https://www.un.org/pga/78/high-level-meeting-on-sea-level-rise/
Pursuant to the General Assembly decision 78/544 of 16 January 2024 and General Assembly resolution 78/319 of 1 August 2024, the President of the UN General Assembly will convene a high-level plenary meeting on Addressing the existential threats posed by sea-level rise on 25 September 2024, during the High-Level Week of the 79th session of the General Assembly. The overall theme of the high-level meeting will be “Addressing the threats posed by sea-level rise”.
Taking place on the heels of the Summit of the Future, the high-level meeting will focus on building common understanding, mobilizing political leadership, and promoting multisectoral, multi-stakeholder collaboration and international cooperation towards addressing the threats posed by sea-level rise. It aims to deliver action-oriented solutions for affected States and frontline communities as well and will be a significant step forward for enhancing action on sea-level rise.
Participants will work towards developing comprehensive solutions and actionable commitments to combat sea-level rise, ensuring a resilient and sustainable future including for small island developing states and low-lying coastal areas.
The high-level meeting will comprise an opening segment, a plenary segment, four multi-stakeholder thematic panel discussions and a brief closing segment. The opening segment will feature statements by the President of the General Assembly at its seventy-ninth session, the Secretary-General, the President of the General Assembly at its seventy-eighth session, and a representative of a Member State affected by adverse effects of sea-level rise. The plenary segment will comprise statements by Member States and Observers of the General Assembly of the United Nations and members of the United Nations specialized agencies. The closing segment will comprise summaries of the multi-stakeholder thematic panel discussions presented by the co-chairs of the panels and concluding remarks by the President of the General Assembly.
The four multi-stakeholder thematic panel discussions will be held consecutively, in parallel to the plenary segment. Each of the four multi-stakeholder panel discussions will be co-chaired by two representatives, one from a developing country and one from a developed country to be appointed by the President of the General Assembly from among the representatives attending the high-level meeting, in consultation with Member States, taking into account gender balance, and geographical representation. Summaries of the discussions will be presented by the co-chairs of the panels in the closing segment.
Panel Discussions
Wednesday, 25 September 2024,
Multistakeholder panel “Sea-level rise and its legal dimensions” 10:30 a.m. – 11:45 a.m.
Multistakeholder panel “Adaptation, finance, and resilience in relation to sea-level rise”11:45 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.
Multistakeholder panel “Livelihoods, socio-economic challenges, and culture and heritage in relation to sea-level rise” 3:00 p.m. – 4:15 p.m.
Multistakeholder panel “Knowledge, data and science to inform sea-level rise risk assessments and decision making” 4:15 p.m. – 5:30 p.m.
Where to Watch
The High-Level Thematic Debate on Sea-Level Rise can be watched live on UN Webtv
Key Documents
Letter from President General Assembly on Sea-Level Rise | General Assembly of the United Nations
Letter from the PGA – Sea-level rise – Informal plenary | General Assembly of the United Nations
PGA letter- HLM SLR – inscription
PGA letter- SLR -special accreditation