EDF Granted Consultative Status at UN’s International Maritime Organization

Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) was granted consultative status by the International Maritime Organization (IMO). This makes EDF one of few environmental non-governmental organizations able to contribute with its expertise to the United Nation’s specialized agency for shipping. With consultative status, EDF will observe and provide expert input to IMO discussions, supporting the shipping industry and countries to move in the right direction on climate.

“Environmental Defense Fund steps into its consultative status at a pivotal moment, when climate science trajectories show that global shipping emissions must peak and decline within this decade,” said Mark Brownstein, Senior Vice President of Energy at EDF. “We are grateful to International Maritime Organization member states for recognizing the added value our organization’s expertise can bring to the table.”

IMO is the sole international agency where countries develop and implement policies to reduce shipping emissions at the global scale. The current goal agreed by countries at IMO is to reduce international shipping emissions by at least half from 2008 levels by 2050.

“The International Maritime Organization has the opportunity – and the obligation – to guide the international shipping industry toward a cleaner, more sustainable future,” said Marie Hubatova, Director of Global Shipping at EDF. “The agency’s current emissions reduction goal is a good start, but due to the urgency of the climate challenge, it must adopt more ambitious climate policies as soon as possible.”

EDF will now be able to join and offer expert input on discussions at IMO. Providing cutting-edge climate science alongside its global perspective and economic expertise, EDF aims to use its consultative status to work more closely with countries on measures to reduce emissions from international shipping, improve air quality in ports, establish robust regulatory frameworks for low and zero-carbon shipping fuels, and ensure environmental justice and equity principles are emphasised during the sector’s green transition.