PUTTING COLOMBIA’S LOW-CARBON STRATEGY INTO ACTION

Colombia has assumed the commitment to separate its economic growth from the production of Greenhouse Gasses (GHG), which is why strengthening the relationship between productive activities, sustainability, conservation, the reduction of environmental impacts, and climate change mitigation is essential.

 

Although the largest amount of emissions in the country is attributed to deforestation and forest degradation, economic sectors and citizens are part of the problem and also part of the solution.

 

Since 2012, the Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development in Colombia has led the Colombian Low Carbon Development Strategy, whose first phase ended in 2016. This first phase resulted in the characterization of sectoral mitigation scenarios, the development and approval of Sectoral Action Plans (SAPs) and the construction of the country target for emission reductions (20% by 2030), which was presented to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change in Paris in 2015.

 

In 2018, the Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development, in association with two international cooperation projects, started the second phase of the ECDBC. The first of one, “Capacity building for national contribution” is implemented by UNDP and financed by the Spanish Cooperation Agency (AECID), the European Union, and the German government. The second, implemented by Fondo Acción, called “Putting Colombia’s Low-Carbon Development Strategy into Action: Implementation Phase,” is part of the International Climate Initiative (IKI), an initiative belonging to the Ministry of Environment, Nature Protection, and Nuclear Safety (BMU) of the Federal Republic of Germany, which supports the International Climate Initiative as the result of a decision approved by the German Parliament.  

 

During the development of this second project led by Fondo Acción, actions and processes will be identified and implemented in regions of the country to demonstrate that the low carbon approach is possible.

 

What are we looking for?

 

To show the economic sectors and the citizens that it is possible and crucial to direct the country’s efforts towards an economic growth low in emissions of greenhouse gasses, and that it is also possible to do it around the country.

 

Who will we do this with?

 

This project will be developed in four regions where efforts will be focused on the design and development of training plans in climate change mitigation, support for low-carbon demonstration projects, project formulation, and the development of communication strategies to strengthen the appropriation of knowledge in climate change mitigation. The direct beneficiaries of this initiative will be local authorities, entrepreneurs and business owners who are looking for alternatives to reduce their impact on the environment, as well as citizens who urgently need alternatives to reduce GHG emissions and ensure a planet for both present and future generations.

 

Regions

 

-Region 1: Antioquia, Norte de Santander, Santander, and Chocó.

-Region 2: Tolima, Huila, Boyacá, Cundinamarca, and Bogotá D.C.

-Region 3: Córdoba, Cesar, Sucre, Bolívar, Atlántico, Magdalena, La Guajira and San Andrés, Providencia and Santa Catalina.

-Region 4: Caldas, Risaralda, Quindío, Valle del Cauca, Nariño and Cauca.