Presidential Forum on climate change

Office of the President of the Republic of Finland Press release 4 November 2009

President of the Republic Tarja Halonen will host the 12th Presidential Forum at the Presidential Palace on Tuesday, 10 November 2009. The theme will be climate change and preparing for the Copenhagen Climate Conference.

In addition to the President of the Republic, speakers at the forum will include the chairman of Finland's IPCC working group, Dr Petteri Taalas, who is Director General of the Finnish Meteorological Institute; Mr Velipekka Nummikoski, State Secretary at the Ministry of Finance; Ms Sirkka Haunia, who has been appointed by the Ministry of the Environment as Finland's Principal Negotiator in climate matters; and Ms Liisa Rohweder, the Secretary General of WWF Finland. Mr Tarmo Ropponen, a journalist, will serve as moderator.

Members of Parliament and representatives of the business community, organizations, research institutes and other spheres of society have been invited to participate in the forum.

Presidential Forums have been arranged since 2006. Themes on previous occasions have included Finnish labour competitiveness, expertise and innovations, foreign policy, care for the elderly, the Baltic Sea, tolerance, municipal services, the "silent years" in Finnish history, Finland in the face of change, fundamental and human rights, and most recently - in September - jobs and unemployment.

The Finnish Broadcasting Company (YLE) will webcast the Presidential Forum live and will also show highlights on TV1 the same day from 4-5 pm.