Papua New Guinea joins other 140 countries around the globe to commemorate the World Environment Day celebrations: Capital City Port Moresby takes the front stage

A CULTURE OF RESPECT AND HONOUR OF THE ENVIRONMENT IS ESSENTIAL TO A SUSTAINABLE FUTURE AND SUCCESS OF PLASTIC BAN:GOVERNOR PARKOP

By WANPIS AKO

The proposed plastic ban and the country's commitment to the Paris Climate Change Agreement will not be successful and realized unless serious steps are taken to develop a culture of respect, valuing and honoring the natural environment in a serious and tangle way.

This is the key message NCD Governor Powes Parkop delivered to participants at the launch of 2018 World Environment Day celebrations at Badihagwa Technical Secondary School in Port Moresby focused on the theme: "Stop the Plastic Pollution.”

NCD governor Parkop Parkop posing for a photo with the bird of paradise at its sanctuary of the Sanctuary Hotel and SPA at North Waigani in Port Moresby. pic-Jamie Pang

While welcoming the government decision to ban plastic bags, bottles and wrapping as a good start that was long over due, he challenged Minister John Pundari and the government to protect, preserve and conserve the environment and use it in a sustainable way starting with the declaration of 5th June as a national day for the environment.

Students from Badihagwa Technical Secondary outside Port Moresby. They participated in the celebration to mark the day.

Governor Parkop repeated his call for Government to declare it as a National Day of Action to protect, conserve and clean the environment for the country to stop dumping mine tailing in the river system and the sea, and to do more on reforestation by replacing every tree being cut!

NCD Governor Powes Parkop speaking at Badihagwa Technical Secondary School outside Port Moresby

“These actions are not just important to honour our international obligations and offer more to protect the environment but more importantly it will develop in us-as a people and a nation-a culture of respect and appreciation for the environment and its critical role to our survival. We had such culture before but we have lost it and instead valuing more the economic gains over the environment,” a concerned Parkop said.

Left to right: CEPA CEO Gunther Joku, Mr Ramuna and Governor Parkop

Governor Parkop emphasized that his call to declare the 5th of June as a national day of action is to enable the people to start developing these values in them as without respect and appreciating the importance of the natural environment, all country's effort-including plastic ban-would fail.

“We need to show we are serious. We also need to show we respect our environment. We need to show we honour our environment which we have inherited from our ancestors. When we make such commitment in serious way than our people will start to shift in their behavior and take action themselves to protect the environment including choosing not to use plastic bags,” he said.

Govenror Parkop explained that problems which are being faced in cities like Port Moresby is partly a result of 'our failure to develop or maintain a culture of respect and honour for our natural environment'.

”People spit and litter everywhere in Port Moresby because we have lost the culture of respecting and honoring our environment which our ancestors used to have. We need to restore that to make the stop plastic pollution a success and also stop the littering and spitting of our cities and towns," he said.

Minister for Environment, Conservation and Climate Change John Pundari and NCD Governor Powes Parkop at Badihagwa Secondary School to celebrate the World Environment Day

Drawing his experience from the Buai Ban, Mr Parkop asserted that without behavior and attitude change, the ban on plastic will not work.

"Banning alone will not balance the equation and the dynamics on the ground. People will find excuse or find ways to defeat the ban because they don’t take the goals of the ban seriously just like they have shown with buai ban," said Mr Parkop.

“Our people are succumbing to poor habits of no-respect for environment and being irresponsible because we have not maintained high environmental care standard. That’s why having a day of National Day of Action every year on the 5th of June is important and critical to shifting our people’s behaviors and attitude,” he uttered.

Mr Parkop wants the government to take the lead in seriously considering environmentally-friendly initiatives to clean and protect the environment, proposing dams for present and future mines to hold mine tailings and undertake reforestation in areas where trees have been harvested.

Governor Parkop welcomed the assurance from the Minister for Environment, Conservation and climate Change, Hon. John Pundari who said he was pushing for seeking Cabinet’s endorsement to declare June 05 World Environment Day as a Public Holiday.

Speaking at the launch, Mr Pundari agreed that behavioural change will play a significant role in protecting and cleaning the Environment, saying without which all efforts will be undertaken to no avail as it has been the case when similar bans were introduced.

PNG LNG Managing Director Andrew Barry and Governor Parkop

Minister Pundari said if all turned out his way, World Environment Day next year will see the country starts observing it as a public holiday, a national day to take action.

“The holiday, when endorsed, is not for us to enjoy and roam around in Port Moresby or not to clean the dirty streets of Port Moresby. We must develop culture and value system to take our environment seriously that we are going to take action and honour it as it has been passed on to us by our ancestors from generations immemorial.

“I am not calling for us to do it for the whole world but importantly for us so that our children here can turn around and respect the environment by way of replanting trees, stop littering, stop using plastics, not chewing betal nut and spit here and there.

“Thus, we can instil sense of respect and responsibility in them to take ownership of our city and the country, and save a better future and the many generations to come. I want the government to lead the way to develop this good positive system that we try to appreciate and build this life. Money, gold, oil and gas will be depleted. With environment, we will still survive as our ancestors,” he said.
#World_Environment_Day
#Beating_Plastic_Pollution
#Walk4our_environment
#Active_city_development_program

Author Reference: Wanpis Ako has graduated with a Bachelors Degree in Journalism and Public Relations. He has briefly worked with two daily newspapers of Papua New Guinea-The National and Post Courier. His work experience has been extended into the Prime Minister Media Unit and the office of Parliamentary Opposition Leader of Papua New Guinea- not to mention the Ministries of Treasury, Higher Education, Communications, Information Technology and Energy.  He has got over five years experience in digital marketing, branding, public affairs, media and public relations.   

GGGI INKS AN AGREEMENT WITH PNG TO PROVIDE SUPPORT IN ACCESSING CLIMATE FINANCE, A GESTURE FITTING TO MARK WORLD ENVIRONMENT DAY

GGGI signs an Implementation Agreement with the Independent State of Papua New Guinea to provide support in accessing climate finance

Dr. Frank Rijsberman, Director-General of GGGI and Mr. Ruel Yamuna, Managing Director of the Climate Change and Development Authority 

By GGGI

SEOUL, Republic of Korea, 4/06/ 2018 (GGGI) - The Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI) signed an agreement to implement a Green Climate Fund (“GCF”) project as a delivery partner for the Independent State of Papua New Guinea’s Climate Change and Development Authority (CCDA).

The Implementation Agreement was signed by Dr. Frank Rijsberman, Director-General of GGGI and Mr. Ruel Yamuna, Managing Director of the Climate Change and Development Authority of Papua New Guinea at the GGGI Seoul headquarters on May 31.

Under the Agreement, GGGI will support CCDA to strengthen its role as a National Designated Authority (“NDA”) to engage with, and access funds from GCF. Further, under close consultations with CCDA, GGGI will implement activities described in the Readiness Project, which include strengthening country capacity, engaging stakeholders in consultative processes and supporting private sector mobilization – all of which will help address climate resilience and low-carbon development.

This Implementation Agreement will help GGGI to provide support for Papua New Guinea (PNG) in accessing climate finance to address its adaptation and mitigation needs as it is one of the most vulnerable countries to the adverse effects of climate change.

PNG is one of the 13 founding Members of GGGI, having expressed commitment to support the organization at the 2012 Rio+20 Summit.

GGGI was selected as PNG’s Delivery Partner to the Green Climate Fund (GCF) readiness project in 2017. In November 2017, GGGI conducted the first national workshop on accessing climate finance, where cross-sectoral stakeholders gathered to identify common challenges that the country faces in accessing climate finance, address potential solutions, and understand how GGGI can further support PNG to build relevant capacity, strengthen coordination and develop innovative climate project proposals. The GCF readiness project, in the amount of $667,427 with a 24-month implementation period, was approved by GCF on December 18, 2017.

GGGI signs an Implementation Agreement with the Independent State of Papua New Guinea to provide support in accessing climate finance

About Climate Change and Development Authority (CCDA)

Climate Change and Development Authority (CCDA) is national government entity that coordinates the Climate Change efforts of the Government of Papua New Guinea established under Climate Change Management Act (CCMA) 2015. It is the coordinating entity for all climate change related policies and actions in the country. Additionally, it is the designated National Authority under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).

CCDA is tasked with ensuring that Papua New Guinea follows a path of climate-compatible growth; that the country’s economy develops while simultaneously mitigating greenhouse gas emissions and reducing vulnerability to climate change related risks.

About the Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI)

Based in Seoul, GGGI is an intergovernmental organization that supports developing country governments transition to a model of economic growth that is environmentally sustainable and socially inclusive. GGGI delivers programs in 27 partner countries with technical support, capacity building, policy planning & implementation, and by helping to build a pipeline of bankable green investment projects. More on GGGI’s events, projects and publications can be found on www.gggi.org.

PNG MUST DO MORE TO HONOUR ITS RESPONSIBILITIES TO THE ENVIRONMENT ONSHORE, FOR THE REST OF THE WORLD

PNG MUST DO MORE TO HONOUR ITS RESPONSIBILITIES TO THE ENVIRONMENT ONSHORE, FOR THE REST OF THE WORLD


 As host of almost a third of the world's tropical rainforest, Papua New Guinea has a moral obligation and a responsibility to the next generation and to the entire world to do all it can to protect and conserve the rainforest and its natural environment.

 This is a bold statement from NCD Governor Honourable  Powes Parkop who said : "We must fulfill this responsibility to ourselves and to the world."

Picture of Port Moresby

           
Mr Parkop made this call when announcing the city’s plan and preparation for the forthcoming World Environment Day on the 5th of June 2018.

In making the announcement, Govenror Parkop also called on the National Government to declare 5th of June, a National Day of Action to Protect the Environment by stopping work and schools and getting everyone to clean up and plant trees. He also called on city residents to come this Saturday to clean the city as part of their commitment to World Environment and to the City.

 Night view of Port Moresby

Speaking at the end of his weekly walk on Sunday morning, Governor Parkop said the City Hall was serious in its commitment to making the city liveable, peaceful and active but also beautiful, healthy and clean through conducting awareness for action on this very important day in which the global community is asked to reaffirm its commitment to protect the country's natural environment.

“We are important to the rest of the world. We have a responsibility to them equally as we have a responsibility to ourselves. Parts of Europe, Asia, America and Africa are breathing artificial air because they have sacrificed their natural environment for economic development. We can’t follow them. We must protect what we have and share with the world so that we can contribute to a greater future for humanity and the world. Therefore, we must continue to preserve it as we owe it to the world and its inhabitants. Let us do our part to look after God’s creation,” he said.

NCD Governor Honourable Powes Parkop

Earlier this month, NCDC committed K150, 000 to support the government’s ban on plastic bags and products-through the Ministry of Environment and Conservation-under a cleaner city campaign-to buy them from residents

"As a City, we can’t do much to protect the rainforest and regrow or replant those trees that are being cut for log export and timber but we will do all we can to draw attention to the need to protect the rainforest, the natural environment and the need to have a clean and peaceful environment. As we are  celebrating the World Environment Day, let us remind ourselves that we have to keep doing all we can to continue to maintain a clean city, taking in all steps to deal with environmental issues and cleanliness in the city'" he said.

Governor Parkop has also joined the chorus of growing concern over cutting down of trees without replacing them, seabed mining and other human activities that are detrimental to the environment.

The day falls on June 5 which is next Tuesday but the commission has decided to celebrate it earlier with a cleanthon from Boroko to Gordons this Saturday the 2nd of June.  On Sunday, 3rd June, the regular Walk for Life will be converted to Walk for Our Environment, the source of our life!

Governor Parkop has invited all residents to clean up their own communities this Saturday and to also join in on Sunday for a massive show of commitment to protecting our environment.

“I appeal to all residents to join me  in the celebrations by cleaning our suburbs, villages and settlements to make it a clean and a beautiful place to live and to show our commitment to protect our natural environment”

He said with the support of the Environment and Conservation Minister, he is pushing for a public holiday to be declared on the day to show the rest of the world that the country is really serious in fulfilling its commitment of the Paris Agreement on Climate Change.

The theme for this year is ‘Beating Plastic Pollution.’

Govenror Parkop has extended a special invitation is to staff and Board of National Forestry Authority, CEFA, Department of Mining and Energy to join the cleanathon and walkathon as these are State agencies who need to multiply their efforts to protect our national environment.

He also called on other Government Departments and agencies, private sector, churches, NGOs and all other stakeholders to join the Commission in the activities in the lead up to the actual one next Tuesday.
#WorldEnvironmentDay2018
#Walk4Environment
#Walk_and_Yoga4life