Durban increases green awareness ahead of COP17 conference

"Durban is increasingly being acknowledged as a global leader in the environmental field and more specifically in the area of climate protection planning and the COP17-CMP7 Greening Programme, which aims to minimise the environmental impact of the event, demonstrates this," says Dr Debra Roberts.

Key principles that have been incorporated into the Greening Programme include:

• Thorough approach to calculating impacts and selecting relevant measures to minimise these;
  
• Building on the event greening experience of the 2010 FIFA World Cup to expand and improve the way in which the city undertakes event greening programmes;
  
• Promote efficient resource use;
  
• Focus on biodiversity;
  
• Create opportunities for social upliftment and advancement of the green economy;
  
• Legacy value - projects must have life beyond the event and that their initiation must help to advance the environmental and climate change agenda of the city.

The key focus areas of the programme are:

1. Ensuring a carbon-neutral event
   
2. Raising the Foot printing Standard
   
3. The ICC - A green venue
   
4. Piloting a new approach: Green Accommodation
   
5. Efficient public transport for the event