Media Advisory

The GEF Assembly is an international conference organized by the GEF every four years and plays the role of a Global Environmental Summit. It also is the main governing body of the GEF with about 80 ministers and 1500 delegates from 183 countries, CSOs and the Private Sector participating in a series of events over the span of a week. This year the Assembly will take place from May 25th to May 30th, 2014 at the Moon Palace Hotel on Mexico's Mayan Riviera. Events are open to accredited media; interview opportunities with high level participants can be facilitated by the media support team of the GEF and the Mexican authorities as joint hosts of the Assembly. (See list of VIPs attached)

MEDIA FACILITIES

A press room will be available for the use of accredited media at the Moon Palace Hotel Conference Centre. The GEF council, the GEF Assembly and some of the side events will be web streamed live on www.gefassembly.org.

The media working room will be opened from Monday May 26th to Thursday May 30th from 09:00 am to 09:00 pm.

ACCREDITATION

 All media representatives must fill in the accreditation on-line form at http://www.gefassembly.org/press/media-accreditation  by Thursday May 22th. 

Journalists will be requested to fill in the form with information themselves the media organizations they represent. Journalists should attach a JPEG color photo (max 1.5M), a copy of an official ID (Foreigners: passport / Mexicans: passport or voters ID) (JPEG / PDF format), and a copy of your press ID Card (JPEG o PDF format). 

Confirmation of accreditation will be sent to applicants’ registered e-mail address along with press pass numbers, which will be required in order to pick up credentials. Journalists are asked to bring proof of credentials such as an official ID or a valid press ID. 

Media passes will be handed out at the registration desk located at the Moon Palace Hotel starting May 26th from 09:00am to 07:00pm.

VISAS AND REQUIREMENTS TO ENTER MEXICO

Foreign press must complete all formalities to visit Mexico and should hold a valid passport. 

Please contact Mr. Christian Hofer at the GEF in Washington DC should you be requested at the Mexican Embassy or Consulate to present an invitation letter to cover the 5th GEF Assembly. 

Mr. Christian Hofer, Senior Communications Officer, External Relations - GEF, T +1(202) 458-0936, chofer@thegef.org  

Please note that Mexico does not issue visas at any Mexican port of entry.

OFFICIAL LANGUAGE

English will be the working language of all GEF Meetings with translation into Spanish and French as well as in Arabic, Chinese, Russian, for selected events.

GEF PROJECT SITE VISITS

On Tuesday May 27^th there will be a GEF Project site visit to the Sian Ka’an Biosphere Reserve. Due to capacity limits of the site, it is strongly recommended to register. Registration for this visit can be made by e-mail with Nydia Rodríguez: nydia_rodriguez@hacienda.gob.mx Tel. +(52-55) 3688-5969.

 For more information: http://www.gefassembly.org/exhibition-site-visits/site-visits

SIDE EVENTS

Thirty Side events will be organized by the GEF and its partners from May 25 to May 27. The side events will provide retrospective analysis and lessons learned from the highly diverse portfolio of investments. See full list here: http://www.gefassembly.org/side-events 

LIST OF HIGH LEVEL ROUNDTABLES AND PANELISTS (May 28 and 29)

Roundtable discussions will be key features of the GEF Assembly in Cancun, Mexico, May 28-29, 2014. The sessions, scheduled on May 28, 2014, from 2:30 P.M. to 6 P.M., and on May 29, 2014, from 9 A.M. to 12:15 P.M. will debate how GEF and countries could better address challenges to the global environment. 

Two roundtable sessions are to take place simultaneously, in the afternoon of Wednesday, May 28, and in the morning of Thursday, May 29. Simultaneous interpretation will be available in English, French and Spanish. 

The roundtable sessions are to focus on the GEF 2020 vision, through which the Facility is to be a champion of the global environment by creating partnerships and strategically investing in solutions. The seven topics to be discussed in the roundtables are: Financing Green Growth; Natural Capital; Legislation; Cities; Nexus; Commodities, and; Multilateral Environmental Agreements and the Post-2014 Framework – A Forward-Looking Agenda. 

The roundtables have been structured to provide for an interactive dialogue among the participants, with the bulk of time given over to a lively discussion; no pre-prepared statements are to be allowed. 

For each table, a rapporteur is to summarize key recommendations coming out of the discussions at the end of the session and assist the Secretariat in drafting the Assembly Chairperson’s Summary that is to be presented to the plenary.

Speakers (confirmed as of May 15, 2014)

High-Level Round Table 1.1 - FINANCING GREEN GROWTH 

Host and Opening Address:  Luis Videgaray Caso – Minister of Finance and Public Credit, Mexico 

Panelists 

• Li Yong - Director General, UNIDO 
• Peter Seligmann – CEO, Conservation International (CI) 
• Marisa Lago – Assistant Secretary for International Markets Development, US Treasury 
• Daniel Servitje – CEO, Grupo Bimbo 
• [Interventions by attending Ministers] 

 Moderator : Joachim von Amsberg, Vice President for Concessional Financing and Global Partnerships, World Bank 

High-Level Round Table 1.2 - MAINSTREAMING NATURAL CAPITAL INTO DECISION-MAKING 

Host and Opening Address: Luis Videgaray Caso – Minister of Finance and Public Credit, Mexico 

Panelists 

• Braulio Ferreira de Souza Dias – Executive Secretary, CBD 
• Dr. Eduardo Sojo - Director, National Institute of Statistics and Geography, Mexico 
• Carlos Roxo – Director for Sustainability, Fibria 
• Dr. José Sarukhán Kermez - National Commission for Knowledge and Use of Biodiversity, Mexico 
• [Interventions by attending Ministers] 

Moderator: Rosina Bierbaum - Chair of the Scientific and Technical Advisory Panel (STAP) 

High Level Round Table 2.1 - Role of Legislation in Protecting the Global Environment 

Host and Opening Address: Juan Jose Guerra Abud – Minister of Environment and Natural Resources, Mexico 

Panelists 

• Lourdes Adriana Lopez Moreno - Deputy of the LXII Legislature, PVEM 
• James Lembeli MP - Parliament of Tanzania 
• Graham Stuart MP - Chairman of the Board, GLOBE international 
• [Interventions by attending Ministers] 

Moderator: David Barron - Founder, International Conservation Caucus Foundation ICCF 

High Level Round Table 2.2 - SUSTAINABLE AND RESILIENT CITIES 

Host and Opening Address:  Juan Jose Guerra Abud – Minister of Environment and Natural Resources, Mexico 

Panelists 

• Gino Van Begin – Secretary General, ICLEI 
• Mayor Maimunah Mohd Sharif - Seberang Perai, Malaysia 
• Boris Graizbord - Coordinator LEAD Mexico, Colegio de México 
• [Interventions by attending Ministers] 

Moderator: Ede Ijjasz-Vasquez – Sector Director of the Sustainable Development Unit for Latin America and the Caribbean, World Bank