Update:April 1, 2010

Summary of CTI Workshop

CTI Energy Efficiency Workshop
Working Together to Reduce Global Greenhouse Gas Emissions
October 5-10, 1998, ICETT, Yokkaichi City, Japan

Summary

The Capacity Building Working Group of the Climate Technology Initiative (CTI), which is comprised of OECD member countries and the European Commission, convened the first in a series of Energy Efficiency Workshops, October 5-10, 1998, at the International Center for Environmental Technology Transfer (ICETT), Mie Prefecture, Japan. Supported by the Japan New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO) and co-sponsored by the Governments of Japan, Germany, and the United States, ICETT implemented and hosted the workshop at their training facility in Yokkaichi City. Fourteen industry and government participants from five countries with developing economies, including China, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, and Thailand, attended. In addition, energy efficiency experts from Japan, Germany, and the United States participated as lecturers.
The mission of CTI is "to promote the objectives of the U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change (U.N.FCCC) by fostering international cooperation for accelerated development and diffusion of climate-friendly technologies and practices for all activities and greenhouse gases." In support of this mission, the objectives of this CTI workshop were to:

1. transfer information about energy efficiency technologies to and among developing countries;
2. identify and overcome barriers to climate friendly technology implementation;
3. identify future directions and activities for energy efficiency technology transfer;
4. receive participant feedback in order to improve the content and effectiveness of future workshops; and
5. share workshop conclusions with delegates to the U.N.FCCC Fourth Conference of Parties (COP4), Buenos Aires, Argentina.

Workshop activities included lectures, interactive discussions, country study reports, and an industrial site visit to Mitsubishi Chemical Corporation in Yokkaichi City. The lectures focused on energy efficiency technologies, approaches, and policies that are being developed and implemented in Japan, Germany, and the United States. Specifically, the lectures addressed such topics as existing and emerging efficient energy technologies, renewable energy sources, management tools such as material flow mapping and life cycle assessment, beneficial reuse and recycling of materials, the importance of low cost good maintenance practices and human resource development, existing financial and information sources, and national energy efficiency program elements and strategies. In addition, the participants shared their own expertise and presented reports on their nations' energy use and energy efficiency activities.
The workshop accomplished a great deal. A wide range of energy efficiency technologies and practices were explained and discussed. Technology transfer barriers, such as accessing information, evaluating the reliability of information and technologies, financing capital investments, overcoming disincentives of existing energy pricing structures, and the practice of transferring older more inefficient technologies to developing nations, were discussed. Participants and lecturers Worked together to identify steps that could help overcome these barriers.
It was agreed that the leadership of local, national, and international government organizations plays a key role in providing an institutional framework for effective information systems. Commitment to local action, involvement of industrial trade associations and non-government organizations, linkage of financial resources to good projects, and the development of market incentives were also viewed as key activities. Participants and lectures worked together to outline next steps that support energy efficiency objectives at the organizational, national, and international levels.
Five major conclusions were reached by the workshop participants: They are:

1. Energy efficiency is a critical component in achieving national and global environmental objectives. Tackling barriers to energy efficiency is a necessary step in achieving sustainable development.
2. Governments can be a technology transfer catalyst. Their continued leadership regarding energy efficiency issues is valued and important.
3. National and international energy efficiency information sharing and networking is an essential first step in technology transfer to and between developing and developed nations.
4. Building human and institutional capacity is necessary to achieve the goals of the OECD Climate Technology Initiative and the U.N.FCCC.
5. Energy efficiency promotion and the identification of concrete implementation activities in each of our organizations represent opportunities for immediate action and leadership.

The participants also concluded that workshops like this play an important role in international technology transfer. Their suggestions regarding course content and format, such as increasing the emphasis on case study analysis, will be used to improve future CTI workshops. In addition, the scope of future CTI Capacity Building Working Group workshops will also include developing and developed nations from additional regions of the world.
The energy and commitment of the Participants, lecturers, and organizers are greatly appreciated by the CTI and the workshop sponsors.