great failures - the Kyoto Protocol (KP) and the CoP15 at Copenhagen in 2009, during which the parties in question could not come to an agreement. This enhanced the risks for rapid increase in climate change as evidenced from accelerating extreme weather-related events across the world. The KP had agreed in 1997 on a 5 percent reduction of greenhouse gases (GHG) with the reference baseline of 1990 by the industrialised countries. Unfortunately, the KP also met with a total failure as, led by US, several other major emitters including Russia, Canada, Japan and Australia walked out of the KP causing the collapse of the only GHG reducing global agreement. From the early implementation of KP, the widely heralded three Kyoto instruments and the emergence of a carbon market resulted in a drastic and disastrous collapse. Thus, there was a lot of skepticism about whether Paris would get an agreement at all. If there was no agreement in Paris, the planet was destined to experience temperature above 3 degrees centigrade by 2100. This would challenge the planetary human civilisations, its food, water and livelihood securities as well as increase the likelihood of a drastic reduction in the number of species and greater acidification of the oceans. All the countries would experience dramatic rise in extreme environmental conditions and also threaten the possibilities of poverty reduction and the newly emerging SDGs. Hence the global risks were too high for the economy, development and environment.  US President, within minutes of the conclusion and adoption of the Paris Agreement, congratulated everyone and termed the success as 'huge'. The  US and the umbrella group China, Russia, India, developing country grouping G-77, the Least Developed Country (LDCs) group, the Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS) and Africa group- all seemed to be happy with the outcome. When probed, it appeared that each group found that their issues of concern were included though their nuances may have been modified.  Secretary General of the UN Ban Ki moon termed the Paris Agreement as “a health insurance policy for the planet” and “a great success.” Objectives: 1) To strengthen the global response to the threat of climate change by keeping a global temperature rise this century well below 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels and to pursue efforts to limit the temperature increase even further to 1.5 degrees Celsius. 2) To strengthen the ability of countries to deal with the impacts of climate change. To reach these ambitious goals, appropriate financial flows, a new technology framework and an enhanced capacity building framework will be put in place, thus supporting action by developing countries and the most vulnerable countries, in line with their own national objectives. Consequences of Paris Agreement: Leaders upfront  It is the first time that all the key heads of states and government came up in front in the beginning of the conference. They laid out their positive expectations and high hopes for the agreement and the need for success. This had created an atmosphere of a positive outcome. Focus on the science and risks  All countries and groups realised that the science was very bold and clear. Missing this opportunity would force the different planetary systems (atmosphere, oceans, biodiversity, social, institutional and human systems) beyond recovery and everyone would suffer, despite the levels and differences in technological advancement. Furthermore, some technologies and management systems have already evolved to give several solutions. No country or group wanted to be held responsible for the failure of the negotiations as the stakes were too high for everyone.  Focus on agreement The Ministerial (backed by experts and bureaucrats) high level session in the last days had decision makers engaged and it included many of their respective concerns and issues. There were “fudges and compromises” but an agreement and a positive outcome were ensured albeit devoid of the many details and specifics.  Ambitious and purposeful The focus of innovation was to make the agreement look ambitious and purposeful. Here the key decision makers using the science and sense of urgency emphasised the key issues of rapid mitigation needs for all countries.  The discussion in the early days was confined within 2 degree centigrade. Soon 2 degree centigrade was made the ceiling and a more serious and ambitious floor was asserted at 1.5 degree centigrade. It may be noted that in Copenhagen Bangladesh had placed 1.5 degree centigrade as the preferred objective on behalf of the LDCs and most vulnerable states.     Wider inclusion  Wider ranging progressive issues were  incorporated to include concerns of various groups of Parties. An example was to include text such as “Acknowledging that climate change is a common concern of humankind, Parties should, when taking action to address climate change, respect, promote and consider their respective obligations on human rights, the right to health, the rights of indigenous peoples,  local communities, migrants, children, persons with disabilities and people in vulnerable situations and the right to development, as well as gender equality, empowerment of women and intergenerational equity”.  The Agreement, moreover, in other sections included issues of poverty reduction, universal access to sustainable energy to developing countries and also greater participation of all partners. The agreement also included all the stakeholders of party and non-party actor with text, such as “Agreeing to uphold and promote regional and international cooperation in order to mobilize stronger and more ambitious climate action by all Parties and non-Party stakeholders, including civil society, the private sector, financial institutions, cities and other sub national authorities, local communities and indigenous peoples”. Finance - the bottom line  The Paris Agreement was bold on quantum of finance beyond 2020, where 100 billion US dollars was given as a floor and to build on it. This was appreciated by developing countries. Though Green Climate Fund was the established mechanism, how the allocation of fund will be distributed amongst industrialised country parties was not clarified, who will contribute how much was not decided either. In the corridors after the agreement, industrialised countries were hoping for funds to come from rich or rapidly emerging industrialising countries. So who will receive funds was not made specific. Future follow-up was thus left to future negotiations. Flexibility, complexity and challenges  This approach was also appealing to many parties to support the Paris Agreement. Obviously such an over-arching and all encompassing document will need to have enormous flexibility which the critics may even call contradictory.  Paris Agreement and Bangladesh In Cop21, Bangladesh had a team led by the Minister of Environment and Forests which included a team of parliamentarians. A team of senior government officials and experts worked hard and closely under the leadership of the Secretary, Environment and Forests. Dr. Q. K. Ahmed was the coordinator of the expert group for the negotiators. There was also a large presence of scientists, think tanks, civil society organisations, NGOs, private sector and media from Bangladesh in Paris. Government of Bangladesh had a country booth and the civil society networks had their own booth. Both these areas became useful meeting places as well as areas of rapid exchange of ideas, information and documents. The Bangladesh delegates worked well together focusing on issues of their concerns and interacted well within G77, LDC, and the Climate Vulnerable Forum (CVF) groups. Besides, both the Government and civil societies were well engaged in several side events and many bilateral meetings and negotiations. The Bangladesh civil society groups presented side events on Bangladesh grassroots people's perceptions and expectations from Paris, loss and damage research, migration issues, health services to vulnerable groups, arranging press conferences as well as interacting with the Climate Action Network (CAN) and its regional groups and contributed to “ECO”, the conference journal. Government of Bangladesh also organised well attended press conferences and explained their positions on issues and approaches. One question often asked is “What did Bangladesh get out of Paris?” Unfortunately, that is the wrong question as these are global negotiations undertaken in groups. The general interest of the planet predominates and group interests are attended to. The countries or parties have to ensure their interests are protected and respective issues get the best outcome the global decisions can accommodate.  It is for sure, that there is tremendous goodwill for Bangladesh across the board because of the intense and multiple vulnerabilities of Bangladesh, its efforts during and outside the CoP process, its leadership and innovative roles in various Government and non-Government groups, its scientific research and output and its institutional mechanisms and actions at home. Bangladesh has been mentioned in several seminars as the “Adaptation Capital of the world”. Its mitigation actions, particularly millions of poor households with solar home systems have also been well recognised. Bangladesh leadership in adaptation, particularly community based adaptation is well known to many participating delegates, practitioners and scientists. These were evident in different forums in CoP21. Follow-up on Paris Agreement The Paris agreement will give rise to a large number of activities in many sectors such as finance, mitigation, adaptation, capacity building, disaster management, governance, planning monitoring  and evaluation, agriculture and food, energy, water, forestry, infrastructure, health, fisheries, coastal, ecosystem services, transport, land, local government, human rights, gender integration, regional cooperation, to mention a few. It will need a huge amount of expertise as well as a specific institution and dedicated human resources. Many of these issues are going to be long-term activities (5-15 years and more), while initially some short-term activities (1-2 years) may emerge as follow-up to the Paris Agreement. Several senior officers have emerged as experts in the Ministries of Environment and Forest, disaster management, foreign affairs and starting to develop expertise in finance (ERD) and planning and integrating in infrastructural and social issues. Recent training and capacity building initiatives in the country have exposed another large group of government officials and experts to climate change issues. Beyond that and often in collaboration with the government, a few independent thinks tanks, research organisations and individuals have developed a reputation of being world leaders. But there is a need to develop a much larger number of experts and disciplines of expertise to address the forthcoming challenges. Climate change is no more a sub-set of environment. It encompasses many issues of environment, development, foreign affairs, energy, social science, law, technologies and private sector delivery systems. There has long been a discussion in some government, civil society and planning sectors to set up a new Ministry of Climate Change in Bangladesh. This would follow many other countries which have already developed such initiatives. This would attend to the large and emerging issues of climate change and also enable the country to prepare itself for much of the new finances coming under climate change. Further, this would address many technology and market issues that emanate out of Paris Agreement initiatives. As a start, the officials and experts who have already been trained and exposed to climate change issues could be brought together to be the core of such a new Ministry of Climate Change. If a softer approach is preferred by the policy makers, a high powered National Climate Change Commission could be set up under the leadership of the Prime Minister to consider the right approach, time frame and integration of agencies to enable the formation of a Ministry of Climate Change or any other name it deems appropriate. Achieving Bangladesh 2021 vision and SDGs To achieve the vision of becoming a middle income country by 2021 and rich country by 2041, it is crucial that Bangladesh is capable of integrating all aspects of climate change into its planning and delivery of services to the citizens and ecosystems. In an emerging SDG world, this would be a progressive and major step for Bangladesh to achieve its sustainable development goals.  For this to be efficient there is an absolute need to strengthen the Ministry of Environment and Forests with appropriate expertise to address the red (high pollution and industrial management, legal and implementation issues, etc.) brown (medium pollution, agriculture, land, social management, etc.) green (conservation, afforestation, ecosystem services, etc.) and blue (water: internal and marine, static and flow, quality and safety issues).  Climate change initiatives To take leadership role in a post-Paris Agreement world Bangladesh could and should take a number of activities that will build capacity, prepare for significant fund mobilisation and move rapidly forward to the sustainable development pathway with reduction of climate risks. There is a need for an exercise regarding what individual agencies of the government, research community, civil society and private sector can do. But we can always start with a few key activities. Let us remember that Bangladesh has very little obligation. Bangladesh must choose the path which meets its development aspirations as well as the need for climate impact reduction and/or contribute to low carbon growth pathways. A set of actions that can be immediately activated as a priority is given below. These are only a set of examples that can be initiated urgently on a priority basis. These include activities on both adaptation and mitigation.  Implementing BCCSAP  Set up task forces to stimulate the Bangladesh Climate Change Strategies and Action Plan (BCCSAP) on each of the six pillars. (1) Food Security, Social Protection and Health;  (2) Comprehensive Disaster Management;  (3) Infrastructure Development;  (4) Research and Knowledge Management;  (5) Mitigation and low-carbon development; and  (6) Capacity Building and Institutional Development Light for all by Photovoltaic Lanterns: With the advancement of the Solar Home Systems, now it is urgent to ensure that every household in Bangladesh can be provided with solar lanterns. The social transformation potential of this is enormous and is also cost-effective. It is definitely cheaper than the subsidies given to urban electricity users. Thus "light for all" initiative can bring light and cell phone charging facilities to reach all remote areas and households of the country. This would be the greatest contribution to safety net, poverty alleviation and literacy for all as priotised in the Seventh Five-Year Plan. Safe drinking water and sanitation for all climate affected population: This is a major challenge but will reach a key objective for sustainable development and public health of the affected population in vulnerable areas impacted by climate change including cyclones, floods and droughts. Improved cooking stoves for all: A campaign and programme can be launched with the support of local government, NGOs, schools and educational institutions to provide improved cooking stoves for all. This will reduce GHG, improve health, particularly of women, and reduce deforestation simultaneously.  Pilot phase for Local Adaptation Programme of Action (LAPA): Following the National Adaptation Programme of Action (NAPA), Local level (upazila or union level) Adaptation Programme of Action (LAPA) can be initiated in selected climate affected ecosystems. Once generic lessons have been learned this could be used for country-wide programme on adaptation.  Responding to Paris Agreement, SDGs and sustainable development  As we enter the SDG world the demand on both the Ministry of Environment and Forests and a future Ministry of Climate Change will be enormous and most essential for the sustainable development of Bangladesh. Paris Agreement, however weak, is likely to generate new activities and significant finances. Bangladesh must be prepared institutionally and methodologically. The capacity to deliver must be developed for the new and global standards and opportunities as they emerge. There is no question that in terms of the future resource mobilisation, climate change will be one of the most important global instruments for major investment portfolio. For Bangladesh to achieve its vision, it must demonstrate both intention and capacity to mainstream and integrate climate change in its sustainable development path where poverty alleviation, delivery of climate services at the local level and integrating climate concerns in all infrastructural and social issues would be central. We must catch this bus and lead it to a progressive journey for sustainable development pathway for Bangladesh and demonstrate leadership in achieving the SDGs and the vision for Bangladesh.  United States withdrawal from the Paris Agreement On June 1, 2017, United States President Donald Trump announced that the U.S would cease all participation in the 2015 Paris Agreement on Climate Cahnge Mitigation. Trump stated that “ The Paris Accord will undermine the U.S economy, and puts the U.S at a permanent disadvantage. During the presidential campaign, trump had pledge to withdraw from the pact, saying a withdraw from the pact, saying a withdrawal would help American businesses and workers. Trump stated that the withdrawal would be in accordance with his America First Policy. In accordance with Article 28 of the Paris Agreement, the earliest possible effective withdrawal date by the United States cannot be before November 4, 2020, four years after the agreement came into effect in the United States may be obligated to maintain its commitments under the agreement, such as the requirement to continue reporting its emissions to the United Nations. While celebrated by some members of the Republican Party, international reactions to the withdrawal were overwhelmingly negative from across the political spectrum, and the decision received substantial criticism from religious organizations, businesses, political leaders of all parties, environmentalists, and scienctists and citizens from the United States and abroad. examinations of Trump’s speech had pointed to numerous fallacies, including, but not limited to, claims that the U.S., under the Paris Agreement, was forbidden to build coal power plants that a difference of 0.2 degrees Celsius is insignificant in climatology that U.S contributions to the Green Climate Fund were paid out of the U.S defense budget; projections that the U.S. is on course to become the cleanest nation on earth and trump’s reiterated claim of personal support for environmental causes. US, China Climate Moves Boost Paris Prospects Prospects for a new universal climate agreement in 2015 were today given a significant boost with China and the United States jointly announcing their contributions—many months earlier than had been expected. The two countries—the world’s biggest economies and largest emitters of greenhouse gases—announced on the margins of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation meeting in Beijing new measures to address their greenhouse gas emissions over the coming decades. Their announcement comes just hours after the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) released negotiating texts for the upcoming Lima climate conference including a draft decision on how nations will deliver their Intended Nationally Determined Contributions (INDCs) to the Paris agreement next year. Christiana Figueres, Executive Secretary of the UNFCCC, said: “These two crucial countries have today announced important pathways towards a better and more secure future for human-kind. Allied to the European Union’s recent announcement, this signals in an increasingly positive way a determination towards addressing the climate change challenge from a growing number of key economies”. “This joint announcement provides both practical and political momentum towards a new, universal climate agreement in Paris in late 2015 that is meaningful, forward-looking and recognizes that combating climate change is not a five or ten year plan—but is a long term commitment to keep a global temperature rise under 2 degrees throughout this century”, she said. “This positive momentum opens the door for all major economies and in particular all other industrialized nations to bring forward their contributions to the Paris agreement in a timely fashion over the coming months. Investors have long called for policy certainty. Today’s announcement is a firm and positive step towards that as we look towards Paris 2015, “added Ms Figueres. The United States announced that it would reduce its emissions by a range of between 26 per cent and 28 per cent by 2025 from its 2005 levels in order to achieve ‘economy-wide reductions on the order of 80 per cent by 2050’. China announced it would peak carbon dioxide emissions by 2030—with the intention to try and peak early—including through a far greater role for renewable energies and big improvements in areas like energy efficiency. The joint statement comes in the wake of the European Union’s announcement to cut emissions by at least 40 per cent by 2030 which it made last month. “Together these announcements send a clear signal to the private sector and the financial markets on where global policy is now heading. Thus these announcements have the potential to unleash and accelerate the kinds of entrepreneurship and innovation needed to propel all economies towards ever greater levels of ambition—if not significantly exceeding their ambitions-- en route to a low carbon, resilient world over coming years and decades, “said Ms Figueres. Parties to the UNFCCC will next meet in Lima, Peru in a few weeks’ time to advance a draft universal agreement with the aim of adopting it at the 21st Conference of the Parties taking place in Paris, France at the end of next year. Other countries are expected to announce their ‘Intended Nationally Determined Contributions’ in the first quarter of 2015—today’s announcement shows clear and early leadership on the part of the United States and China. Providing finance for the newly-operational Green Climate Fund is also expected to be an important piece towards a meaningful new agreement next year. Calls have been made for the fund to have pledges of at least $10 billion by the 20th Conference of the Parties taking place in Lima, Peru. Next week governments will gather at a pledging meeting for the GCF in Berlin, Germany. To date several governments have made pledges to the fund totalling nearly $3 billion, including voluntary contributions from two developing countries. Others are expected to pledge next week at the Berlin meeting. COP/24, Katowice, Poland 2018’s UNFCCC COP is to bring together national governments, academics, scientists and civil society groups to hopefully agree on a binding rulebook with which to implement the 2015 Paris Agreement. Criticisms: The overall umbrella and processes of the UNFCCC and the adopted Kyoto Protocol have been criticized by some as not having achieved its stated goals of reducing its emissions of carbon dioxide. The failure to achieve meaningful progress and reach effective-CO2 reducing-policy treaties among the parties over the past eighteen years have driven some countries like United States to never ratify the Unfccc’s largest body of work --- the Kyoto Protocol, in large part because the treaty didn’t cover developing countries who now include the largest CO2 emitters. However, this fails to consider the historical responsibility for climate change since industrialization, which is a contentious issue in the talks, and the responsibility of emissions from consumptions and importation of goods. It has led .Canada to withdraw from the Kyoto Protocol out of a desire to not force its citizens to pay penalties that would result in wealth transfers out of Canada. Canada formally withdraw from the Kyoto Protocol n 2011. Both then Us and Canada are looking at voluntary Emissions Reduction schemes that they can implement internally to curb carbon dioxide emissions outside the Kyoto Protocol. The perceived lack of progress has also led some countries to seek and focus on alternative high-value activities like the creation of the climate and clean air coalition to reduce Short-Lived Climate Pollutants which seeks to regulate short-lived pollutants such as methane, black carbon and hydroflurocarbons (HFC) which together are believed to account for up to / of current global warming but those regulation is not fraught with wide economic impacts and opposition. Conclusion The Paris Agreement provides a common framework within which individual countries are invited to define NDCs taking into account the overall goal of the Convention and the Agreement as well as their own capacities. The hoe is that with increased transparency and an ambitious overall target, countries will step forward with ambitious country contributions fall short of the overall goal and that the Paris Agreement remains a shell without sufficient action and support , unable to address the collective action problem of climate change.  References: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_withdrawal_from_the_Paris_Agreement (retrieved from 01/04/2019) https://www.thedailystar.net/supplements/new-year-special-2016/paris-agreement-and-the-bangladesh-perspective-195028 ( retrieved from 01/04/2019 ) https://unfccc.int/process-and-meetings/the-paris-agreement/what-is-the-paris-agreement ( retrieved from 01/04/2019 ) https://www.tutorialspoint.com/environmental_studies/environmental_studies_international_protocols.htm?fbclid=IwAR2slHOEis2WgEeCjnj5WUBM-mu0-m-NlLc--zyNXokMWJjuMfngALIHTKQ ( retrieved from 01/04/2019 ) The Paris Agreement Summary, Climate Focus Client Brief on the Paris Agreement III, 28/12/2015, Climatefocus. 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