BEGIN:VCALENDAR VERSION:2.0 PRODID:unctad.org BEGIN:VEVENT UID:6aa8789eec37e DTSTART:20241016T203000Z SEQUENCE:0 TRANSP:OPAQUE DTEND:20241016T050000Z LOCATION:Suva\, Fiji SUMMARY:UNCTAD-UNDP Fiji National Symposium on plastic pollution prevention CLASS:PUBLIC DESCRIPTION:Small Island states are highly reliant on the Oceans Economy fo r their livelihoods. At the same time\, they are especially exposed to the negative effects of plastic pollution\, both by its effect on coastal are as\, affecting biodiversity\, fisheries activity\, and tourism\, and by it s on-land impacts creating problems for urban water drainage infrastructur e and human health. Small Islands have limited productive and value-additi on capacities\, but significant potential to develop novel industries rela ted to material substitutes. These include those based on by-products of i ndigenously grown biomass and marine products\, both of which offer potent ially innovative and low-pollution pathways to reduce reliance on single-u se plastics. In addition to their environmental benefits\, these could off er important employment\, income-generating and development opportunities\ , as well as reducing reliance and costs of importing fossil fuel based pl astics.   The Pacific is disproportionately affected by the global plast ic pollution\, contributing less than 1.3 percent of the global volume . F or instance\, roughly 140\,000 tonnes of solid waste are disposed of in Fi ji annually\, of which around 15\,000 tonnes are plastics. Despite the rec ent Climate Change Bill 2019 which has comprehensively addressed many of t he  disposable plastic items\, key concerns remain to prevent plastic pol lution from polymers such as PET and LDPE used in imported consumer goods. The ongoing negotiations within the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committe e (INC) on Plastic Pollution for a legally binding global treaty to tackle plastic pollution show the importance of aligning trade policies and the objective of reducing plastic pollution. However\, this begs the question of how financial and industrial policies can\, together\, help achieve the SDGs during the next decade. Finance is generally lacking for such transf ormative activities\, and industrial policy is equally needed to help guid e the transition and create a sustainable demand. Financial and industrial policies for economic transformation and development ought to be aligned with the SDGs and the broad approach loosely known as a Green New Deal. Se ctors such as tourism are particularly affected by the rise in plastic pol lution\, which represents around 15% of plastic total waste.As a key lead from the Pacific in the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC) nego tiations\, the Government of Fiji\, together with UNCTAD and UNDP\, are or ganizing a national symposium to take stock of the current initiatives\, a nd to help better align national plastic pollution prevention priorities t o global and regional commitments as a follow up to a series of discussion s and events which resulted in a policy action plan. This includes  the d evelopment of a strategic blueprint for a national plastics prevention pla n as part of Fiji’s larger green structural transformation ambitions. Th is conference aims to understand what is the voice of the Pacific\, especi ally Fiji\, in the plastic puzzle at the national\, regional and internati onal levels as well as in the ongoing debates and discussions surrounding the upcoming INC5.The Fiji National Symposium on Plastic Pollution Prevent ion seeks to assist the Fiji Government to implement and demonstrate indus trial and financial policy actions that were identified as being necessary for effective green structural transformation and development in Fiji\, i ncluding the prevention of plastic pollution.  The actions were identifie d in research and workshops conducted with UNCTAD\, UNDP\, and representat ives from Government ministries\, finance\, industry\, civil society and o ther international organizations\, in Fiji between 2021-2023 following the extensive work on plastic pollution mitigation projects being undertaken under the UNCTAD Oceans Programme and Sustainable Manufacturing and Enviro nmental Pollution (SMEP Programme)\, including UNCTAD’s extensive analys is on the potential of material substitutes in developing countries\, and complementary research on financial and industrial policy for a green tran sformation with a focus on Asia and the Pacific \, carried out by the Divi sion of Globalization and Development Strategies at UNCTAD. The main expe cted outcome of the symposium is to provide a list of guiding policy strat egies to support the Government in preparation of the INC5 negotiations an d beyond.The discussion will focus on several overarching questions\, incl uding: What are the main obstacles in Fiji to facilitate a new circular p lastics economy and to develop innovative plastic substitute business solu tions?How can new financing opportunities and investment for plastic pollu tion prevention offer a solution to reduce plastic pollution and improve t he sustainability of the Fiji economy?How do the contributions of Fiji to the INC negotiations on plastic pollution trickle down to the economy and ensure sustainability of policy action? How could national and regional s takeholders better coordinate on plastics-related trade issues to ensure s ynergy and avoid duplication of efforts?Is anything missing from the curre nt discussion on how financial and industrial policies  can contribute to the transition to a better materials economy in the plastic space?<\;p& gt\;Small Island states are highly reliant on the Oceans Economy for their livelihoods. At the same time\, they are especially exposed to the negati ve effects of plastic pollution\, both by its effect on coastal areas\, af fecting biodiversity\, fisheries activity\, and tourism\, and by its on-la nd impacts creating problems for urban water drainage infrastructure and h uman health. Small Islands have limited productive and value-addition capa cities\, but significant potential to develop novel industries related to material substitutes. These include those based on by-products of indigeno usly grown biomass and marine products\, both of which offer potentially i nnovative and low-pollution pathways to reduce reliance on single-use plas tics. In addition to their environmental benefits\, these could offer impo rtant employment\, income-generating and development opportunities\, as we ll as reducing reliance and costs of importing fossil fuel based plastics. &\;nbsp\;<\;/p>\;<\;drupal-media data-entity-type="\;media&q uot\; data-entity-uuid="\;036c475c-2072-4198-88f6-5d6b5f9b99b2"\; data-align="\;center\n\nView meeting on unctad.org\nhttps://unctad.org /meeting/unctad-undp-fiji-national-symposium-plastic-pollution-prevention DTSTAMP:20260914T224342Z END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT UID:6aa8789eec3e5 DTSTART:20241017T203000Z SEQUENCE:0 TRANSP:OPAQUE DTEND:20241017T050000Z LOCATION:Suva\, Fiji SUMMARY:UNCTAD-UNDP Fiji National Symposium on plastic pollution prevention CLASS:PUBLIC DESCRIPTION:Small Island states are highly reliant on the Oceans Economy fo r their livelihoods. At the same time\, they are especially exposed to the negative effects of plastic pollution\, both by its effect on coastal are as\, affecting biodiversity\, fisheries activity\, and tourism\, and by it s on-land impacts creating problems for urban water drainage infrastructur e and human health. Small Islands have limited productive and value-additi on capacities\, but significant potential to develop novel industries rela ted to material substitutes. These include those based on by-products of i ndigenously grown biomass and marine products\, both of which offer potent ially innovative and low-pollution pathways to reduce reliance on single-u se plastics. In addition to their environmental benefits\, these could off er important employment\, income-generating and development opportunities\ , as well as reducing reliance and costs of importing fossil fuel based pl astics.   The Pacific is disproportionately affected by the global plast ic pollution\, contributing less than 1.3 percent of the global volume . F or instance\, roughly 140\,000 tonnes of solid waste are disposed of in Fi ji annually\, of which around 15\,000 tonnes are plastics. Despite the rec ent Climate Change Bill 2019 which has comprehensively addressed many of t he  disposable plastic items\, key concerns remain to prevent plastic pol lution from polymers such as PET and LDPE used in imported consumer goods. The ongoing negotiations within the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committe e (INC) on Plastic Pollution for a legally binding global treaty to tackle plastic pollution show the importance of aligning trade policies and the objective of reducing plastic pollution. However\, this begs the question of how financial and industrial policies can\, together\, help achieve the SDGs during the next decade. Finance is generally lacking for such transf ormative activities\, and industrial policy is equally needed to help guid e the transition and create a sustainable demand. Financial and industrial policies for economic transformation and development ought to be aligned with the SDGs and the broad approach loosely known as a Green New Deal. Se ctors such as tourism are particularly affected by the rise in plastic pol lution\, which represents around 15% of plastic total waste.As a key lead from the Pacific in the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC) nego tiations\, the Government of Fiji\, together with UNCTAD and UNDP\, are or ganizing a national symposium to take stock of the current initiatives\, a nd to help better align national plastic pollution prevention priorities t o global and regional commitments as a follow up to a series of discussion s and events which resulted in a policy action plan. This includes  the d evelopment of a strategic blueprint for a national plastics prevention pla n as part of Fiji’s larger green structural transformation ambitions. Th is conference aims to understand what is the voice of the Pacific\, especi ally Fiji\, in the plastic puzzle at the national\, regional and internati onal levels as well as in the ongoing debates and discussions surrounding the upcoming INC5.The Fiji National Symposium on Plastic Pollution Prevent ion seeks to assist the Fiji Government to implement and demonstrate indus trial and financial policy actions that were identified as being necessary for effective green structural transformation and development in Fiji\, i ncluding the prevention of plastic pollution.  The actions were identifie d in research and workshops conducted with UNCTAD\, UNDP\, and representat ives from Government ministries\, finance\, industry\, civil society and o ther international organizations\, in Fiji between 2021-2023 following the extensive work on plastic pollution mitigation projects being undertaken under the UNCTAD Oceans Programme and Sustainable Manufacturing and Enviro nmental Pollution (SMEP Programme)\, including UNCTAD’s extensive analys is on the potential of material substitutes in developing countries\, and complementary research on financial and industrial policy for a green tran sformation with a focus on Asia and the Pacific \, carried out by the Divi sion of Globalization and Development Strategies at UNCTAD. The main expe cted outcome of the symposium is to provide a list of guiding policy strat egies to support the Government in preparation of the INC5 negotiations an d beyond.The discussion will focus on several overarching questions\, incl uding: What are the main obstacles in Fiji to facilitate a new circular p lastics economy and to develop innovative plastic substitute business solu tions?How can new financing opportunities and investment for plastic pollu tion prevention offer a solution to reduce plastic pollution and improve t he sustainability of the Fiji economy?How do the contributions of Fiji to the INC negotiations on plastic pollution trickle down to the economy and ensure sustainability of policy action? How could national and regional s takeholders better coordinate on plastics-related trade issues to ensure s ynergy and avoid duplication of efforts?Is anything missing from the curre nt discussion on how financial and industrial policies  can contribute to the transition to a better materials economy in the plastic space?<\;p& gt\;Small Island states are highly reliant on the Oceans Economy for their livelihoods. At the same time\, they are especially exposed to the negati ve effects of plastic pollution\, both by its effect on coastal areas\, af fecting biodiversity\, fisheries activity\, and tourism\, and by its on-la nd impacts creating problems for urban water drainage infrastructure and h uman health. Small Islands have limited productive and value-addition capa cities\, but significant potential to develop novel industries related to material substitutes. These include those based on by-products of indigeno usly grown biomass and marine products\, both of which offer potentially i nnovative and low-pollution pathways to reduce reliance on single-use plas tics. In addition to their environmental benefits\, these could offer impo rtant employment\, income-generating and development opportunities\, as we ll as reducing reliance and costs of importing fossil fuel based plastics. &\;nbsp\;<\;/p>\;<\;drupal-media data-entity-type="\;media&q uot\; data-entity-uuid="\;036c475c-2072-4198-88f6-5d6b5f9b99b2"\; data-align="\;center\n\nView meeting on unctad.org\nhttps://unctad.org /meeting/unctad-undp-fiji-national-symposium-plastic-pollution-prevention DTSTAMP:20260914T224342Z END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT UID:6aa8789eec3f0 DTSTART:20241018T203000Z SEQUENCE:0 TRANSP:OPAQUE DTEND:20241018T050000Z LOCATION:Suva\, Fiji SUMMARY:UNCTAD-UNDP Fiji National Symposium on plastic pollution prevention CLASS:PUBLIC DESCRIPTION:Small Island states are highly reliant on the Oceans Economy fo r their livelihoods. At the same time\, they are especially exposed to the negative effects of plastic pollution\, both by its effect on coastal are as\, affecting biodiversity\, fisheries activity\, and tourism\, and by it s on-land impacts creating problems for urban water drainage infrastructur e and human health. Small Islands have limited productive and value-additi on capacities\, but significant potential to develop novel industries rela ted to material substitutes. These include those based on by-products of i ndigenously grown biomass and marine products\, both of which offer potent ially innovative and low-pollution pathways to reduce reliance on single-u se plastics. In addition to their environmental benefits\, these could off er important employment\, income-generating and development opportunities\ , as well as reducing reliance and costs of importing fossil fuel based pl astics.   The Pacific is disproportionately affected by the global plast ic pollution\, contributing less than 1.3 percent of the global volume . F or instance\, roughly 140\,000 tonnes of solid waste are disposed of in Fi ji annually\, of which around 15\,000 tonnes are plastics. Despite the rec ent Climate Change Bill 2019 which has comprehensively addressed many of t he  disposable plastic items\, key concerns remain to prevent plastic pol lution from polymers such as PET and LDPE used in imported consumer goods. The ongoing negotiations within the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committe e (INC) on Plastic Pollution for a legally binding global treaty to tackle plastic pollution show the importance of aligning trade policies and the objective of reducing plastic pollution. However\, this begs the question of how financial and industrial policies can\, together\, help achieve the SDGs during the next decade. Finance is generally lacking for such transf ormative activities\, and industrial policy is equally needed to help guid e the transition and create a sustainable demand. Financial and industrial policies for economic transformation and development ought to be aligned with the SDGs and the broad approach loosely known as a Green New Deal. Se ctors such as tourism are particularly affected by the rise in plastic pol lution\, which represents around 15% of plastic total waste.As a key lead from the Pacific in the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC) nego tiations\, the Government of Fiji\, together with UNCTAD and UNDP\, are or ganizing a national symposium to take stock of the current initiatives\, a nd to help better align national plastic pollution prevention priorities t o global and regional commitments as a follow up to a series of discussion s and events which resulted in a policy action plan. This includes  the d evelopment of a strategic blueprint for a national plastics prevention pla n as part of Fiji’s larger green structural transformation ambitions. Th is conference aims to understand what is the voice of the Pacific\, especi ally Fiji\, in the plastic puzzle at the national\, regional and internati onal levels as well as in the ongoing debates and discussions surrounding the upcoming INC5.The Fiji National Symposium on Plastic Pollution Prevent ion seeks to assist the Fiji Government to implement and demonstrate indus trial and financial policy actions that were identified as being necessary for effective green structural transformation and development in Fiji\, i ncluding the prevention of plastic pollution.  The actions were identifie d in research and workshops conducted with UNCTAD\, UNDP\, and representat ives from Government ministries\, finance\, industry\, civil society and o ther international organizations\, in Fiji between 2021-2023 following the extensive work on plastic pollution mitigation projects being undertaken under the UNCTAD Oceans Programme and Sustainable Manufacturing and Enviro nmental Pollution (SMEP Programme)\, including UNCTAD’s extensive analys is on the potential of material substitutes in developing countries\, and complementary research on financial and industrial policy for a green tran sformation with a focus on Asia and the Pacific \, carried out by the Divi sion of Globalization and Development Strategies at UNCTAD. The main expe cted outcome of the symposium is to provide a list of guiding policy strat egies to support the Government in preparation of the INC5 negotiations an d beyond.The discussion will focus on several overarching questions\, incl uding: What are the main obstacles in Fiji to facilitate a new circular p lastics economy and to develop innovative plastic substitute business solu tions?How can new financing opportunities and investment for plastic pollu tion prevention offer a solution to reduce plastic pollution and improve t he sustainability of the Fiji economy?How do the contributions of Fiji to the INC negotiations on plastic pollution trickle down to the economy and ensure sustainability of policy action? How could national and regional s takeholders better coordinate on plastics-related trade issues to ensure s ynergy and avoid duplication of efforts?Is anything missing from the curre nt discussion on how financial and industrial policies  can contribute to the transition to a better materials economy in the plastic space?<\;p& gt\;Small Island states are highly reliant on the Oceans Economy for their livelihoods. At the same time\, they are especially exposed to the negati ve effects of plastic pollution\, both by its effect on coastal areas\, af fecting biodiversity\, fisheries activity\, and tourism\, and by its on-la nd impacts creating problems for urban water drainage infrastructure and h uman health. Small Islands have limited productive and value-addition capa cities\, but significant potential to develop novel industries related to material substitutes. These include those based on by-products of indigeno usly grown biomass and marine products\, both of which offer potentially i nnovative and low-pollution pathways to reduce reliance on single-use plas tics. In addition to their environmental benefits\, these could offer impo rtant employment\, income-generating and development opportunities\, as we ll as reducing reliance and costs of importing fossil fuel based plastics. &\;nbsp\;<\;/p>\;<\;drupal-media data-entity-type="\;media&q uot\; data-entity-uuid="\;036c475c-2072-4198-88f6-5d6b5f9b99b2"\; data-align="\;center\n\nView meeting on unctad.org\nhttps://unctad.org /meeting/unctad-undp-fiji-national-symposium-plastic-pollution-prevention DTSTAMP:20260914T224342Z END:VEVENT END:VCALENDAR