Solving Climate Change Issues at Community Level

Aram Gabrielyan

“Khazer” Ecological and Cultural NGO

EaP CSF ANP WG3

In the field of climate change the commitments (contributions) of developing countries (including Armenia) envisaged by the Paris Agreement will start in 2020. Most of them, first of all, will take place in the communities. The state is obliged to create conditions for climate change mitigation and promotion of adaptation measures, including the provision of internal and external financial resources. According to the Comprehensive and Enhanced Partnership Agreement (hereinafter CEPA), which also builds upon the Paris Agreement on Climate Change Cooperation, the European Union, as “Regional Economic Integration Organization” included in Annex 2 to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, bears a number of commitments, including a financial one to support developing countries in implementing climate change measures. Armenia’s commitments under the Intended Nationally Determined Contributions (INDC) include a financial mechanism that is civil in nature and can serve as a basis for cooperation with the European Union on a civil level. Firstly, it is the introduction of the “ecosystem approach” in socio-economic development programs and projects, in which the financial instrument of ecosystem services acts as a mechanism for the implementation of this approach. This tool is used in a number of EU countries and can be implemented in Armenia.

A situation has emerged in our country where the economic and social development of communities depends almost entirely on state subsidies and subventions. This fact, certainly, does not contribute to the development of self-governance of the society and self-sufficiency. Moreover, such conditions hinder the implementation of public initiatives, in particular investment projects.

The full Research is available here.