Welcome to the first edition of our newsletter in 2011 bringing you stories, events, actions and impacts from UNDP’s work across Asia-Pacific. We have chosen some stories from the more than 200 environment, climate and energy programmes that UNDP is supporting in Asia-Pacific. I hope you can draw inspiration from some of the good work happening across the region and I would like to invite you to draw our attention to the work you are doing. It is important to scale up, create synergies and achieve volume - in our task of assisting countries move towards green, low emission, climate resilient development.

Martin Krause

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Project Approvals

From January to April 2011, the Asia-Pacific E&E team assisted countries to access US$ 26.27 million from the GEF Trust Fund, the Adaptation Fund and the Least Developed Countries Fund. In addition project concepts totaling US$ 17.99 million were approved.

Full-sized and medium sized projects that have been endorsed and received CEO approval during January - April 2011.

PIFs (proposals) that have been approved the GEF council during January - April 2011

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Noteworthy

Mainstreaming Coastal and Marine Biodiversity Conservation into Production Sectors in the Godavari River Estuary, Andhra Pradesh, India

Sceneries from the train window during an 18-hour travel from Chennai to Kolkata that runs along the eastern coast of India are surprisingly unvarying. Green rice fields all along are punctuated only by villages, and the scripts of graffiti written on walls of houses are the only sign that assures travellers that the train is moving along crossing state borders. In the midway of the long journey, however, the train crosses a massive river giving travellers a refreshing sight. The river is so massive that it takes several minutes for the train to cross.

The river, Godavari, is the largest Indian peninsular river that traverses the entire subcontinent before it flows into the coastal region of Andhra Pradesh, part of which forms the East Godavari River Estuarine Ecosystem (EGREE). A prominent feature of this coastline is its mangrove areas that extend over nearly 582 km2 and are clustered in the estuarine areas of the Godavari River and Krishna River. The Godavari mangrove ecosystems alone constitute 321 km2, making it the second largest area of mangroves along the east coast of India and rendering the region rich in fauna and flora. There are important nesting sites for migratory turtle species, notably the endangered Olive Ridley turtle, the critically endangered Leatherback turtle and Green turtle. The area also serves as spawning grounds and as a sanctuary for the growth and development of numerous fin and shell fish. It is an Important Bird Area (IBA) with a recorded population of 119 bird species, of which 50 are migratory. In addition to sustaining rich fauna and flora, the mangroves also generate significant economic benefits to local communities such as shoreline protection and livelihood options, and global benefits through carbon sink services.

Biodiversity and ecosystem services of the EGREE are under tremendous threats of India’s expanding industrialization and urbanization along the coast. This is further compounded by increasing climate change related risks. It is estimated that 30% to 40% of the degradation of mangrove forests has taken place in the last decade due to the conversion of the area into shrimp farming and salt pans, which also accelerates salination of the area, excessive harvesting and consumption of coastal and marine resources, and pollution from industries. While the destruction of the ecosystems is recognized as a significant threat to the livelihoods of local communities and globally significant biodiversity, the multiplicity of root causes poses a significant challenge for concerted actions.

A recently-approved project, Mainstreaming Coastal and Marine Biodiversity Conservation into Production Sectors in the East Godavari River Estuarine Ecosystem, funded by the Government of India and GEF, seeks to enhance the conservation efforts by putting in place biodiversity-friendly sector plans while improving community livelihood options. To facilitate coordination across an array of stakeholders including ministries, (Department of Forests, Pollution Control Board, Fisheries, Agriculture, Industries, Port, Tourism, Kakinada Municipal Corporation, etc.), private sectors, communities, research institutions and NGOs, the project envisages establishing a trust or foundation. This is a reflection of past successful lessons: In an ongoing coastal and marine conservation project in Gulf of Manner and a past eco-development project in one of the tiger reserves in Southern India, both funded by GEF, similar foundations have been established and successfully facilitated multi-sectoral coordination.

While strengthening institutional mechanisms for effective conservation of the ecosystem, the project will also attempt to diversify livelihood options for local communities through working with existing community groups such as self-help groups, cooperatives or mangrove protection committees.

The Godavari, like many other large rivers in India, is an important source of livelihood for communities, engine of the local economy, and home to many species of animals and plants. This project, in the long-run, seeks to contribute to the sustainable management of the globally significant coastal and marine biodiversity of India by mainstreaming biodiversity conservation considerations into production activities in the coastal and marine zones, while also taking into account development imperatives, need for sustaining livelihoods and also addressing retrogressive factors including the anticipated impacts of climate change.

For more information please contact: doley.tshering@undp.org.

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Alliance for Promoting Renewable Energy in Mae Hong Son, Thailand

Access to electricity for many Thais is only a matter of flipping a switch; but for a number of villagers living in the rugged terrain of Mae Hong Son it is still a luxury. Fifty five percent of the villages in Mae Hong Son have access to the grid, while other villages have no access at all or are supplied by off-grid modules like diesel GenSets. An alliance of many actors is addressing this pressing issue now. Key partners of the alliance include: UNDP, Thailand Environment Institute (TEI), Global Environmental Facility (GEF), Mae Hong Son Provincial Office, the Ministry of Energy, Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand (EGAT), the Provincial Electricity Authority (PEA), and the Bank of Agricultural and Agricultural Cooperatives (BAAC).

Via the project ‘‘Promoting Renewable Energy in Mae Hong Son and Nearby Provinces” the main barriers preventing the widespread and sustainable utilization of renewable energy technologies in Northern Thailand will be addressed. The project, supported with a US$2.7 million grant from the GEF, is in line with the Ministry of Energy’s policy to promote Mae Hong Son as one of the 4 pilot provinces on renewable energy sufficiency. It aims to increase the amount of on-grid electricity generated by renewable energy in Mae Hong Son from 17 MW to 27 MW in five years as well as strengthening institutional capacities to plan, manage and operate renewable energies. Targeted types of renewable energy include micro-hydro power, biomass, and solar.

UNDP Thailand together with key partners signed a declaration to kick-off the project on 29 January 2011 at Doi Kong Mu Temple in Mae Hong Son. The event was chaired by Deputy Governor, Taweesak Wattanathammarak and Deputy Permanent Secretary of Energy Kurujit Nakhonthap. On the long term the government of Thailand aims to achieve 100% of the energy supply in Mae Hong Son to be derived from renewable sources. “Mae Hong Son is remote and poor, but it is also well-endowed with natural resources with great potential for renewable energy development,” said Mr.Twarath Sutabutr, Deputy Director General of Ministry of Energy’s Department of Alternative Energy Development and Efficiency. “We are pleased to be able to draw supports from different agencies to support Mae Hong Son to develop this potential, which will provide an example for other provinces in Thailand.”

Apart from this UNDP/GEF project, there are two parallel projects on renewable energy in Mae Hong Son. One is the master plan for the pilot energy province conducted by Chiang Mai’s Energy Research and Development Institute. The other is the UN Joint Programme on “Integrated Highland Livelihood Development in Mae Hong Son,” which has a component on promoting off-grid renewable energy.

For more information please contact Ms.Warin Choomsai Na Ayudhaya at warin@tei.or.th (project manager for the project “Promoting Renewable Energy in Mae Hong Son and Nearby Provinces”), or Ms. Sutharin Koonphol at sutharin.koonphol@undp.org (Programme Analyst UNDP)

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Carbon Finance Framework for Biomass Power Generation Project in Thailand

One of the main sources of income in Thailand is the production of agricultural goods such as rice, rubber wood, palm oil and corn. These agriculture activities produce a lot of residues such as wood barks, palm oil kennel, rice straw and corn straw. Fortunately, this waste doesn’t have to be wasted anymore; it can gainfully be used for the generation of electricity

An international mechanism to promote the generation of energy from renewable sources, for instance from biomass waste, is called the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM). Projects registered under the CDM can generate additional revenue through the sale of Certified Emission Reductions (CERs) (also called carbon credits), each of which corresponds to reduced CO2 emissions from the project. However, accessing the CDM can be challenging. Project developers currently trying to achieve CDM registration are experiencing long delays in the approval process at UNFCCC. A new approach under the CDM which shortens the approval times of projects and could facilitate a much larger scale of activities is called CDM “Programme of Activities” (CDM PoA).

To promote the use of biomass waste for electricity generation in Thailand, the Department of Industrial Works (DIW) in cooperation with German International Cooperation (GIZ), supported through capacity building by UNDP, are developing a CDM PoA for Biomass Power Development in Thailand. The objective of this project is to improve the financial feasibility of biomass power generation projects in Thailand through the revenues generated from the sale of CERs. The projects implemented under this CDM PoA will contribute to the sustainable development objectives of the Government of Thailand by promoting the effective use of agricultural residues, improving the competitiveness of small scale project developers and contributing to the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions.

Advance Carbon Securities Ventures Co. Ltd (ACSV) has been selected to manage the project, and serves as “the Coordinating and Managing Entity” (CME) for the CDM PoA. ACSV’s mission is to support local SMEs to bridge financial barriers for implementing green energy projects in the South-East Asian region through detail consultancy services in sourcing for funding and additional income from international schemes such as CDM.

The first project under the CDM PoA is already under preparation. Advance Clean Power Company Limited (ACPCL) is setting up a 9.9 MW biomass power plant at Phon Thong village in Roi-Et province in Thailand. The project uses biomass residues such as wood barks and wood chip as raw material to produce electricity.

To facilitate a dialogue amongst all stakeholders and to increase the capacities and understanding of the institutions and communities involved, several stakeholder workshops have been organized including the stakeholder workshop on 23 March in Khonkaen, where local communities and other stakeholders participated.

For more information please contact: Mr. Kanasook Supalerk, GIZ, supalerk.kanasook@giz.de; Mr. Ivo Besselink, UNDP, ivo.besselink@undp.org; and Ms. Nicole Tan, ACSV, nicole.t@advance-securities.com.

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Local Governance and Climate Change

A new assessment of the role of local governments in climate change adaptation has been published by the United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF), UNDP Asia Pacific Regional Centre (APRC) and UNEP Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific (UNEP ROAP).

Titled “Local Governance and Climate Change: a Discussion Note”, the study identifies ways in which local governments in Asia-Pacific address climate change, at the policy level and on the ground. It then outlines approaches for national governments and development agencies to improve the performance of local governments in this area.

Notably, the study finds that climate change adaptation does not figure prominently on the agenda of local governments in the region. However, there is a high degree of convergence between climate change adaptation and provision of basic local government services, including solid waste disposal, water and sanitation services, land use planning and disaster risk management.

This role of local governments requires greater recognition in global and national climate change efforts. This includes:

• Improving consistency between national climate change and decentralisation policies
• Ensuring that climate change adaptation is integrated into capacity development programmes for local governments
• Providing fiscal incentives for local governments to engage in climate change adaptation
• Making local governments more accountable to groups most vulnerable to climate change, including the poor and indigenous people

UNCDF-UNDP-UNEP Local Climate Adaptive Living (LoCAL) Facility is an example of UN efforts to address these challenges. The Facility provides funds for local governments to incorporate climate resilience into their services and investment. LoCAL involves collaboration between environment and local government finance projects, and is currently being piloted in Bhutan.

The study can be downloaded from here.

For more information please contact: nikolai.beresnev@undp.org.

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Impacts and Results

Governing Climate Change Finance in Asia and the Pacific - The Philippines Take Forward A Multidisciplinary Approach

The increasing integration of global climate change discussions into the general development discourse has given rise to an increasing number of different funding modalities to address this formidable challenge. The Green Climate Fund, the establishment of which was agreed in Cancun, is a new addition to the cadre of climate funds. While increasing the quantity of financial resources to tackle climate change is progress in their own right, they also bring with them a considerable challenge, on the shoulders of the governments of developing countries, of managing the resources effectively. The Green Climate Fund alone is envisaged to increase the climate financing by $100 billion per year by 2020. This figure compares with the total ODA of about $115 billion in 2007 from the 24 members of the Development Assistance Committee including the European Commission.

As part of its support to countries in enhancing the governance of climate change finance, in 2010 UNDP APRC established an interdisciplinary team, including environment, climate change, governance and aid effectiveness experts from country offices and partner organizations to take forward an Asia Pacific Climate Change Finance and Development Effectiveness Initiative. A delegation from the Philippines participated in the Bangkok Call for Action, a dialogue organized by the initiative, alongside Bangladesh, Cambodia, Indonesia and Vietnam. Countries undertook groundbreaking assessments of their current climate change financing arrangements through the lens of the Paris Declaration principles (2005). Subsequently a strategic dialogue was facilitated amongst participating countries. A Synthesis report and Call for Action were produced, as well as country specific action plans.

In the Philippines this work has led to the establishment of a Climate Finance Group charged with national follow up. The Climate Finance Group comprises the Chair of the Climate Change Commission as convener, the Senate President as co-convener, the Department of Finance, Department of Budget and Management, Department of Foreign Affairs, Department of Environment and Natural Resources, and the National Economic and Development Authority (Planning Agency). The multi-disciplinary approach that the Group embodies is seen as a fundamental building block for an effective climate change response.

In the wake of floods and landslides in various parts of Mindanao, Visayas and the Bicol region, in January 2011, the Climate Finance Group championed the early passage of the “People’s Survival Fund (PSF)” bill within the Philippines Congress. The PSF will mobilize domestic and foreign resources for adaptation focusing on channeling funds to local government units helping them in efforts to adapt to climate change. The PSF will establish a long-term, predictable climate change fund with its governance arrangements assuring national leadership and alignment with Paris Declaration principles on aid effectiveness. More information can be found here.

The Philippines is not alone in having taken forward actions directly developed as part of the climate change and aid effectiveness initiative. Cambodia is currently establishing a financial tracking system to gather more data on ODA related sources of climate change finance – the first of its kind globally. In Vietnam the Department of Science, Education, Natural Resources & Environment is working together with Department of Foreign Economic Relations in the Ministry of Planning and Investment to establish a government directive to guide the design and implementation of climate financing modalities as part of the ODA Strategic Framework 2011-2015.

In 2011, UNDP APRC will continue to work across practices, country offices and development partners including ADB, Korea, Japan, SIDA and the OECD DAC to deepen and expand its work on the governance of climate change. Partners are already taking forward this work in eight countries in Africa this year, and Pacific islands are meeting around the topic of climate change finance and aid effectiveness, in Vanuatu on 3rd March.

For more information please contact Tom Beloe, Governance and Aid Effectiveness Adviser at tom.beloe@undp.org; Paul Steele, Environment Advisor at paul.steele@undp.org; Angus Mackay, Climate Change Adaptation Advisor at angus.mackay@undp.org; and Alex Heikens, Regional Policy Advisor at alex.heikens@undp.org.

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Sequestering Carbon While Sustaining Livelihoods in the Rangelands of Hossein Abbad in Iran

Iran’s climate is mostly arid or semi-arid, with 85% of the country’s land area receiving less than 250 millimeters of annual rainfall, making the country one of the driest in the Asia-Pacific region. Lack of vegetation makes the country especially vulnerable to land degradation and desertification. In Hossein Abbad in eastern Iran, a hilly and rocky area comprising 30 villages, the area faces increasing stress due to overgrazing by livestock and migrant animals, wind erosion caused by the ‘sistani’ winds and excessive fuel wood gathering. With few alternative options, most families continue to rely on animal herding as a main source of livelihood putting further pressure on the few natural resources to which they have access. The once vegetated land is increasingly becoming barren and bare; and so is the prospect of livelihoods for many families in Hossein Abbad. The loss of vegetation not only has serious socio-economic consequences for the herders, but also contributes to global climate change because of the decreased capacity of the environment to absorb carbon in the atmosphere.

The GEF-funded project on “Carbon Sequestration in the Desertified Rangelands of Hossein Abbad,” with $750,000 in funding from GEF and a $960,000 contribution from the Government, was launched in 2003 and quickly set out to address the key causes of desertification in a holistic manner. In addition to planting and seeding drought-resistant grasses and shrubs, the project introduced a seemingly simple solution: the dissemination of a gas-fired tanoor oven. Tanoors are traditional ovens used to prepare bread, a staple food in Iran. They are normally fuelled by wood; however, in the rangelands, the daily use of wood to fuel the tanoor was leading to the destruction of precious vegetation. This became a major cause of the desertification of the drylands. The project’s integrated participatory approach, whereby it worked at the community level with Village Development Groups, also introduced alternative sustainable livelihoods such as the development of solar cookers, bathhouses and water purification in rural areas and tree plantation activities.

This project has been highly successful in rehabilitating desertified rangelands for the benefit of local communities and has shown that there is potential to sequester carbon in plants and soil in these areas for global benefits. The project has successfully rehabilitated 12,160 hectares of desertified rangelands (surpassing its target of 9,000 ha), with the active participation of local communities. The percentage of vegetative cover increased from 10% to 13.8% and the amount of carbon stored in the vegetation rose from 39.3 kilograms per hectare to 427.7 kilograms per hectare. The dissemination of the tanoor stoves resulted in a reduction of the consumption of firewood by local communities by 80.6% in the last six years. Hours that had once been spent on firewood collection by women and children can now be spent on more productive activities. With these results, the project is considered a “flagship” project with its results now widely disseminated. Furthermore, the Government and UNDP have agreed to contribute jointly US$2.1million for a second phase of the project for another five years. The second phase of the project seeks to build on the successes already achieved by strengthening the processes developed and expanding the project area. It is also hoped that local communities will be able to assume responsibility and ownership for the restoration, conservation and sustainable use of the dryland.

For more information please contact: faris.khader@undp.org

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Events

Highlights from the last four months

Bridging the Gap: A Role for Business in Climate Change Adaptation

The fourth bi-monthly Knowledge Sharing & Learning Seminar of the Regional Climate Change Adaptation Knowledge Platform was organized on 14 February 2011 to address the role of the private sector in climate change adaptation. More than 100 participants from business, development agencies, government bodies and NGOs participated in this seminar to discuss the needs, opportunities and expectations from the private sector in climate change adaptation.

In the opening keynote presentation to this event, UNDP advocated for a new paradigm of low emission, climate resilient development. CSR Asia presented the findings from a study about the capacity of private sector entities to engage effectively in climate change adaptation, highlighting a number of critical capacity gaps of private sector entities on climate risk assessments. A panel discussion between Andreas Schild, Director General of ICIMOD; Rob Hulme , Country Head of Bayer CropScience, Vietnam; Thomas Mahl , Business Development Manager of Munich RE; Yann Brault, Sustainable Development Director of Danone Aqua and Coordinator of DanoneEcosystems Asia Pacific; Richard Welford, Chairman of CSR Asia and Gernot Laganda, UNDP Technical Advisor for Climate Change Adaptation focused on examples of private sector entities engaging in adaptation from the vantage point of business continuity planning; corporate social responsibility; and the development of new market opportunities.

Additional background information and presentations can be accessed here.

For more information please contact: gernot.laganda@undp.org

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Mainstreaming Gender into Environment and Energy Projects in Cambodia

Women contribute more than men to food production, but own less than 10% of land. Women are typically responsible for fetching water and fuelwood in the household. Their traditional role as the primary users and managers of, and their disproportionate dependence on, natural resources put women at higher risk as the surrounding environment continues to deteriorate due to climate change or other development pressures. At the same time, women are powerful agents of change with regard to the environment, particularly given their leadership in areas such as natural resources management and agriculture.

However, these different roles of men and women, their vulnerabilities and opportunities, have not received sufficient attention in the society yet. This also includes many of the projects undertaken by UNDP. If women’s specific needs and vulnerabilities are not addressed, their time constrains and workload not considered, and their knowledge not recognized, they will continue to be adversely affected and so too will the quality and success of any project. Sustainable human development can only be achieved if all relevant economic and social factors, including gender, are considered in any development effort undertaken.

UNDP Cambodia, in collaboration with the UNDP Asia-Pacific Regional Centre (APRC), and the International Network on Gender and Sustainable Energy (ENERGIA), is taking a lead in addressing gender inequalities through the pilot project ‘Engendering UNDP Cambodia’s Environment and Energy (E&E) Portfolio’. In this pilot, existing E&E projects of UNDP Cambodia are used as an entry point to include gender-sensitive considerations in project design, formulation and implementation.

An important part of this pilot was the recently held workshop on gender mainstreaming that took place from 9-11 March 2011 in Siem Reap. Moving beyond a discussion of gender concepts and methodologies, the three-day event brought together UNDP Cambodia staff, project staff, and their government counterparts to undergo hands-on training on “how-to” effectively mainstream gender into their E&E projects. During a field visit to three villages of the Ballangk commune near Siem Reap, participants applied gender analysis tools such as gendered resource maps and seasonal calendars to identify the gender dimensions of a community-based integrated natural resources management and livelihood project. They then worked together to analyze the data collected and draw on this experience to develop a Gender Action Plan (GAP) for their own projects.

The GAPs outline specific gender goals such as equipping women with practical skills and knowledge to adapt to climate change, and to ensure their meaningful participation and contribution in integrating natural resources management into Commune Development Plans. The plans identify concrete gender activities and constitute the key reference document for effective gender mainstreaming in ongoing project implementation.

Participants also prepared gender-sensitive Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) plans. These include the development of qualitative and quantitative indicators, such as an increased share, up to 50 per cent, of female participants in livelihoods trainings and an increased number of women elected as committee members.

The workshop also provided the opportunity to identify and share project-specific gender issues and concerns faced in the day-to-day work of project staff such as women’s limited representation and power in village committees, their limited participation in ecotourism and education, and the manifold negative consequences of women’s unsatisfactory access to water resources.

Initiated in 2010 and to be finalized by the end of 2011, the project ‘Engendering UNDP Cambodia’s E&E Portfolio’ aims to demonstrate how gender can be mainstreamed into E&E projects. Following this pilot project in Cambodia it is planned that the approach be expanded to other countries in the region to further enhance the quality and sustainability of UNDP’s E&E projects and programmes.

All materials used and prepared throughout the process in Cambodia are uploaded in Teamworks and accessible via the user space ‘Engendering E&E Portfolio of UNDP Cambodia’ (Teamworks members only).

For more information please contact: hannah.strohmeier@undp.org

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Training of National Policy Advisors - Climate Change, 28 February to 4 March 2011, UNDP New York

In light of the particular challenges faced by Least Developed Countries (LDCs) in dealing with climate change, the UNDP Executive Board approved a $5.88 million strategic initiative to provide climate change capacity building to LDCs over 2010-11. The purpose of the programme is to support selected LDCs to climate-proof their development paths with a package of focused climate policy services. As part of the programme, National Policy Advisors – Climate Change (NPAs) have been recruited to support the LDCs. In Asia-Pacific, countries included are Bangladesh, Bhutan, Cambodia, Lao PDR, Maldives, Nepal, Samoa, Solomon Islands, and Timor-Leste. The first training and orientation was held in New York for the NPAs focusing on UNDP’s approach to climate change to build policy coherence. It covered a broad range of subjects such as MDGs and climate change, UNDP’s corporate strategy on climate change, international negotiations, climate finance, REDD+, adaptation, gender, and mainstreaming.

In their assignment, the NPAs will be focusing on the following four outcomes: 1) Governments empowered to articulate their needs in the UNFCCC negotiations, 2) Improved capacity of governments & other stakeholders to integrate climate change concerns into development planning and policy processes, 3) Climate change mainstreaming in UN/DP portfolio & programming enhanced, and 4) UNDP’s knowledge management, learning goals and communication of impact results in the area of climate change policy enhanced. The NPAs are supported by a team of regional policy advisors and experts from headquarters. This global cohort of climate change policy advisors will work closely together, sharing knowledge, ideas and experiences, and tap the potential for South-South collaboration opportunities, to provide optimum support to the LDCs.

List of National Policy Advisors in Asia-Pacific:

For more information please contact: alex.heikens@undp.org.

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Staff Movements

Joined the team

Pradeep Kurukulasuriya

Senior Technical Advisor – Adaptation, BDP/EEG/GEF (Outposted HQ Staff)

Pradeep Kurukulasuriya is EEG/GEF’s Senior Technical Advisor for Climate Change Adaptation within the Strategies and Adaptation team. He provides leadership on all EEG/GEF programmes related to climate adaptation and low-emission climate-resilient development strategies. As of March 7, 2011, Pradeep is based out of the Asia Pacific Regional Centre where he will continue to lead efforts around the world on supporting countries to access, combine and sequence financing from the various global climate funds as well as other sources of finance, including from the private sector.

Pradeep joined UNDP (HQ) in 2005 to help establish UNDP/GEF’s work programme on adaptation. He is part of a network of EEG Principal/ Senior Technical Advisors located either in NY or in a Regional Centre who, together with Regional Practice Team Leaders, are spearheading EEG’s efforts to design, finance and implement cutting edge environment/ climate programs. From his base in APRC, Pradeep will also continue his global responsibilities of overseeing a team of Regional Technical Advisors based in Bangkok, Apia, Pretoria, Bratislava and Panama City.

An economist by training, Pradeep holds a PhD in Environmental Economics from Yale University, M.Phil and MSc from Yale and MPhil from Cambridge University. His research findings on the microeconomic valuation of climate change impacts and various adaptation options (crop choice, irrigation, etc) in the agriculture sector has been published in leading international journals such as World Bank Economic Review, Climatic Change, African Journal of Agricultural and Resource Economics, Environmental and Resource Economics, Climate Change Economics and others. Pradeep, a Sri Lankan national, is in Bangkok with his wife Sharmila, currently on leave from UNICEF and their 3 small kids.

Left the team

Nicole Hansen

Climate Change Adaptation Officer – Environment & Energy Team, UNDP APRC

Nicole joined the team in August 2010 and provided technical assistance to countries in formulating their climate resilient development practices and policies under the Global Environment Facility, as well as the implementation of projects. She also worked on a variety of cross-institutional knowledge exchange initiatives on climate change adaptation for the Asia-Pacific region.

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