PARMIONOVA: March 2015

Sunday, 22 March 2015

Climate Knowledge for climate Action is the theme of the World Meteorological Day 2015

"Знания о климате для климата действий"

" Climate knowledge for climate action "

"El conocimiento del clima para la Acción Climática"

«Climat: comprendre pour agir»

“气候知识支持气候行动”

’المعارف المناخية من أجل العمل المناخي‘

United Nations Secretary-general message on the World Meteorological Day 2015, March 23rd.

Extreme weather and changing climatic patterns are having a growing impact on our planet and on human well-being. In the last three decades, floods, storm surges, droughts and wildfires have taken a huge toll in lives and caused massive economic losses. The devastation caused by Cyclone Pam in Vanuatu and other parts of Oceania is just the latest example of how catastrophic weather extremes can be.

Climate change is increasing the intensity and frequency of these extremes and threatening water and food security in many parts of the world. Mitigating climate change and adapting to it are among the great tests of our time. To rise to these challenges, we will need timely, reliable information for decision-making and action, delivered to those who need it, in a form that is accessible and usable. Over the last twelve months, thousands of lives have been saved in India, the Philippines and elsewhere by improved weather forecasting, early-warning systems and evacuation plans.

Information products and services based on climate predictions can assist in strengthening climate resilience. This is the aim of the Global Framework for Climate Services, initiated by the World Meteorological Organization with other United Nations partners to facilitate the use of climate information to reduce disaster risk, promote food and water security, and safeguard public health.

Last week, Sendai, Japan, hosted the Third United Nations Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction -- the first milestone in a critical year of action on sustainable development. In July, the world will gather in Addis Ababa to discuss financing for development. Leaders will hold a summit in New York in September to adopt a new development agenda, including a set of sustainable development goals to guide us through 2030. We aim to close out the year in Paris in December with a meaningful, universal climate agreement.

Climate resilience is an important thread that runs through this year of decision-making on our future well-being. On World Meteorological Day, I urge all actors in society to heed this central message. Armed with knowledge, we can overcome the climate challenge and create safer, more prosperous societies for all.

Ban Ki-moon

Message from M. Jarraud,Secretary-General of the World Meteorological OrganizationOn the occasion of “World Meteorological Day 2015 – Climate knowledge for climate action”

The World Meteorological Organization, as the successor of the International Meteorological Organization, created in 1873, has its fundamental mission to support the countries of the world in providing meteorological and hydrological services to protect life and property from natural disasters related to weather, climate and water, to safeguard the environment, and to contribute to sustainable development. This cannot happen without the necessary observations, research and operations that develop the understanding and knowledge of weather and climate.

Since 1961, World Meteorological Day has commemorated the coming into force on 23 March 1950 of the Convention establishing the World Meteorological Organization and the essential contribution that National Meteorological and Hydrological Services make to the safety and wellbeing of society. Each year, the celebrations focus on a theme of topical interest. The theme of this year, “Climate knowledge for climate action”, could not be timelier, as the international community moves towards ambitious decisions and action to address climate change.

Climate change concerns us all. It affects almost all socioeconomic sectors, from agriculture to tourism, from infrastructure to health. It impacts strategic resources like water, food, energy. It slows down and even threatens sustainable development, and of course not only in developing countries. The cost of inaction is high and will become even higher if we do not act immediately and resolutely.

Information on weather and climate, and its variability and change, is so embedded in our daily life– from daily weather forecasts to seasonal climate predictions – that at times it is easy to forget the amount of observations, research, computing and analysis that lies behind weather and climate information products. Today, the average weather forecast of five days in advance is as skillful as the two-day forecast twenty-five years ago and seasonal climate forecasts have become increasingly skillful. This has been made possible thanks to advances in remote sensing, including satellites, major improvements in science and dramatic increases in computer power. Scientific progress in meteorology and climatology in the last fifty years is indeed one of the most significant one in all scientific disciplines.

The climate knowledge that has been built in the last decades is an invaluable resource and a prerequisite for decision-making and for climate action. Multiple lines of evidence – from mounting temperatures to shrinking glaciers, from sea-level rise to weather extremes – give us high confidence that the climate is changing and that this is largely due to human activities, in particular the emissions of greenhouse gases that every year reach record high levels.

Science also gives us high confidence that we can still change course and mitigate climate change to a manageable level. Today, few people contest the evidence of climate change and the responsibilities we bear towards future generations. Climate knowledge can and must support this process, helping decisionmakers at all level to make the best decisions.

Climate knowledge must come in a form that is easily understood and usable by those who need it. Climate products and services can assist city planners in developing policies and action plans that can strengthen urban resilience in the face of natural disasters and foster a greener economy.

Public health authorities use climate forecasts to address in a proactive way the possible health consequences of extremes such as droughts, heatwaves and floods. Thanks to predictions about temperature and rain trends, farmers can make better planting, cropping and marketing decisions. Water resources managers use climate information to optimize water supply and flood management. The energy sector uses climate information to decide where and what type of power plant should be built in a particular location.

The Global Framework for Climate Services, an initiative of the United Nations System led by WMO, was conceived with precisely this purpose: to enable the provision of climate services in a way that decisions can be made based on the best possible information. This is a crucial challenge for both developing and developed countries and there is a great potential benefit in learning from each other. Experiences and advances in the development and application of climate services can be shared as examples of good practices and assist other countries in accelerating their path towards climate adaption.

In conclusion, I call on WMO Members, all Governments and the civil society to share and apply climate knowledge for a strong climate action, to minimize climate risks and foster sustainable development.

M. Jarraud

Forum : World Meteorological Day - 23 March
Download the brochure in: English

Events : In March 2015, a new blueprint for action on disaster risk reduction, replacing the first Hyogo Framework for Action (HFA), will be adopted in Sendai, Japan, at the Third UN World Conference on Disaster Risk Reduct i on. In December, the United Nations Framework Convention for Climate Change (UNFCCC) aims to achieve a new universal agreement on climate. Its Green Climate Fund (GCF) will support projects, programmes, policies and other activities in developing countries toward adaptation and mitigation to counter climate change.

Documents :

Friday, 20 March 2015

World Water Day 2015, March 22nd.

Всемирный день водных ресурсов, 22 марта.

世界水日, 3月22日.

World Water Day, 22 March.

Día Mundial del Agua, 22 de marzo.

Journée mondiale de l'eau, 22 mars.

اليوم العالمي للمياه - 22 مارس

A day for water and water for sustainable Development

Тема дня 2015 года «Вода и устойчивое развитие»

2015年主题：水与可持续发展.

2015 Theme : Water and Sustainable Development.

Tema 2015 : «Agua y Desarrollo Sostenible ».

Thème 2015 : L’eau et le développement durable.

موضوع عام 2015: المياه والتنمية المستدامة

United Nations Secretary-General’s Message for the World Water Day 2015.

This year, as the UN prepares to adopt a new post-2015 sustainable development agenda in September, World Water Day highlights the essential and interconnected role of water. We rely on water for public health and equitable progress, it is essential for food and energy security, and it underpins the functioning of industries.
The onset of climate change, growing demand on finite water resources from agriculture, industry and cities, and increasing pollution in many areas are hastening a water crisis that can only be addressed by cross-sectoral, holistic planning and policies – internationally, regionally and globally.
Among the most urgent issues are access to safe drinking water and sanitation. Despite progress under the Millennium Development Goals, adopted in 2000, some 750 million people -- more than one in ten of the world’s population -- remain without access to an improved water supply. Women and children, in particular, are affected by this lack, as not only is their health compromised, but considerable hours are wasted in the unproductive – and sometimes dangerous – business of collecting water.
The statistics on sanitation are even less encouraging. Some 2.5 billion people still live without improved sanitation, and a billion people practice open defecation, making sanitation the least successful area of the MDGs. We cannot achieve a world of dignity, health and prosperity for all until we address this urgent need.
Our sustainable future is also jeopardized by climate change, which is why United Nations Member States are working hard towards a meaningful, universal climate agreement this December in Paris. Over the coming years, greenhouse gas emissions will have to significantly decline in order to avert the worst impacts of climate change, which include changed weather patterns and the threat of water scarcity in large parts of the world.
To address the many challenges related to water, we must work in a spirit of urgent cooperation, open to new ideas and innovation, and prepared to share the solutions that we all need for a sustainable future. If we do so, we can end poverty, promote global prosperity and well-being, protect the environment and withstand the threat of climate change.

Forum : World Water Day - March 22

The theme of 2015 it’s about how water links to all areas we need to consider to create the future we want. Learn more about the theme and join the global celebrations by organizing your own event.
Join the 2015 campaign to raise awareness of water and sanitation. You can also contribute on social media though the hashtags #WaterIs and #WorldWaterDay.

WWDR 2015 Facts and Figures
- English ǀ Français ǀ Español
Full World Water Development Report 2015:
- The World Water Development Report, Water for a Sustainable World
- Facing the Challenges, Case studies and Indicators

WWDR 2015 (Water for a Sustainable World).

Overarching Message

Water is at the core of sustainable development. Water resources, and the range of services they provide, underpin poverty reduction, economic growth and environmental sustainability. From food and energy security to human and environmental health, water contributes to improvements in social well-being and inclusive growth, affecting the livelihoods of billions.

Message 1: water provides a range of benefits and services that are key factors in achieving sustainable development and inclusive growth, that are vital to nearly all forms of economic activity and that underpin the livelihoods of
billions.

Message 2: water resources are renewable but the amounts available at any time or place will reflect the limits of their natural cycle. When managed within these limits, they establish a sustainable basis for development. Exceeding these limits or abusing the resource
through unsustainable growth patterns can undermine development, compromise the health of ecosystems, and impoverish vulnerable communities.

Message 3: water resources and services have been a key factor in the progress made in the last 30 years, contributing to improvements in health, food security, social equity, economic growth and environmental sustainability and playing a role in improving the livelihoods of hundreds of millions lifted out of poverty.Unfortunately, this progress has not been evenly distributed across the globe and much still needs to be done in most places.

Message 4: water management and decisions affecting water will play a key role in addressing the new development challenges of the middle of the 21stcentury, including urbanization, sustainable industrial development and economic growth, eradicating persistent poverty, ensuring food and energy security, responding to new patterns of consumption and conserving threatened ecosystems.

Message 5: the many values and benefits of water resources and the ecosystem services that provide them should be more fully taken into account in the calculation of social and economic costs and benefits of development decisions and investments in water management.
When efficiently and transparently managed, investments in water generate social, economic, financial and other benefits that greatly outweigh its costs

Message 6: water management enhances the security and resilience of and reduces risks faced by vulnerable people and ecosystems threatened by unsustainable = patterns of demand, pollution, changes to climate and land-use patterns and increasing exposure to extreme events.

Message 7: the decisions that determine how water resources are used (or abused) are not made by water managers alone. Progress towards sustainable development thus requires engaging a broader range of political actors–in government, civil society and business–to take account of water in their decision-making processes and responses.

Events : World Water Day 2015

Water is urbanization (Every week, one million people move into cities.)