Reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions can be accomplished through policies, programs or projects conceived specifically for that purpose. Or it can be achieved with policies, programs or projects designed to meet immediate development priorities such as improving urban air quality, water quality, and waste management while taking into account longer term climate concerns. Policies, programs, or projects considering both development and climate objectives can deliver co-benefits.
In recent years, a variety of stakeholders in Asia have demonstrated that integrating co-benefits into decision-making processes can reduce GHG mitigation costs or bring carbon finance to development needs. However, the absence of a mechanism to share information and coordinate stakeholders on these issues has hampered mainstreaming co-benefits into national development strategies and plans as well as sectoral policies, programs, or projects in Asia.
In June 2009 during the first International Forum for a Sustainable Asia and the Pacific (ISAP) in Hayama, Japan, policymakers and experts proposed creating an informal network to improve stakeholder cooperation and knowledge management on co-benefits in Asia. After ISAP 2009, representatives from leading international organisations and government agencies held follow-up meetings in Bangkok, Thailand to further define the goals, membership, functions and activities, and implementing arrangements for an "Asian Co-benefits Partnership." Based upon the support received at those meetings, the Asian Co-benefits Partnership (ACP) was formally launched at the Better Air Quality 2010 conference in Singapore with the support of 100 participants and the Ministry of the Environment, Japan. Find out more in the ACP work plan.
The ultimate goal of the ACP is to support the mainstreaming of co-benefits into sectoral development plans, policies and projects in Asia. The ACP will serve as an informal and interactive platform to improve information sharing and stakeholder coordination on co-benefits in Asia.
- ・ Information sharing and knowledge management, including knowledge generation and dissemination
- ・ Enhanced communication among ACP members
- ・ Development of co-benefits policies and projects in Asia
- ・ Strengthening of regional cooperation to promote co-benefits
Advisory Group
An Advisory Group provides advice to the Secretariat on the ACP and its activities. Members of the Advisory Group are:
- ・ Asian country representatives:
・ Policy Research Center for Environment and Economy (PRCEE), China
・ Ministry of Environment and Forestry, Indonesia (MOEF)
・ Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (MONRE) Pollution Control
Department (PCD), Thailand
・ Ministry of the Environment, Japan (MOE) - ・ International organizations and networks:
・ Asian Development Bank (ADB)
・ Clean Air Asia (CAA)
・ Climate and Clean Air Coalition (CCAC)
・ International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD)
・ Regional Resource Centre for Asia and the Pacific, Asian Institute of
Technology (RRC.AP/AIT)
・ Stockholm Environment Institute (SEI)
・ United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the
Pacific (UNESCAP)
・ United Nations Environment Programme, Regional Office for Asia and the
Pacific (UN Environment)
・ United Nations University-Institute of Advanced Studies (UNU-IAS)
Secretariat
The Institute for Global Environmental Strategies (IGES) serves as the secretariat for the Partnership.
Partners
ACP members include various stakeholders working on co-benefits in Asia, including government agencies, international development organizations, academe, civil society and the private sector.
Since the Partnership is an informal platform, both individuals and institutions working on co-benefits, including government agencies, international organizations, academic institutions, civil society groups, and their representatives that is interested in or willing to work on co-benefits in Asia are welcomed to join the ACP and contribute to activities described in the work plan. Join the ACP
