Phatcharavat and UN's Jeffrey Sacks Unite to Tackle Global Warming, Set Ambitious Sustainability Goals
On Jan. 19, 2024, 10:30 a.m., Pol. Gen. Phatcharavat Wongsuwan, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Natural Resources and Environment, greeted Mr. Jeffrey Sachs, President of the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN), along with his delegation, on their visit to Thailand and the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment. The meeting took place in the reception area on the 20th floor of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment. The purpose was to discuss and exchange policies with Thailand on sustainable development operations and climate change.
In addition, Pol. Gen. Phatcharavat discussed the Sufficiency Economy Philosophy which is Thailand’s development guideline that aligns with sustainable development guidelines with cross-sectoral cooperation. Furthermore, they reviewed concerns of cooperation in establishing solutions to climate change problems, as well as principles for collaborating with various countries to build sufficient cooperation to jointly solve problems. Mr. Jeffrey Sack said that tackling climate change will become even more challenging. If we do not support each other to address the problem, it is likely to get worse in the long run. This demands multilateral cooperation. The Sustainable Development Solution Network, or SDSN, is willing to serve as an international coordinator, particularly for Thailand, ASEAN, and China. In addition, there was a collaborative discussion on the topic of preserving and restoring rainforests in South America, particularly in Brazil, and in ASEAN, which included methods and capital raising which could be a topic for the next COP 29 summit. They also discussed the proposal to make Thailand the focal point in studying and implementing sustainable development policies in ASEAN countries, as well as to develop a model for sustainable development in four areas: climate change, appropriate land use for the future, changes in energy use, and financial measurements.
On this matter, Pol. Gen. Phatcharavat wrapped up the discussion by reaffirming Thailand's commitment to climate change mitigation, stating, "Thailand remains dedicated to addressing this issue and will oversee its initiatives directly." Additionally, he appointed the Department of Climate Change and Environment along with the Greenhouse Gas Management Organization as the key entities to partner with the SDSN, aiming to leverage this collaboration towards achieving comprehensive sustainable development goals, according to Pol. Gen. Phatcharavat.
