“Climate Action Now!”

The President of South Africa, Mr Kgalema Motlanthe, displayed a keen interest in SAEON’s initiatives to make environmental science accessible to the youth (Picture © Stephen Matiwane, DST) SAEON’s Avinash Chuntharpursat (left) at the SAEON stand with Kogi Iyer, Deputy Director: Climate Change at the Department of Science and Technology (Picture © Mitzi du Plessis)

As an exhibitor at the Climate Change Summit  held in Midrand in March, SAEON made full use of the opportunity to network with over 700 delegates from government, business, labour and civil society who attended the Summit.

The SAEON stand was housed within the pavillion of the Department of Science and Technology (DST), and attracted a steady stream of interested delegates. These included the President of South Africa, cabinet ministers and senior officials.

What was particularly noteworthy was the large number of delegates who visited the SAEON stand to investigate possible synergies with the research projects and activities they are involved in.

The Summit, which was jointly organised by the Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism and other key government departments such as DST, laid the foundations for a participatory process that will culminate in a Policy White Paper on climate change by 2010, and the translation of this policy into a legislative, regulatory and fiscal package by 2012.

In line with the Summit theme of “Climate Action Now!”, and in order to meet the challenge of implementation, the policy development process will proceed with a sense of great urgency.

The Summit was designed to be forward-looking - translating political will and the best available scientific evidence into policy and action. But it was also a celebration of what South Africa has achieved over the past four years.

“Since the first climate summit in 2005, we have made major strides by integrating climate change issues with the daily work of government, business and civil society. We have much to be proud of,” said Marthinus van Schalkwyk, Minister of Environmental Affairs and Tourism.

“The 2009 Climate Change Summit was a seminal event. As a milestone on the road to building a national consensus on the country’s long-term climate policy, the Summit far exceeded our expectations. There could not have been a stronger expression of political will by government and other stakeholders, a deeper understanding of the compelling scientific evidence that will inform policy-making, or a greater commitment to moving forward with implementation than what we have witnessed,” said Van Schalkwyk.