From 7 to 18 December, the 192 countries that ratified the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change will meet in Copenhagen (Denmark) to step up the international effort to protect the planet. France will participate, bringing its progress in this area achieved in particular through the contribution made by ADEME.

Some 350 European negotiators will take part in the International Copenhagen Conference being held under the aegis of the United Nations. They are tasked with finding an international agreement on the reduction of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The challenge is to step up actions to combat climate change; create a follow-on to the Kyoto Protocol in the form of a new multilateral agreement applicable from 2013; and define a common vision for combating climate change with the long-term objective of reducing GHG emissions.

International expertise
France will be attending the conference backed by its national actions in this area, notably the rollout of the Grenelle Environment Forum, in which ADEME is a key player. To speed up the emergence of new technology, ADEME has implemented a Research Demonstrator Fund under which five projects are now under way in the areas of CO₂ capture, storage and transport. Jean-Pierre Tabet, the national expert in charge of climate change at ADEME, will be one of the European negotiators in Copenhagen. The issue of technology transfer, for which he is responsible, could be the key argument in convincing certain countries to take action. “ADEME, which has sound knowledge in CO₂ capture and storage, could help some large GHG emitting countries, such as India or China, to reduce their CO₂ emissions”, he explains.
“The difficulty is that while it is countries that are negotiating, the relevant technology patents belong to private companies.” ADEME’s presence at the COP15 will provide an additional advantage for the French Delegation, as Dominique Campana, Director International Affairs, explains, “We are involved in various initiatives, such as the Mediterranean Solar Plan, while also running projects to improve access to energy in several African States. ADEME is also working with the United Nations Development Plan (UNPD) on the TACC (Territorial Approach to Climate Change) project. The aim is for fifty regions in emerging countries to develop a strategy to combat climate change, and investment projects using tools like the Territorial “Bilan Carbone^®” distributed by ADEME and developed specifically for this purpose. Senegal and Algeria are among the pilot regions selected so far.”