What practical solutions are needed to design a pathway to a sustainable energy system? What are the possible policy drivers to achieve the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and other pledges like the Paris Agreement on climate change? These will be some of the main questions debated at the Energy Ministerial Conference convened by the Government of Kazakhstan and the United Nations Regional Commissions along with other partners at the opening of the Eighth International Forum on Energy for Sustainable Development in Astana (11-14 June), in the framework of the EXPO 2017 Future Energy.
Ms. Olga Algayerova, newly appointed UNECE Executive Secretary will join forces with Prime Minister of Kazakhstan Mr. Bakytzhan Sagintayev and Ms. Shamshad Akhtar, Executive Secretary of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific, to open an event that invites ministerial participants to share thoughts and experiences on such topics as the interplay between fossil fuels, energy efficiency, and renewable energy, the nexus approach in the circular economy and energy security.
Over 1400 participants have registered to contribute to the multistakeholder dialogues, workshops and activities over 4 days. Together they will explore how to drive change, the role of regional cooperation and planning, and the imperative for nexus solutions as part of implementing the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. At the closing of the conference, ministers and heads of delegations are invited to adopt a joint declaration to reaffirm the importance of collaboration on energy among countries for tackling common energy challenges and shaping a sustainable energy future for all. Thus the Eighth Forum provides the opportunity to build on the previous outcomes and experiences and to agree on potential solutions. It will serve as a major stepping-stone in the history of the International Forum on Energy for Sustainable Development (http://www.unece.org/energywelcome/areas-of-work/forum/annual-fora.html), which started also in Astana in 2010.
Registration for the Energy Ministerial and the Forum is open at http://energyministerial.kz/register/. Logistical and other practical information is available at http://energyministerial.kz/guide/guidebook/. Detailed provisional agenda of the sessions at the Forum and other materials can be found at http://www.unece.org/astana2017.