Officials and delegates attending this year’s UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) NGO Forum in Taipei yesterday expounded their views on non-governmental organizations’ (NGO) roles in countering climate change and commented on Taiwan’s position on the issue.
Forum participants also touched on the topic of including women, Aborigines and the younger generation in the campaign and policymaking process regarding climate change and greenhouse gas reductions.
Environmental Protection Administration (EPA) Deputy Minister Yeh Shin-cheng (葉欣誠), citing the Fifth Assessment Report issued by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, said that with current worldwide emission levels, the international community is far behind the goal it set for 2020, which aims to cap temperature rise at between 1.5?C and 2?C.
Yeh highlighted the importance of international cooperation in resolving the crisis of climate change and called on members of the international community to form a consensuses on their energy and economic policies, while also setting development goals.
American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) Deputy Director Brent Christensen said that Taiwan and the US have been working together to address environmental issues over the past 20 years. He also congratulated the two countries on the International Environmental Partnership — an accord struck between the two countries in April.
Nauruan Ambassador to Taiwan Ludwig Keke underlined the significance of NGOs in the campaign to counter climate change, saying that they play a crucial role in the post-Kyoto Protocol era, particularly in aspects such as active mobilization and winning public support, which he said would pressurize governments around the world to frame laws and regulations to address issues related to climate change.
EU Representative to Taiwan Frederic Laplanche said that despite the efforts and contributions Taiwan has made to combat climate change, its lawmakers have been blocking the greenhouse gas reduction draft bill.
If Taiwan hopes to become a member of the UNFCCC, it needs to demonstrate more commitment to battling climate change and emissions, he said.
Death row inmate Huang Lin-kai (黃麟凱), who was convicted for the double murder of his former girlfriend and her mother, is to be executed at the Taipei Detention Center tonight, the Ministry of Justice announced. Huang, who was a military conscript at the time, was convicted for the rape and murder of his ex-girlfriend, surnamed Wang (王), and the murder of her mother, after breaking into their home on Oct. 1, 2013. Prosecutors cited anger over the breakup and a dispute about money as the motives behind the double homicide. This is the first time that Minister of Justice Cheng Ming-chien (鄭銘謙) has
Ferry operators are planning to provide a total of 1,429 journeys between Taiwan proper and its offshore islands to meet increased travel demand during the upcoming Lunar New Year holiday, the Maritime and Port Bureau said yesterday. The available number of ferry journeys on eight routes from Saturday next week to Feb. 2 is expected to meet a maximum transport capacity of 289,414 passengers, the bureau said in a news release. Meanwhile, a total of 396 journeys on the "small three links," which are direct ferries connecting Taiwan's Kinmen and Lienchiang counties with China's Fujian Province, are also being planned to accommodate
BITTERLY COLD: The inauguration ceremony for US president-elect Donald Trump has been moved indoors due to cold weather, with the new venue lacking capacity A delegation of cross-party lawmakers from Taiwan, led by Legislative Speaker Han Kuo-yu (韓國瑜), for the inauguration of US president-elect Donald Trump, would not be able to attend the ceremony, as it is being moved indoors due to forecasts of intense cold weather in Washington tomorrow. The inauguration ceremony for Trump and US vice president-elect JD Vance is to be held inside the Capitol Rotunda, which has a capacity of about 2,000 people. A person familiar with the issue yesterday said although the outdoor inauguration ceremony has been relocated, Taiwan’s legislative delegation has decided to head off to Washington as scheduled. The delegation
TRANSPORT CONVENIENCE: The new ticket gates would accept a variety of mobile payment methods, and buses would be installed with QR code readers for ease of use New ticketing gates for the Taipei metro system are expected to begin service in October, allowing users to swipe with cellphones and select credit cards partnered with Taipei Rapid Transit Corp (TRTC), the company said on Tuesday. TRTC said its gates in use are experiencing difficulty due to their age, as they were first installed in 2007. Maintenance is increasingly expensive and challenging as the manufacturing of components is halted or becoming harder to find, the company said. Currently, the gates only accept EasyCard, iPass and electronic icash tickets, or one-time-use tickets purchased at kiosks, the company said. Since 2023, the company said it
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