UNESCO supports 5th Regional Conference on Climate Change

The UNESCO Representative to the I.R of Iran, Esther Kuisch-Laroche, attended the opening session of the 5th Regional Conference on Climate Change held in the Olympic Hotel of Tehran. The theme of this year’s conference is “Global warming, droughts and sandstorms threatening the region”, AVA Diplomatic reports.

The conference was organized by the Iran Meteorological Organization and was attended by scientists, scholars, academicians and senior authorities from the Ministry of Roads, Transport and Urban Development, Ministry of Energy, Ministry of Interior, Ministry of Jihad-e-Agriculture and NGOs.

The Minster of Energy, Mr. Hamid Chitchian, stated that “It is now evident that Iran receives less precipitation as a result of climate change. With lesser water availability we need to revise our legislations.” Chitchian then referred to some of the measures taken by the Ministry of Energy of Iran to adapt to climate change, such as regulating water extraction from aquifers and using combined-cycle power plants.

In his opening remarks, the Head of Iran Meteorological Organization, Dr. Davoud Parhizkar, reviewed the different spheres of the earth and the impacts of global warming on these spheres and called for urgent action by all sectors in joint efforts for an integrated approach to climate change adaptation.

The Director and Representative of UNESCO Tehran Cluster Office, Ms. Esther Kuisch-Laroche, also addressed the opening of the conference. She thanked the organizers and mentioned that “Climate change is one of the defining issues of our time […] This is why more than 30 UNESCO programmes contribute to creating knowledge, educating and communicating about climate change, and to understanding the ethical implications for present and future generations”. Ms. Kuisch-Laroche said that 2015 had been a historically important year when it comes to climate change, as the agreement reached at the COP21 Conference in Paris marked a change in direction towards a new world.

During the opening of the conference, two outstanding Iranian scientists were given recognition for their important efforts in the field of climate change.

The conference was attended by senior authorities such as Dr. Najjar, Head of Iran National Disaster Management Organization and Dr. Nooriayn, Deputy Minister for Meteorology, Ministry of Roads, Transport and Urban Development.

The two-day conference will address three main subjects including: monitoring & early warning of climate change, impacts & risks of climate change, and climate change adaptation & reducing its negative impacts.