How can Lebanon engage more effectively in the international climate negotiations? How do the negotiations work in practice and what tips and tricks can Lebanese negotiators avail themselves to influence the outcome? These questions become especially relevant in the run up towards a new climate agreement, expected to be adopted in 2015 in Paris. In September 2014, Dr. Camilla Bausch and Lena Donat conducted a 2-days training to enhance the negotiation skills of Lebanese negotiators.

The September workshop is a follow-up on a workshop conducted in cooperation with the Lebanese Ministry of Environment in December 2013. While the first workshop focussed on essential knowledge and background of UNFCCC negotiations, the September workshop was designed to enhance participants’ practical negotiation skills. The target audience included participants from relevant Lebanese ministries (Ministry of Environment, Ministry of Finance, Ministry of Foreign Affairs) and other political levels as well as participants from academia, media and civil society in Lebanon.

The workshop provided insights in how to coordinate and participate effectively in the climate negotiations in a practical sense, including the interaction or coordination between the negotiators and the team at the conference and the political and technical level at home. Through an interactive approach, the workshop practiced practical skills and also facilitated mutual learning among participants – as well as network building.