VIENNA, 7 July 2023 - Pia Kauma, the recently elected President of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly from Finland, actively contributed to the OSCE High-Level Conference on Climate Change held today in Vienna. In her address, President Kauma emphasized the need for collective action to tackle climate change effectively: “It is critical that we use all opportunities to share key lessons learned, and that all OSCE participating States reinforce co-operation to address climate change and its security-related risks.”
OSCE PA President Kauma addresses the OSCE High-Level Conference on Climate Change, 7 July 2023She also highlighted the significant challenges and far-reaching impact of climate change on our planet and society, especially in the Arctic, the Mediterranean basin, and Central Asia: “Global warming undermines access to critical resources, like water, exacerbates weather conditions, leads to ecological disasters, threatens food supply chains, destroys livelihoods and worsens the living conditions of millions of people. All of this leads to increased geopolitical tensions, migratory pressure and vulnerability of disenfranchised individuals to radicalization.
Nevertheless, through collaborative multilateral efforts, we have the ability to mitigate the impacts of climate change and better adapt our societies to the changes to come”, she concluded.
Underlining the key role of national parliaments, she stressed that parliamentarians should act as drivers of change. The OSCE Parliamentary Assembly has been at the forefront of advocating for comprehensive climate action, recognizing the urgent need to address the challenges posed by climate change. Through initiatives such as the Parliamentary Plea for Resolute Climate Action, the OSCE PA has called on world leaders to strengthen national policies and laws, and hold governments accountable for implementing climate commitments.
The OSCE High-Level Conference on Climate Change, convened by OSCE Secretary General Helga Maria Schmid, brought together ministers, heads of delegations, and experts from OSCE participating States and Partners for Co-operation, including H.E. Alexander Schallenberg, Federal Minister for European and International Affairs of the Republic of Austria; Annalena Baerbock, Federal Minister for Foreign Affairs of Germany; H.E. John Kerry, Special Presidential Envoy for Climate of the United States of America, and H.E. Ruslan Strilets, Minister of Environmental Protection and Natural Resources of Ukraine.
The speakers highlighted the significance of the 2021 OSCE Ministerial Council Decision on Climate Change, as well as the need for a swift clean energy transition, stronger climate finance, regular transfer of key technologies and climate justice.
On the sidelines of the conference, President Kauma had the opportunity to engage in a first round of consultations with several high-level dignitaries, including the Chairman-in-Office, Bujar Osmani, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of North Macedonia and the OSCE Secretary General, Helga Schmid. These exchanges allowed President Kauma to reinforce collaboration with the OSCE executive structures and explore new avenues for enhanced climate action in the OSCE region.
