TIMELINES

• Application period: Monday 18 March 2019, 10 a.m. until Wednesday 27 March 2019, 5 p.m.
• Authorization period: throughout the application period and until Sunday 31 March 2019, 5 p.m.
• Consolidation period: Monday 01 April 2019, 10 a.m. until Friday 05 April, 5 p.m
• Announcement of selection results: provisionally scheduled for second week of May 2019

ELIGIBILITY

1. Observer organizations duly admitted by the Conference of the Parties are eligible to apply for one side event slot and/or one exhibit. For information on the admission process for observer organizations, please click here.
2. Parties to the UNFCCC must partner with an observer organization in order to be eligible to apply for a side event slot and/or an exhibit slot. Please review the information note on further details for Party applicants.
3. UN system organizations and specialized agencies.

APPLICATION PROCEDURE

During the application period an “Apply for” button will appear on the respective SEORS conference page, which will allow users to create a personal account through which applications can be submitted. Please note that all applicants must register for a new personal account in SEORS for each session. Your user name and password from the previous sessions do not work.

How to submit joint applications

Please refer to the Side events and exhibits application manual for detailed information on the application process   Side events and exhibits application manual.

SELECTION AND ALLOCATION CRITERIA

• Following criteria are taken into consideration for the selection of side events and exhibits:
  1. One application per Party/observer organization;
  2. Joint applications of as many observer organizations as possible;
  3. Applications from NGOs in Non-Annex I countries;
  4. Assessment of relevance to issues under discussion/negotiation at the particular session;
  5. Balance among observer constituencies;
  6. Balance among topic themes;
  7. Track record of side event organizers in uploading presentations and relevant documents onto their own SEORS account*;
  8. Upholding of principle of sustainable operation by agreeing to disseminate all publications in electronic format only (for both exhibits and side events) and making use of virtual participation tools such as Skype for panelists**;
  9. Track record of the gender balance among speakers at the previous side event held by the applicant.

• Following criteria are taken into consideration for the allocation of side events and exhibits:
  1. Feasibility and preference on certain dates;
  2. Avoidance of thematic overlaps per time slot (side events only);
  3. Alignment of similar themes in the same room (side events only); and
  4. Size of the expected participation level and room size (side events only).

  * The recommendation of the Linköping University publication entitled “The function of side events at the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change” (ISBN 978-91-7393-765-8), as published by the Centre for Climate Science and Policy Research, clearly illustrates that there is a weakness in how side event outcomes are disseminated by event organizers. It is recommended that “at a bare minimum, side event presentations should be made available to participants. The secretariat could create incentives for making presentations available, by making future selections to organise side events conditional on the organisers’ track record of making information accessible.”

  ** Please specify in your application, under “Communications/Additional comments”, whether you are willing to commit to the dissemination of documentation in electronic format only at SB 48.

IMPORTANT NOTICES

• The secretariat reminds applicants that it reserves the right to reschedule or cancel side events at any time in the interest of the negotiating process.
• The secretariat also reserves the right to reallocate or cancel exhibits that exceed the authorized space or that are not set up on the first day of the booking period without any notice to the secretariat.
• Access to side event rooms is limited to duly registered conference participants.

For further information please refer to the FAQ and the Side events and exhibits application manual below.

INFORMATION

•  Frequently asked questions
•  Side events and exhibits application manual

You need Acrobat Reader to view PDF files.