Exchange on public policies on water resources and climate management
Conference “Climate Policy in Portugal” , an instance to share experiences on water and climate change took place in Montevideo, Uruguay. February 2020.
Water and Climate Change
In order to promote knowledge exchange between governments and technicians, last Thursday, February 27, 2020, the conference “Climate Policy in Portugal” was held at the UNESCO Regional Office in Montevideo. The event was organized by the Ministry of Environment and Climate Action of Portugal, the Portuguese Embassy in Uruguay and the UNESCO Intergovernmental Hydrological Programme for Latin America and the Caribbean – Montevideo Office. The activity was an instance to share experiences on water and climate change having the presence of representatives, authorities and technicians.
Portuguese government authorities were represented by the Minister of Environment and Climate Action, Mr. João Pedro Matos Fernandes; the Chief of Staff of the Ministry of Environment and Climate Action, Ms. Ana Cisa; the Secretary General of the Environment, Mrs. Alexandra Ferreira de Carvalho; the member of the EPAL Board of Directors, Ms. Ana Sofia Silveira; the President of the Portuguese Water Society, Ms. Alexandra Serra; the Coordinator of Lisbon International Center for Water (Lis-Water), Mr. Jaime Melo Baptista; the Portuguese Representative of Parley of the Oceans, Ms. Daniela Coutinho; and the Commander of the NRP Sagres, Mr. Mauricio Camilo.
The Uruguayan institutions in charge of water resources and climate change policies were represented by the National Director of Water, Mr. Daniel Greif; and the Director of Climate Change; Mr. Ignacio Lorenzo, representatives of the Ministry of Housing Territorial Planning and Environment.
The presentations were focused on policies and tools for climate variability management: National Water Plan and National Climate Change Policy of Uruguay, route of Portugal for carbon neutrality in 2050, digital tools for more efficient water management, institutional reform of the Portuguese water sector and Portuguese multi municipal model, micro plastics and marine waste, and “SAIL Project – Space – Atmosphere Interactions – Ocean in the Marine Limit Litter”.
The opening was in charge of representatives of the UNESCO Office in Montevideo Mr. Guillermo Anlló, Officer in Charge; and Ms. Serena Heckler, Ecological and Earth Sciences Programme Specialist. Ms. Heckler provided a regional perspective on the networks of the Science Programmes: the IberoMAB Network, the UNESCO World Geoparks Network and the Intergovernmental Hydrological Programme-LAC, coordinated at Montevideo Office.
For the Regional Hydrologist of the UNESCO Intergovernmental Hydrological Programme for Latin America and the Caribbean, Mr. Miguel Doria “this event was a great opportunity for the exchange on water resources policies and climate change. The instance was enriched thanks to the participation of representatives and authorities of national and international institutions of both countries.”
The UNESCO Montevideo Office and its climate change objectives
This conference accompanies the work on one of the main objectives of the UNESCO Office in Montevideo for Latin America and the Caribbean of contributing to social and environmental resilience, through capacity building and assisting in for the development of government plans to prevent threats generated by climate change and natural disasters.
Complementing the efforts made by governments, institutions, local and regional organizations, the UNESCO Montevideo Office contributes through technical advice, identification, formulation and implementation of projects and programmes at local or regional level, and the promotion of knowledge exchange among technicians.