Bridges Trade BioRes • Volume 7 • Number 16 • 21st September 2007

Events

For a more comprehensive list of events in trade and sustainable development, please refer to ICTSD’s web calendar, http://www.trade-environment.org/page/calendar.htm.

Coming up in the next two weeks

17-23 September, Oxford, England: CLIMATE CHANGE: SCIENCE, POLITICS AND THE MANAGEMENT OF UNCERTAINTY. Even with the latest Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change report making ever clearer the scientific consensus about humanity’s contribution to global warming, the severity of its impact remains highly uncertain. This conference, hosted by Deutsche Wissenschaft, the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft, and the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office, will consider the difficulties of making policies to address the problems of global warming within a context of such uncertainty. internet: http://www.21stcenturytrust.org/2007.html#1

18-27 September, Geneva, Switzerland: JOINT MEETING OF THE FAO PANEL OF EXPERTS ON PESTICIDE RESIDUES IN FOOD AND THE ENVIRONMENT AND THE WHO CORE ASSESSMENT GROUP ON PESTICIDE RESIDUES (JMPR). This meeting will consider a list of substances scheduled for evaluation. The list has been prepared by the Joint FAO/WHO Secretariat of the Meeting and is based on recommendations of the Codex Committee on Pesticide Residues (CCPR), previous Expert Meetings, and direct requests from governments, other interested organisations, and producers of substances that have been evaluated previously. internet: http://www.fao.org/ag/AGP/AGPP/Pesticid/JMPR/DOWNLOAD/2007JMPRcallfinall.pdf

19-21 September, Bern, Switzerland: NEW APPROACHES TO PLANT BREEDING OF ORPHAN CROPS IN AFRICA. This conference is being organised by the University of Bern. It will bring together scientists from both developed and developing countries to discuss techniques that could be implemented in a scheme of orphan crop improvement. Orphan (neglected or lost) crops are crops of high economic value in developing countries, particularly in Africa. These include cereal crops (such as millet and tef), legumes (cow pea, grass pea, and bambara groundnut), and root crops (cassava and sweet potato). In addition, the future prospects and feasibility of modern biotechnology in African agriculture will be discussed. internet: http://www.botany.unibe.ch/deve/orphancrops/index.htm

24 September, New York, USA: UN HIGH LEVEL MINISTERIAL MEETING ON CLIMATE CHANGE. A high-level ministerial meeting is being planned to take place during the UN General Assembly sessions in September. The event is tentatively scheduled for 24 September 2007, at UN headquarters in New York. internet: http://www.un.org/ga/61/

27-28 September, Washington, DC, USA: US-HOSTED MEETING OF MAJOR ECONOMIES ON ENERGY SECURITY AND CLIMATE CHANGE. US President Bush has issued invitations to major economies to attend this meeting, including the EU, France, Germany, Italy, UK, Japan, China, Canada, India, Brazil, South Korea, Mexico, Russia, Australia, Indonesia, South Africa and the UN. internet: http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2007/08/20070803-7.html

1-3 October, Davos, Switzerland: SECOND INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON TOURISM AND CLIMATE CHANGE. This conference will seek to set in place the research and policy measures that will enable tourism to respond to the challenges of climate change and at the same time reduce the industry’s own contributions to global warming. It is organised by the UN World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) together with the UN Environment Programme, and with support from the World Economic Forum (WEF) and the Swiss Federal Government. internet: http://www.unwto.org/climate/index.php

4-5 October, Oslo, Norway: TECHNICAL WORKSHOP MEETING ON EMISSIONS FROM AVIATION AND MARITIME TRANSPORT. This workshop is organised by Norway with the assistance of the European Environment Agency (EEA). internet: http://www.eionet.europa.eu/training/bunkerfuelemissions

Other upcoming meetings

15-16 October, Stratford-upon-Avon, UK: SUSTAINABILITY IN FOOD AND AGRICULTURE: THE ROLE OF THE PRIVATE SECTOR AND GOVERNMENT. Organised by the International Food & Agricultural Trade Policy Council (IPC). Recognising that agriculture and food security face a range of pressing challenges from increasing population growth to global warming, IPC will bring together international food and agricultural trade experts, environmental experts, farm leaders, government officials, and agribusiness and food retail executives to discuss how the private sector and governments can best address these sustainability challenges. The seminar will also discuss the role of trade in the sustainability debate. internet: http://www.agritrade.org/events/sustainability_agriculture.html

22-23 October, Minneapolis, Minnesota: LESSONS FROM NAFTA: BUILDING A NEW FREE TRADE AGENDA. The purpose of this meeting is to gather North American researchers, policymakers and activists to review NAFTA’s past, learn about efforts to expand free trade, and exchange ideas on building a new fair trade agenda. internet: http://events.iatp.org/index.php?q=node/4

15-16 November, Nusa Dua Bali, Indonesia: INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON OIL PALM AND ENVIRONMENT 2007. This is an international conference on oil palm and the environment and will be a featured event in the lead up to UNFCCC COP-13 in Bali in December this year. It will highlight environmental issues in the oil palm industry and provide a forum for participants to share experiences and possible solutions that benefit both the environment and the industry. internet: http://www.insinyur-kimia.com/v2/index.php?modul=detail&catID=39&key=2222

20-22 November, Kuala Lampur, Malaysia: FIFTH ROUNDTABLE MEETING ON SUSTAINABLE PALM: PROMOTING THE GROWTH, TRADE IN AND USE OF SUSTAINABLE PALM OIL. Participants will discuss the latest developments on bringing sustainable palm oil to the marketplace and developing, verifying, and implementing global standards on sustainable palm oil production. Of special interest will be the unveiling of the Roundtable’s Certification System, which should be a significant step in opening the door to creating a sustainable palm oil market. internet: http://www.rspo.org/5th_Roundtable_Meeting_(RT5)_on_Sustainable_Palm_Oil.aspx

27-27 June 2008, Villa Erba, Como, Italy. FIRST GLOBAL CONFERENCE ON GMO ANALYSIS. This conference aims to address the science and technology underpinning genetically modified organism (GMO) control and analysis by bringing together international experts willing to share knowledge and participate in promoting international scientific dialogue across diverse yet interdependent areas such as sampling for GMO analysis, consistency of test results, result interpretation and reporting, and harmonizing standards for detection of genetically modified traits. internet: http://gmoglobalconference.jrc.it/menu.htm