UNEP DTU Partnership has entered in to a new partnership with the Korean Green Technology Center. Building on the results and research in the Technology Needs Assessment (TNA) project this new partnership between the two research institutions will further enhance the understanding and action on technology needs for climate action in developing countries.
The agreement that marks the beginning of a formal partnership was signed following a high-level visit to UNEP DTU Partnership’s offices in UN City in Copenhagen, on Thursday the 13th of June.
The purpose of the agreement is to create a framework of collaboration to address the climate technology needs of developing countries. This covers technology needs for both reducing greenhouse gas emissions and reducing the vulnerability to the impacts of climate change.
“We are starting with very specific areas, but we want to expand our collaboration in the future. This partnership will pave the way for both institutions to develop and expand on research that can create results in terms of implementation of climate technology,” says President, Dr Byung-ki Cheong of the Green Technology Center.
A partnership built on experience
The new agreement aims to build on the work carried out by UNEP DTU Partnership on supporting developing countries through the global TNA project. Through this programme more than 80 developing countries have been assisted in determining their own demands and barriers for climate technology, and has moved closer to financing of their projects. The new partnership also expands on previous joint work through the UNFCCC Climate Technology Centre and Network between UNEP DTU Partnership and the Green Technology Center.
UNEP DTU Partnership has been working on transfer of climate technologies to address climate change for almost 30 years, and has since 2009 has been the executing agency of the Global Environment Facility funded TNA project.
In cooperation with the UNEP DTU Partnership, Green Technology Center is already contributing to the TNA project by adding a climate technology classification system mapping technology needs from developing countries.
Director of UNEP DTU Partnership, John Christensen, sees a lot of similarities between the two research institutions and points to the new partnership’s potential for adding knowledge on the much needed transfer of green technology.
“UNEP DTU Partnership and Green Technology Center have a lot in common in our work with supporting developing countries with their Technology Needs Assessments and sustainable climate technology transitions. Creating this new formal partnership is a natural evolution, which I believe will continue even stronger in the years ahead of us,” he says.
Two research institutions join forces
Green Technology Center is a government research institution under the coordination of South Korea’s Ministry of Science and ICT. It works to promote green climate technologies that cope with climate change through research and development of both policy, mitigation and adaptation platforms, and international cooperation.
With this partnership, UNEP DTU partnership joins forces with a strong partner in climate technology research. The Green Technology Center has a large number of Technical Assistance projects through the UN’s Climate Technology Centre & Network, and represents Korea at the UN climate change negotiations.
Dr Dong Un Park, Director of the Center for Climate Technology Cooperation at the Green Technology Center also points to the centre work on the TNA project:
“There are many commonalities between our two institutions, the size, approach and goals are all very similar. The most important area of cooperation is building on the TNA’s, where we have developed a very helpful classification system for climate technology.”
He adds that both UNEP DTU Partnership and the Green Technology Center also share a main goal of doing results oriented research.
“We are very keen on continuing studying the data of the TNA project to further facilitate the technology transfer to developing countries and create real outcomes.”
Common goals
UNEP DTU Partnership and the Green Technology Center has not only worked successfully together in the past, but share common goals for protection and support of our environment as well as the international climate goals set forth in the Paris Agreement in 2015.
With the aim of consolidating, developing and intensifying the collaboration to further these common goals, the agreement will cover the following preliminary themes:
- Development of a climate technology classification system based on information from the Global Technology Needs Assessments Project
- Development of a tool for the evaluation of climate technology needs from developing countries, building on Technology Needs Assessment methodology
- Collaboration towards implementation of actual projects in developing countries
- Perform other climate technology related work
This list is not exhaustive and the agreement is open to any other form of cooperation between the UNEP DTU Partnership and Green Technology Center – Korea on issues of common interest.
