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Mon 9 Nov 202609:00
Fri 20 Nov 202618:00

Rail at COP31: Advancing Climate Action Through Sustainable Transport

Location: Antalya, TürkiyeMajor event

About

UIC’s COP31 priorities

UIC will once again, take part in the UNFCCC conference of the Parties, COP31.  UIC will highlight how rail can contribute to climate action. 

UIC’s engagement will focus on two connected priorities: 

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Advancing high-integrity carbon-credit methodologies that could help mobilise finance for sustainable transport

 

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Making rail and public transport part of national adaptation planning

 

The Delegation

UIC’s representatives at COP31 will be Lucie Anderton and François Davenne.

And from UIC members:

– TCDD Taşımacılık A.Ş: Mr. Mustafa YILMAZ, Head of Strategy and Corporate Development Department and Mr. Cevat AYDIN, Deputy Head of Strategy and Corporate Development Department

– Indian Railways: Shri Binay Kumar Jha, Executive Director, Mechanical Engineering (EnHM), Railway Board, Ministry of Railways

UIC Delegation COP 31

Read more from Lucie’s take on the COP here

Priority Message 1 - Carbon credits and the MoveCredits Coalition

Existing carbon-credit methodologies have not yet delivered carbon-market access at the scale needed for rail and public transport. 19 projects have used the CDM methodologies over the past 30 years, and only eight registered emission reductions, with limited financial returns.

This matters particularly for developing countries: outdated or ineffective methodologies may prevent rail and public-transport projects from generating credible, sufficiently valuable credits to help attract investment. MoveCredits aims to review and update the methodologies, test them through pilots, and support fairer access to high-integrity carbon finance—while safeguarding environmental integrity.

The MoveCredits Coalition, founded by UIC, UITP and Alstom, aims to review and update carbon-credit methodologies for rail and public transport, test them through pilots, and support their development under Article 6.4 of the Paris Agreement. 

Developing the findings of UIC White Paper, estimates of up to 1.8 Gt of CO₂ avoided and USD 27–72 billion in potential carbon revenues from rail expansion in low- and middle-income countries by 2050. 

Find out more and show your support here

 

Priority Message 2 - Adaptation and resilient transport

UIC’s review of 44 publicly available NAPs found that transport appears in 39, but rail is explicitly included in only 23.

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UIC will promote practical ways to include rail and public transport in NAPs, making then Specific, measurable and financed.  Read the full report

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UIC and UITP are calling for rail and public transport to be recognised as critical infrastructure and essential services, with clear adaptation measures, investment needs and monitoring.

UIC and UITP recommend applying the Avoid–Shift–Improve–Adapt framework to national adaptation planning.  Read the UIC and UITP join call for action here.

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Rail and the COP Agenda

UIC contributes railway expertise to three collaborative Plans to Accelerate Solutions (PAS): shifting freight to more efficient modes, scaling public transport and sustainable travel in cities, and advancing resilient and adaptive transport infrastructure.

These plans bring together organisations to address shared barriers and set out actions and milestones that can be reported on at future COPs. UIC’s role is to help turn broad ambitions into guidance and practical actions for the rail sector.

November 10th is the COP Presidency’s Thematic day for Transport.  Read more about the programme here

 

UIC at COP31: events and engagements

9 November Global Goal for Transport: Delivering on the Paris Agreement and the UN Decade of Sustainable Transport - Side event room 3, ZERZEVAN15:00-16.30 
10 November Global Green Freight Corridors Initiative Ministerial - Special Event Room 2 11:00-13:00 
10 November From Critical Minerals to Clean Infrastructure: Financing the Energy and Transport Transition in Latin America and the Caribbean - CAF&IDFC Pavillion18:00-19:30 
10 November Climate-Resilient Transport: Advancing Adaptation and Resilience in Transport Infrastructure - Turkish Pavilion17:15-18:00 
11 November Transport Corridors for a Low-Carbon, Climate-Resilient Future: Evidence, Adaptation and Investment - Transport Pavillion11:00-12:00
11 November  Leveraging Carbon Markets to Accelerate Rail and Public Transport: Opportunities for COP31 - Transport Pavillion12:00-12:50
11 November Resilient Infrastructure - Transport Pavillion 13:30-14:50 
12 November Green Approaches for Railways Fire-side chat - Standards Pavilion08:45-09:15
12 November Building the Cities of Tomorrow: Connecting Africa to the World through Resilient Infrastructure and Global Finance — Danish Pavilion 11:30-12:30
12 November  RAIL BALTICA - Beyond ROI: Financing the Full Value of Sustainable Infrastructure - Estonian Pavilion08:45-09:15
12 November Sustainable Transport as a Catalyst for Urban Resilience: Partnerships and Solutions in Action - Special Event Room 615:30-16:30
12 November Mitigation Action Facility – Transport pavilion17:00
13 November From Solutions & Results: Scaling Up Implementation of Low-Carbon and Resilient Mobility - Mediterranean Pavilion15:00-16:00
13 November Avoid & Shift for Freight, implementation challenges for large-scale rail freight projects – Africa — Transport Pavilion16:30-18:00
16 NovemberSmart Green Mobility: Building Clean, Connected and Sustainable Systems  - Joint MDB Pavilion (AIIB) 09:30-10:30

 Publications

- Advancing Rail Resilience in National Adaptation Planning and Finance —

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- Rail and Public Transport at the Heart of National Climate Adaptation Plans —

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- Rail and the COP Action Agenda — editorial

 

Previous editions - UIC at COP:

https://uic.org/events/rail-cop30-accelerating-climate-action-through-sustainable-transport

https://uic.org/events/rail-cop29-accelerating-sustainable-mobility-solutions

https://uic.org/events/rail-cop28-right-track-paving-way-sustainable-mobility

https://uic.org/events/rail-cop27-get-board

https://uic.org/events/uic-cop26-glasgow

 

 

Photo TCDD

Documents