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ITU Activities

​​​​​​​​​​​​​​Please find below the upcoming work of the General Secretariat (GS), Telecommunication Standardization Bureau (TSB), Telecommunication Development Bureau (BDT) and Radiocommunication Bureau (BR) on the thematic area of environment, climate change and e-waste:

General Secretariat (GS) Activities


Ongoing Activities:      
  • A joint side event on energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions associated with ICT technologies with key UN Partners, such as UNIDO, is planned to take place during COP25.
​Past Activities:

2019
  • The General Secretariat together with TSB, issued the Joint Appeal from the UN System to the Secretary-General’s Climate Action Summit on 9 May 2019. The appeal is to Member States to step up ambition and take concrete action to limit global temperature increases to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels and adapt to the effects of climate change, as they strive to fulfil their obligations on human rights, including the right to health, the right to food security, the right to development, the rights of indigenous peoples, local communities, migrants, children, persons with disabilities and people in vulnerable situations, as well as gender equality, empowerment of women, intergenerational equity, and decent work and a just transition for all, as stated in the Paris Agreement. Under innovation, The United Nations system supports the enhancement of capacity of Member States to develop and utilize relevant data and technological innovations to find solutions for climate and sustainable development challenges and disaster risk reduction and management, including the use of new and emerging technologies, including information and communication technologies, data and tools. ITU contributed in this process through HLCP/CEB.
  • GeSI: ITU Secretariat participated in the GeSI Board meeting held on 17 April 2019 in Brussels, Belgium, where particular attention was given to the following areas of work:
    • "Science Based Targets initiative” on GHG emissions reduction targets compatible with the level of decarbonisation required by science in order to limit global warming in 2100 to 1.5 °C or 2°C compared to pre-industrial levels. A way forward has been reached between ITU-T SG5, GeSI/SBTi and GSMA to avoid duplication and to have competing methodologies. Please see also TSB section on SG5 meeting in May 2019.
    • Smarter2030reload - This report will be carried out by deloitte. It is the latest in the SMARTer2030 series and build upon GeSI's previous work to assess the potential for ICT to enable the transition to a low-carbon, sustainable economy. This project will help the world understand how technology has contributed to the SDGs, and how it might influence them in the future. The project aims to provide a pathway for catalyzing genuine change across the industry through a landmark report, to be launched at the United Nations General Assembly and Climate Week 2019.
    • A new study on “Digitalizing the NDCs" to be undertaken. GeSI proposes to use existing and upcoming outcomes of its SMART project and other projects as an input to explore the contributions of digital solutions to reaching the nationally determined contributions (NDCs) in developing and middle-income countries and how they can deliver their NDC targets while mitigating the impact of those ICT deployments on greenhouse gas emissions.
  • Global Conference on Strengthening Synergies between the Paris Agreement and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development" (Climate & SDGS Synergy Conference, UN City, Copenhagen, Denmark, 1-3 April 2019). Organized by DESA, UNFCCC and Denmark, the conference aimed to explore linkages between climate action and the sustainable development agenda; strengthen synergies; raising visibility on the urgency to accelerate climate action in a fair way that benefits all people; identify key areas to mobilize action, resources and investment to better serve the implementation of both frameworks. The importance of technology, including ICT and other emerging technologies was presented and highlighted in many sessions, particularly on the discussions on leaving no one behind; STI, Capacity Building and Finance. Major transformations were highlighted, among these; Digital revolution: Artificial Intelligence, big data, biotech, nanotech, autonomous system; Smart Cities: housing, mobility, sustainable infrastructure, pollution; Consumption & production: resource use, circular economy, sufficiency, pollution; and decarbonization & energy: energy access, efficiency, electrification, decent services.
2018
  • ITU hosted a meeting for the partners of the SMARTer2030 Action Coalition (led by GeSI), on 19 March 2018 in Geneva on the margins of WSIS Forum.
2017
  • COP23 took place from 6-17 November in Bonn, Germany. ITU main activities included a keynote address at the Deutsche Telekom – GeSI event on the “Impact of ICT on Climate Change- Curse or Blessing” on 14 November; panellist at the ICT solutions/Momentum for Change side event on 16 November; and ITU also contributed to the UN exhibit on Sustainable Cities and Communities providing information on the United for Smart Sustainable Cities (U4SSC) initiative;
  • The 23rd Senior Officials Meeting of the Environment Management Group was held in New York from 18 to 20 September 2017. ITU reiterated during the technical segment considering the IMG on Tackling E-Waste, its commitment to remain engaged; 
  • ITU Secretariat attended the 18th GeSI General Assembly and Board Meeting (30 May - 1 July 2017 in Madrid).
  • ITU contributed to background document of the Technical Expert Meeting on Adaptation (TEM-A) that the Adaptation Committee organized during the last Climate Change Conference in Bonn held from 16 to 17 May 2017(http://tep-a.org/). The document focused on the SDGs and addresses thematic areas such as smarter and more sustainable cities, as well as empowering communities;
  • ITU participated in the 11th meeting of the Adaptation Committee (AC), held at UNFCCC Headquarters from 7-10 March 2017 in Bonn, Germany, with the objective to assess the relevance of, and potential for, ITU's contribution to the work of the Committee.
  • ITU headquarters has extended its bicycle storage to 112 spaces. Therefore, there is now 1 more space available per 6 secretariat staff;
  • ITU has reported its worldwide environmental footprint for the last reported year (2015), under the UN centralized reporting system and format. It was noted that ITU left a print of 3.56 tonne CO2-equiv. per person, which is just 46% of the 2015 UN system average, and which is an annual improvement of 7% since 2010. ITU’s residual footprint has been offset and our Climate Neutrality for 2015 is certified by UNFCCC. More information at greeningtheblue.org.
2016
  • At the 17th GeSI General Assembly, ITU hosted the GeSI Board.  Additionally, the meeting of the SMARTer2030 Action Coalitions, took place in Geneva from 6 to 8 December 2016. This meeting was dedicated to the proposed work plan for 2017, which is a valuable mix of consolidated and new topics. The ITU Secretary General opened the Board Meeting and reiterated ITU’s commitment to working with GeSI in the promotion of ICT as a fundamental technology for enabling the transition to a low-carbon economy and the achievement of the SDGs; ​
  • DSG participated as keynote speaker at COP22 at a Low Emission Solutions Conference event on Monday 14 November 2016 in the Session: ICT innovative approach to raising commitments towards climate;
  • GS, DSG and TSB participated at COP-22 and co-organized a side event with GeSI and UNFCCC on 17 November 2016;
  • GS co-organized a side-event on “Smart Sustainable Cities: Where we are and where we could be” on 16 October 2016 with the Habitat III Secretariat;
  • ITU participated as keynote presenter in the celebration of the 2016 World Telecommunication and Information Society Day (WTISD 2016) organized in Valencia, Spain, on 19 May 2016. The event, which had the theme “ICTs and climate change”, provided a unique opportunity to present ITU’s activities to the public sector; private sector companies; and academia involved in developing green ICT solutions in the region of Valencia.
​2015
  • The GLN cooling system has been on stream throughout the 2015 summer period, and has provided 924 MWhr of cooling power in 2015 that would otherwise have been sourced from electrically powered systems;
  • ITU is climate neutral as of 1 January 2015, and has already offset its emissions for 2015 in advance of having final consumption figures. 
​2014​
  • ITU's worldwide operational environmental footprint for 2014 as published in the UN consolidated document "Moving Towards Climate Neutrality" is 3.2 tonne CO2 equivalent per person under the management, as compared with the UN average of 8.3 tonne per person.




Telecommunication Standardization Bureau (TSB) activities


Ongoing Activities:
  • The next meeting of ITU-T SG20 “IoT and smart cities and communities" will take place from 25 November-6 December 2019 in Geneva, Switzerland;
  • The 22ndJCA-IoT and SC&C meeting will take place on 28 November 2019 in Geneva, Switzerland;
  • TSB together with UN Environment, BRS, UNECE, UNESCO, UNFCCC, UN Global Compact, UN Habitat, UNIDO and UN-Women is developing a report on “Frontier Technologies to Protect the Environment & Tackle Climate Change" which is expected to be published in September 2019 and will be launched in October 2019; and
  • ITU is developing a report on “Turning Digital Technology Innovation into Climate Action" which is expected to be published in August and will be launched in September 2019.
​​Past Activities: 
2019
  • The eighth and last meeting of the ITU-T FG-DPM took place from 15-19 July 2019 in Geneva, Switzerland.
  • TSB, the General Secretariat and the New York office organized the Side Event: “Harnessing Frontier Technologies for Accelerating Climate Actions and the SDGs" that took place during the 2019 High-Level Political Forum, on 9 July 2019 in New York. The HLPF 2019 had an in-depth review of SDG Goal 13 on climate change, among others.
  • The IoT Week 2019 took place from 17 to 21 June 2019 in Aarhus, Denmark.
  • STI FORUM (New York, 14-15th May), TSB together with the General Secretariat organized a side event during the Forum on Frontier Technologies to Protect the Environment & Tackle Climate Change, in collaboration with the Permanent Mission of Mexico, UN Environment, Basel Convention, UNECE, UNFCCC, UN Global Compact, UN Habitat and UNIDO, and the participation of the TSB Director and partners from the Satellite Industry Association, GVF, IBM, The Environmental Defense Fund and The Carnegie Climate Geoengineering Governance Initiative (C2G2).
  • The ITU-T Study Group 5 “Environment, Climate Change and Circular Economy" meeting took place from 13-22 May 2019 in Geneva, Switzerland. During the meeting, the SG5 experts agreed to establish the Focus Group on “Environmental Efficiency for Artificial Intelligence and other Emerging Technologies" (FG-AI4EE). The new focus group will identify the standardization needs to develop a sustainable approach to AI and other emerging technologies including automation, augmented reality, virtual reality, extended reality, smart manufacturing, industry 5.0, cloud/edge computing, nanotechnology, 5G, among others.

    The following events were held in conjunction with ITU-T SG5 meeting:  
    • The 13th Symposium on ICT, Environment and Climate Change took place on 13 May 2019 in Geneva, Switzerland. The Symposium was co-organized with UN Environment, BRS, UNECE, UNFCCC, UN Global Compact, UN Habitat, UNIDO and UN-Women. The Symposium concluded with a “Call for Action on the Use of Frontier Technologies in Combating Climate Change and Achieving a Circular Economy" which is available in English, French, Arabic, Chinese, Russian and Spanish. The Call for Action acknowledges the transformative potential of frontier technologies and the associated risks, while highlighting a course of actions that would build a shared vision on the use of these technologies;
    • Smart Environment Panels on GHG emissions trajectories for the ICT sector held on 15 May 2019, Geneva, Switzerland. During the panel, it was discussed the collaborative efforts and work on ICT sector and sub-sectors trajectories worldwide, was held on 15 May 2019. Additionally, the smart environment panel provided a platform to share information on the work that is being carried out in ITU-T SG5 within Q9/5 “Climate change and assessment of information and communication technology (ICT) in the framework of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)".                 

      ITU-T SG5 is currently developing draft Recommendation ITU-T L.Trajectories on GHG emissions trajectories for the ICT sector compatible with the UNFCCC Paris Agreement. This Recommendation will provide figures for one or several trajectory(ies) of GHG emissions for the ICT sector and sub-sectors worldwide compatible with the 1.5 degree/well below 2 degrees objective of the UNFCCC Paris Agreement and the IPCC Special Report on 1.5 degree. This Recommendation will include figures of GHG emissions for the ICT sector and sub-sectors worldwide, for the years 2025, 2030 and 2050.

      In this regard, ITU-T SG5 is collaborating with the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi), the Global e-Sustainability Initiative (GeSi), the International Energy Agency (IEA) and GSMA in the development of this draft Recommendation.
    • Smart Environment Panels on new ITU standards on soft errors that affect telecommunications held on 20 May 2019.

      The panel provided a platform to present an overview of the main achievements carried out by ITU T Q5/5 “Security and reliability of information and communication technology (ICT) systems from electromagnetic and particle radiations".

      During the meeting:
      • 16 draft Recommendations were​ consented:
        • Draft revised Recommendation ITU-T K.112 “ Lightning protection, earthing and bonding: Practical procedures for radio base stations"
        • Draft revised Recommendation ITU-T K.77 “ Characteristics of metal oxide varistors for the protection of telecommunication installations"
        • Draft revised Recommendation ITU-T K.44 “ Resistibility tests for telecommunication equipment exposed to overvoltages and overcurrents – Basic Recommendation"
        • Draft revised Recommendation ITU-T K.20 “ Resistibility of telecommunication equipment installed in a telecommunication centre to overvoltages and overcurrents"
        • Draft revised Recommendation ITU-T K.21 “Resistibility of telecommunication equipment installed in customer premises to overvoltages and overcurrents"
        • Draft revised Recommendation ITU-T K.45 “Resistibility of telecommunication equipment installed in the access and trunk networks to overvoltages and overcurrents"
        • Draft revised Recommendation ITU-T K.100 “Measurement of radio frequency electromagnetic fields to determine compliance with human exposure limits when a base station is put into service"
        • Draft revised Recommendation ITU-T K.116 “Electromagnetic compatibility requirements and test methods for radio telecommunication terminal equipment"
        • Draft revised Recommendation ITU-T K.123 “ Electromagnetic compatibility requirements for electrical equipment in telecommunication facilities"
        • Draft revised Recommendation ITU-T L.1000 “ Universal power adapter and charger solution for mobile terminals and other hand-held ICT devices"
        • Draft Recommendation ITU-T K.140 (ex K.appl5) “Surge protective component application guide - Fuses"
        • Draft Recommendation ITU-T K.141 (ex K.ipe) “ Electromagnetic compatibility requirements for Information Perception Equipment"
        • Draft Recommendation ITU-T L.1507 (ex L.SES) “ Use of ICT sites to support environmental sensing"
        • Draft Recommendation ITU-T L.1362 (ex L.GAL2) “Interface for power management in NFV environments "Green Abstraction Layer 2" "
        • Draft Recommendation ITU-T L.1032 (ex L.ER) “ Guidelines and Certification Schemes for e-Waste Recyclers"
        • Draft Recommendation ITU-T L.1022 (ex L.CE_Concepts) “Circular Economy: Definitions and concepts for material efficiency for ICT" 
      • 6 informative texts were agreed:
        • Draft Supplement K.Sup.17 to ITU-T K.44 “Test conditions and methods information"
        • Draft Supplement K.Sup.18 to ITU-T K.44 “ Causes of telecommunication system overvoltage and overcurrent conditions and their expected levels"
        • Appendix II to ITU-T K.90 “ Evaluation techniques and working procedures for compliance with exposure limits of network operator personnel to power-frequency electromagnetic fields. Description of the program EMFACDC"
        • Appendix IX to ITU-T K.91 “Manhole type base station"
        • Draft revised Supplement K.Suppl.9 “5G technology and human exposure to RF EMF"
        • Draft revised Supplement K.Suppl.16 “ Electromagnetic field compliance assessments for 5G wireless networks"
      • 13 New Work Items were approved
      • The 21st meeting of Joint Coordination Activity on Internet of Things and Smart Cities and Communities was held on 10 April 2019 in Geneva, Switzerland. During the JCA IoT and SC&C a request was received from TSB Director to discuss the Term of Reference of the Joint-IEC-ISO-ITU Smart Cities Task Force. The purpose of this Task force is:
        • To build synergies and to promote minimization of overlap as applicable on ongoing works in ITU-T, IEC and ISO related to smart cities and communities;
        • To maximize efforts in order to identify new areas of cooperation related to smart cities and communities;  
        • To develop a holistic view on smart cities and communities taking into consideration the scope, areas of work and expertise of ITU-T, IEC and ISO to support smart cities and communities development;
        • To prioritize future items that may arise from future World Smart City Forum (WSCF);
        • ITU-T, ISO and IEC should designate the experts to work on the action items identified as priority by the Task Force;
        • To share the ongoing development of the work items produced by the three organizations to minimize duplication.

          The expected lifetime of the proposed Task force is two years with the possibility of extension. It was decided to submit the revise ToR to TSB Director for action and a LS to TSAG for information.
2018
  • The second ITU-T Study Group 5 Regional Group for the Arab Region meeting​ took place on 18 December 2018 in Kuwait City, Kuwait;
  • The ITU-T Study Group 20 “Internet of things and smart cities & communities” meeting took place from 3-13 December 2018 in Wuxi, China. The meeting was preceded by an ITU Forum on Artificial Intelligence, Internet of Things and Smart Cities on 3 December 2018. The Joint Coordination Activity on Internet of Things and Smart Cities and Communities was held on 6 December 2018 in Wuxi, China. An Information session on ITU-T SG5 Activities on Environment, Climate Change and Circular Economy took place on 3 December 2018. The main achievements of the SG20 meeting were the following:
    • 11 draft Recommendations were consented:
      • Draft Recommendation ITU-T Y.4202 (ex. Y.WPT-usecase) “Framework of wireless power transmission application service”
      • Draft Recommendation ITU-T Y.4203 (ex. Y.IoT-things-description-reqts) “Requirements of things description in the Internet of Things”
      • Draft Recommendation ITU-T Y.4204 (ex.Y.Accessibility-IoT) “Accessibility requirements for the Internet of things applications and services”
      • Draft Recommendation ITU-T Y.4555 (ex.Y.IoT-SQ-fns) “Service functionalities of self-quantification over Internet of things”
      • Draft Recommendation ITU-T Y.4458 (ex. Y.SSL) “Requirements and functional architecture of smart street light service”
      • Draft Recommendation ITU-T Y.4556 (ex. Y.SC_Residential) “Requirements and functional architecture of smart residential community”
      • Draft Recommendation ITU-T Y.4051 (ex.Y.SCC-Terms) “Vocabulary for smart cities and communities”
      • Draft Recommendation ITU-T Y.4205 (ex. Y.CrowdSystems) “Requirements and reference model of IoT-related crowdsourced systems”
      • Draft Recommendation ITU-T Y.4459 (ex. Y.Iot-Interop) “An architecture for IoT interoperability”
      • Draft Recommendation ITU-T Y.4904 (ex. Y.SSC-MM) “Smart sustainable cities maturity model”
      • Draft Recommendation ITU-T Y.4905 (ex. Y.SSC-IA) “Smart sustainable city impact assessment”
    • ​2 Supplements were agreed:​
      • Draft Supplement Y.Sup.53 to ITU-T 4000 series “IoT Use Cases”
      • Draft Supplement Y.Sup. 52 to ITU-T 4000 series “Methodology for building digital capabilities during enterprises' digital transformation”​
    • ​14 New Work Items were approved.​​
  • ​​The 2018 World Smart City Forum​ was organized by ITU in partnership with IEC and ISO and hosted by the Government of the Province of Santa Fe and the Universidad Tecnológica Nacional. It took place on 29 November 2018 in Santa Fe, Argentina;
  • ​The ITU-T SG5 "Environment, climate change and circular economy" meeting took place from 11 to 21 September 2018 in Geneva, Switzerland. During the ITU-T SG5 meeting:
    • ​1 Recommendation was approved: ​ITU-T L.1450 "​Methodologies for the assessment of the environmental impact of the information and communication technology sector"
    • ​12 draft Recommendations were consented, namely:
      • Draft Recommendation ITU-T K.134 (ex.K.psp) on "Protection of small-size telecommunication installations with poor earthing conditions​";
      • Draft Recommendation ITU-T K.135 (ex.K.rcd) on "Technical parameters for residual current operated protective devices with automatic reclosing feature for- telecom applications";
      • Draft Recommendation ITU-T K.136 (ex. K.radio_emc) on "Electromagnetic Compatibility requirements for radio telecommunication equipment";
      • Draft Recommendation ITU-T K.137 (ex. K.wire-line_emc) on "Electromagnetic compatibility requirements and measurement methods for wire-line telecommunication network equipment";
      • Draft Recommendation ITU-T K.138 (ex. K.soft_mes) on "Quality estimation methods and application guidelines for mitigation measures based on particle radiation tests​";
      • Draft Recommendation ITU-T K.139 (ex. K.soft_req) on "Reliability requirements for telecommunication systems affected by particle radiation​";
      • Draft Recommendation ITU-T L.1221 (ex. L.ENST2battery) on "Innovative energy storage technology for stationary use - Part 2: Battery";
      • Draft Recommendation ITU-T L.1303 (ex.L.green_mgm_DC) on "Functional requirements and framework of green data centre energy-saving management system";
      • Draft Recommendation ITU-T L.1361 (ex.L.mmNFV) on "Measurement method for energy efficiency of Network Function Virtualization​";
      • Draft Recommendation ITU-T L.1370 (ex.L.SIB) on "Sustainable and intelligent building services";
      • Draft Recommendation ITU-T L.1031 (ex.L.EW2020) on "Guideline on implementing the e-waste reduction target of the Connect 2020 Agenda"
      • Draft Recommendation ITU-T L.1015 (ex.L.CEM) on "Criteria for evaluation of the environmental impact of mobile phones"
    • ​ 4 Supplements were agreed, namely:
      • ​Revised Supplement 4 to ITU-T K.91​ on "Electromagnetic field considerations in smart sustainable cities​";
      • ​Revised K.Suppl.11 to ITU-T K.131 on "Soft error measures for field programmable gate arrays" 
      • K.Suppl.15 to ITU-T K.20, K.21, K.44​  on "Internal DC powering interface surge testing factors"; and
      • K.Suppl.16 to ITU-T K. series on "Electromagnetic field (EMF) compliance assessments for 5G wireless networks​".
    • ​ 22 new work items were approved.
  • ​The International Telecommunication Union, at the kind invitation of the Ministry of Communication Technologies and Digital Economy of Tunisia, organized the Second ITU Workshop on Data Processing and Management for IoT and Smart Cities & Communities, which took place on 17 September 2018 in Tunis, Tunisia;
  • TSB together with the Ministry of Digital Policy, Telecommunications and Media, Greece, the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE), the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) and and the Permanent Mission of the United Arab Emirates to the United Nations New York organized a side event on “Shaping Smarter and More Sustainable Cities: Striving for Sustainable Development Goals” during the High Level Political Forum 2018 in New York. The side event took place on 12 July 2018.
  • TSB collaborated with the Regional office of the Asia-Pacific to organize the 4th Asia-Pacific Regional Forum on Smart Sustainable Cities and e-Government from 4 to 6 July 2018 in Thanh Hoa, Vietnam;
  • The IoT Week 2018 took place from 4 to 7 June 2018 in Bilbao, Spain;
  • The SG20RG-EECAT and SG11RG-EECAT meeting took place from 4 to 6 June 2018 in Saint Petersburg, Russia. The meeting was combined with ITU Regional Forum on "Internet of Things, Telecommunication Networks and Big Data as Basic Infrastructure for Digital Economy" which took place in the mornings of 4, 5 and 6 June 2018. This conference is organized jointly by TSB and ITU Area Office for CIS;
  • The ITU/WMO/UNESCO-IOC Joint Task Force on SMART (Science Monitoring and Reliable Telecommunications) submarine Cables Systems developed a strategy and roadmap to add climate and hazard monitoring sensors to repeaters on submarine telecommunication cables to create a global real-time ocean observation network. A series of workshops have advanced this concept and identified the need for a "Wet Demonstrator" project as an essential element in the development and acceptance of telecommunications systems incorporating scientific sensors for environmental monitoring. This Joint Task Force is now advancing to a Wet Demonstrator Project in partnership with industry and research cabled ocean observatories.  In order to identify qualified candidates to provide materials and services needed to realize the Wet Demonstrator project, an RFI (request for information) was sent to various organizations at the end of 2016. Several positive responses were received and they are now under study.  Information on this Task Force including publications and workshop information is available at its webpage;
  • The First Forum on Artificial Intelligence and Internet of things in Latin America took place on 29 and 30 May 2018 in Buenos Aires, Argentina. The Forum was co-organized with the Ministry of Modernization, Argentina; UNIDO, UNESCO, ECLAC, CITEL, COMTELCA and ASIET. The Forum provided a platform to discuss the role of AI and IoT in shaping smarter and more sustainable cities and addressing urban challenges, with the ultimate objective of improving the quality of life of people. The Forum concluded with the Buenos Aires Declaration;
  • An Information Session on "Exploring the Role of Small Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in Linking AI and IoT in Smart Cities" and their participation in ITU-T Study Groups was organized on 30 May from 09.30 to 11.30 a.m.;
  • The ITU-T Study Group 20 "Internet of things (IoT) and Smart Cities and Communities (SC&C)" took place from 6 to 16 May 2018 in Cairo, Egypt.
    • The following events were held in conjunction with ITU-T SG20:
    • During the SG20 meeting:
      • 1 Recommendation was approved: Recommendation ITU-T Y.4500.2 on oneM2M- Requirements.
      • 9 draft Recommendations were consented, namely:
        • Draft Recommendation ITU-T Y.4120 (ex. Y.IoT-Retail-Reqts) on Requirements of Internet of Things applications for smart retail stores;
        • Draft Recommendation ITU-T Y.4121 (ex.Y.IoT-GP-Reqts) on Requirements of an Internet of Things enabled network for support of applications for global processes of the earth;
        • Draft Recommendation ITU-T Y.4001 (ex.Y.SmartMan-IIoT-overview) on Overview of smart manufacturing in the context of Industrial Internet of Things;
        • Draft Recommendation ITU-T Y.4416 (ex.Y.NGNe-IoT-arch) on Architecture of the Internet of Things based on NGNe;
        • Draft Recommendation ITU-T Y.4417 (ex.Y.IoT-son) on Framework of self-organization network in the IoT environments;
        • Draft Recommendation ITU-T Y.4418 (ex.Y.gw-IoT-arch) on Functional architecture of gateway for IoT applications;
        • Draft Recommendation ITU-T Y.4500.32 (ex.Y.oneM2M.MAF.MEF) on oneM2M-MAF and MEF Interface Specification;
        • Draft Recommendation ITU-T Y.4457 (ex.Y.TPS-afw) on Architectural framework for providing transportation safety service; and
        • Draft Recommendation ITU-T Y.4415 (ex. Y.WoO-hn) on Architecture of web of objects based virtual home network.
      • 14 new work items were approved, namely on: Services and high-level requirements of smart airports for interaction with external platforms; Framework for Internet of Things Ecosystem Master Plan; Framework and capabilities for Smart Livestock Farming Based on Internet of Things; Accessibility Requirements for Smart Public Transportation Services; Capabilities and framework of edge computing-enabled gateway  in the IoT; Architectural reference model of devices for IoT applications; Decentralized IoT communication architecture based on ICN and blockchain; Functional architecture of cellular-radio network capability exposure for smart hospital based on Internet of things; Functional architecture of network-based driving assistance for autonomous vehicles; Functional architecture for unmanned aerial vehicles and unmanned aerial vehicle controllers using IMT-2020 networks; Reference architecture of spare computational capability exposure of IoT devices for smart home; Algorithm Agility for IT Systems and Supporting Infrastructure used in the Internet of Things; Framework of IoT-devices authentication in Smart City; and Interaction between physical and digital cities for building Smart Sustainable City.
      • It was decided to extend the lifetime of the FG-DPM by until July 2019.
  • The Focus Group on Data Processing and Management to support IoT and Smart Cities & Communities (FG-DPM) met from 1 to 3 May 2018 in Cairo, Egypt. The report of the meeting is available here;
  • The Working Party 1/5 "EMC, lightning protection, EMF" took place from 21 to 25 May 2018.
    During the meeting:
    • 5 revised Recommendations were consented,namely:
      • Draft Recommendation ITU-T K.20 "Resistibility of telecommunication equipment installed in a telecommunication centre to overvoltages and overcurrents"
      • Draft Recommendation ITU-T K.21 "Resistibility of telecommunication equipment installed in customer premises to overvoltages and overcurrents"
      • Draft Recommendation ITU-T K.44 "Resistibility tests for telecommunication equipment exposed to overvoltages and overcurrents – Basic Recommendation"
      • Draft Recommendation ITU-T K.45 "Resistibility of telecommunication equipment installed in the access and trunk networks to overvoltages and overcurrents"
      • Draft Recommendation ITU-T K.90 "Evaluation techniques and working procedures for compliance with exposure limits of network operator personnel to power-frequency electromagnetic fields"
    • 5 informative texts were agreed, namely:
      • ITU-T K.Suppl.12 to Recommendation ITU-T K.51 "Narrow pin spacing in connectors potential hazards"
      • Appendix I to ITU-T K.70 "Mitigation techniques to limit human exposure to EMF's within vicinity of radiocommunication stations"
      • Appendix II of ITU-T K.121 "Guidance on the Environmental Management for Electromagnetic Radiation from  Radiocommunication Base Stations"
      • ITU-T K.Suppl.13 to K series Recommendations "Radiofrequency electromagnetic field (RF-EMF) exposure levels from mobile and portable devices during different conditions of use".
      • ITU-T K.Suppl.13 to K series Recommendations "The impact of RF-EMF exposure limits stricter than the ICNIRP or IEEE guidelines on 4G and 5G mobile network deployment"
    • 7 new work items were approved, namely on: The impact of RF-EMF exposure limits stricter than the ICNIRP or IEEE guidelines on 4G and 5G mobile network deployment; Appropriate use of personal dosimeters for human exposure to RF EMF; Comparison between peak and real exposure in the long term considerations; Impact of the metallic structures for the EMF exposure level; Small base stations – impact on the overall exposure level; Guidance on Determining the Compliance Boundaries (the exclusion zone) of a Live Antenna; and Electromagnetic compatibility requirements for electrical equipment in telecommunication facilities (K.123 rev).
  • The first ITU-T Study Group 5 and Study Group 20 Regional Groups for Latin America (SG5RG-LATAM) and (SG20RG-LATAM) meetings took place on 19 and 20 April 2018 in Cartagena de Indias, Colombia.
    • ITU-T SG5RG-LATAM experts identified the priorities in their countries and agreed that the main priorities for the Latin America region are:
      • Handling and management of waste electrical and electronic equipment for developing countries.
      • Human exposure to electromagnetic fields.

        The report of the meeting is available here. 
    • ITU-T SG20RG-LATAM experts identified the priorities in their countries and agreed that the main priorities for the Latin American region are:
      • Foster the implementation of the Key Performance Indicators for Smart and Sustainable Cities developed through the United for Smart Sustainable Cities (U4SSC) initiative and based on Recommendation ITU-T Y.4903/L.1603 on "Key performance indicators for smart sustainable cities to assess the achievement of sustainable development goals".
      • Smart services, applications and support platforms.
      • Share proposed public policy initiatives to foster transformation to smart and sustainable cities in Latin America.

        The report of the meeting is available here.         
  • The three Regional Groups identified interoperability as a priority in their region. Therefore, in this regard, TSB was requested to strengthen collaboration with key players including by establishing a series of partnerships to set up "interop sandbox environments", which will aim to experience new emerging technologies such e-health, accessibility, IoT, etc, taking into consideration environmental aspects such as EMF and EMC and which will help to identify the standardization needs to be addressed. TSB should also consider the possibility to organize a series of forums and showcases on this issue in conjunction with other major ITU events (e.g. ITU-T or ITU-D Study Groups, etc);
  • The meeting of ITU-T Study Group 20 Regional Group for the Africa Region took place on 10 and 11 April 2018. During the meeting, the priorities of the region were identified and two working groups were created as follows: e/Smart services, applications and supporting platforms and Interoperability. The report of the meeting is available here;
  • The meeting of ITU-T Study Group 5 Regional Group for the Arab region (SG5RG-ARB) took place on 10 April 2018. During the meeting, the priorities of the region were identified and three working groups were created as follows: Working group on Human Exposure to Electromagnetic Fields; Working group on E-waste management to achieve a Circular Economy and Working group on Smart Energy. The report of the meeting is available here;
  • The meeting of ITU-T Study Group 5 Regional Group for Africa (SG5RG-AFR) took place on 9 April 2018. During the meeting, the priorities of the region were identified and three working groups were created as follows: Working group on Human Exposure to Electromagnetic Fields; Working group on E-waste management to achieve a Circular Economy and Working group on Smart Energy. The report of the meeting is available here;
  • The 8th Green Standards Week took place from 9 to 12 April 2018 in Tanzania. ITU-T coordinated with the Regional Office of Africa, the Arab Region, BR and BDT for the organization of the event.
  • A Working Party 2/5 "Environment, Energy Efficiency and the Circular Economy" meeting took place from 5 to 9 March 2018, in Geneva, Switzerland.
    • 6 new Recommendations were consented: Draft Recommendation ITU-T L.1207 on "Progressive migration of a telecommunication/information and communication technology site to 400 VDC sources and distribution"; Draft Recommendation ITU-T L.1222 on "Innovative energy storage technology for stationary use - Part 3: Supercapacitor technology"; Draft Recommendation ITU-T L.1351 on "Base station site energy parameter measurement methodology"; Draft Recommendation ITU-T L.1030 on E-waste management framework for countries; Draft Recommendation ITU-T L.1450 on "Methodologies for the assessment of the environmental impact of the ICT sector" and Draft Recommendation ITU-T L.1460 on "Connect 2020 greenhouse gases emissions – Guidelines".
    • 8 new work Items were approved on Environmental KPIs/metrics for 5G architectures; Energy efficiency and slicing of IMT2020/5G; Smart energy for cities and home applications; E-waste management framework for countries; Effects for ICT enabled autonomy on vehicles longevity and waste creation; Effect for global ICT of the potential of selling services instead of equipment on the waste creation and environmental impacts; Environmental impact of architecture solutions with regards to end of life (EoL) and Circular Economy (CE); and Methodology to assess the environmental impact of different proposed architectures.
    • Progress was made during this meeting regarding draft Recommendation L.EW2020 on "Connect 2020 agenda e-waste reduction". This Recommendation is expected to be consented at the ITU-T SG5 meeting in September 2018.
    • Draft Recommendation ITU-T L.1460 (ex. L. Connect2020 framework) on "Connect 2020 GHG emissions Guidelines" was consented. This Recommendation provides guidelines to reach the Connect 2020 GHG emissions target. It is intended to be utilized by relevant stakeholders, while taking into consideration the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 13 goal and the objectives of the Paris Agreement.  It also presents examples of actions taken in order to limit the GHG emissions in the ICT sector.
  • The U4SSC held its Third meeting on 26 April 2018 in Malaga, Spain. The main objectives of the meeting were to: revise the terms of reference (ToR) of the U4SSC; present the set of deliverables developed within U4SSC in 2017; present and approve the future activities to be carried out in the U4SSC in 2018-2020. The U4SSC Action Plan approved during the meeting is available at: https://www.itu.int/en/ITU-T/ssc/201804/Documents/U4SSC-action%20plan-CB.pdf
    It was agreed to work on the following deliverables: 
    • The impact of Artificial Intelligence and Cognitive Computing in Cities;
    • The impact of Data Processing and Computation in Cities; and
    • The impact of Sensing technologies and IoT in Cities. 

The report on the Third meeting of the U4SSC Initiative is available at: https://www.itu.int/en/ITU-T/ssc/201804/Documents/Report-for-U4SSC-26-04-2018.pdf   

Additionally, all presentations and documents discussed during the meeting are available at: https://www.itu.int/en/ITU-T/ssc/201804/Pages/default.aspx

​2017 2016


Telecommunication Development Bureau (BDT) Activities

  
Ongoing Activities: 
  • As part of the Global E-waste Statistics Partnership, BDT, in cooperation with the United Nations University (UNU) and the International Solid Waste Association (ISWA), have entered into a new project period until the end of 2020. Expected results of the project will, in particular, include the publication of the Global E-waste Monitor 2019 and a Regional E-waste Monitor 2020 for Latin American countries. The Partnership has developed a global e-waste statistics portal – a website https://globalewaste.org/ which will make worldwide e-waste statistics free and publicly available. On 21 May 2019, the Partnership presented the portal to the UN E-waste Coalition, at the same time highlighting expansion opportunities. The portal will be expanded by the Partnership, beyond e-waste statistics to also eventually include other e-waste resources such as publications, videos, project information and learning tools.
​Past Activities: 

2019
  • The global e-waste statistics portal was launched officially on the 4 June 2019, taking advantage of the media awareness around the 2019 World Environment Day (5 June), on the theme of air pollution and how it links to e-waste.
  • As part of the process to build an E-waste Coalition and in follow-up to the High-Level Dialogue “Building an E-waste Coalition", during the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) Forum 2018, the Letter of Intent signatories prepared a report titled A New Circular Vision for Electronics – Time for a Global Reboot. The report, prepared in collaboration with the World Economic Forum (WEF) and the World Business Council for Sustainable Development, was launched at the 2019 Annual Meeting of WEF in Davos. The report called for a systematic collaboration with major brands, small and medium-sized enterprises, academia, trade unions, civil society and associations – in a deliberative process to reorient the system and reduce waste and resources each year with a value greater than the GDP of most countries.
  • During the (WSIS) Forum 2019, held in Geneva, from 8-12 April 2019, BDT organized another High-Level Dialogue session on “Building an E-waste Coalition". This session provided a platform for the exchange of views on the current e-waste management challenge and on considering concrete actions for building the E-waste Coalition, taking into account the comparative advantages of those involved. The session built on the previous High-Level Dialogue on e-waste which took place during the 2018 WSIS Forum, this time around welcoming the following new signatories to the Letter of Intent: the World Health Organization, the International Trade Centre and the UN Human Settlements Programme.
  • Since January 2019, the organisations of the E-waste Coalition have been closely working together to raise awareness of the global e-waste challenge during several major international proceedings. Following the launch of the New Circular Vision report at Davos, the Coalition has organised side events at the 4th United Nations Environment Assembly in March in Nairobi, and during the Conference of the Parties to the Basel, Rotterdam and Stockholm Conventions in Geneva in May. ITU has also been involved in several technical meetings of the Coalition – hosted by UNU in Bonn, and the United Nations Institute for Training and Research, and the International Labour Organization, in Geneva. At these meetings, organisations have discussed the governance and membership structure of the Coalition.
  • LSE Division has been in early discussions with the WEEECAM project in Cameroon, an initiative of the French NGO, La Guilde and Solidarité Technologique, with a potential to co-finance a component of this ongoing e-waste project through the ICT Development Fund.
  • ​A study has been commissioned to determine the capacity building needs of African countries in terms of developing guidelines on the development of legislative frameworks. This study will recommend a capacity building plan for having this e-waste legislative framework in place.​   
2018
  • BDT has completed the development of training materials on ICTs and Climate Change which is being done in four stages. This materials will be used for training and capacity building purposes.
  • BDT has finalized the 'Handbook for the development of a policy framework on electrical and electronic waste from Information and Communication Technologies'. This document is in the process of being formatted for publication.​
  • BDT carried out an e-waste statistics training during the 8th Green Standards Week.
  • During the World Summit on the Information Society Forum, held in Geneva, from 19 to 23 April 2018, BDT jointly with WMO organized a session on "E-Environment: Multi-hazard Early Warning Systems and the Role of ICTs". This session highlighted the critical role that ICTs play as an integral component of Multi-hazard early warning systems (MHEWS) to monitor the environment and to effectively disseminate alerting messages of different type of hazards to those at risk. Participants had the opportunity to highlight some concrete solutions and discuss the importance of MHEWS checklist for a better collaboration among various stakeholders, including disaster risk management agencies, meteorological and geological services, ICT regulators, NGOs, UN entities and private ICT operators.
​2017
  • ​ITU, together with the United Nations University (UNU), and the International Solid Waste Association (ISWA) finalized the Global E-waste Monitor 2017, which was launched on 15 December 2017. This report presents 2016 global and regional figures on the amount of e-waste produced, highlights low global recycling rates, and points to the opportunities and benefits of urban mining. It also features a number of other figures, such as global and regional recycling rates, and the number of countries with e-waste legislation. This report is one of the key outcomes of the Global E-waste Statistics Partnership. The main objective of this Partnership is to build capacity to help countries produce reliable and comparable e-waste statistics, to collect data from countries and build a global e-waste database to track developments over time and by informing policy makers and industry. In addition, it also makes the link to the SDGs and provides an overview of data availability and needs. The report received very high media coverage. It was covered in over 1'000 news articles, in 71 countries, and in 25 languages, and reached a cumulative potential audience of 974 million people, including through the New York Times, Huffington Post, National Geographic, and many others. The report will be translated into the other 5 official languages and be available in early April 2018;
  • The final reports of the ITU-D Study Group Period 2014-2017 Questions 6/2 on ICTs and Climate Change and Question 8/2 on Strategies and Policies for the proper disposal or reuse of telecommunication/ICT waste material have been published;
  • BDT together with the Basel, Rotterdam and Stockholm Conventions Secretariat of UN Environment and WMO organized a meeting on "Action Line C7. E-environment: Environment, an Important Pillar to Building a Sustainable Future" on 12 June 2017 at the WSIS Forum. BDT also contributed to the Moderated High-Level Policy Session 12 - Theme: ICT Applications and Services, Digital, Economy and Trade, Climate Change on 14 June 2017;
  • During the WSIS Forum 2017, on 14 June 2017, the Global E-waste Statistic Partnership organized a meeting on ‘Addressing the global e-waste challenge'. The session highlighted current challenges in the area of e-waste and monitoring e-waste. It introduced the Global E-waste statistics Partnership, and provided information on current efforts to increase the availability and quality of e-waste statistics;
  • ITU, in collaboration with the United Nations University (UNU), and the International Solid Waste Association (ISWA) have set up the Global E-waste Statistics Partnership. The main objective of this Partnership is to build capacity to help countries produce reliable and comparable e-waste statistics, to collect data from countries and build a global e-waste database to track developments over time and by  informing policy makers and industry;​
  • ITU-D Study Group Period 2014-2017 ended in April 2017, with the adoption of the final reports of Study Group Questions 6/2 on ICTs and Climate Change and Question 8/2 on Strategies and Policies for the proper disposal or reuse of telecommunication/ICT waste material;​ and
  • BDT together with WMO, UNISDR, UNICEF, UNSPIDER, UNOCHA, contributed to the organization of an International Conference on Early Warning Systems that was held in Cancun, Mexico, from 22 to 23 May 2017.
​
2016
  • Rapporteur Group Meeting for ITU-D SG2 was held in Geneva, during September 2016;
  • ITU-D Study Group 2 meeting on Question 6/2 "ICT and Climate Change" was held in September 2016;
  • ITU-D Study Group 2 Rapporteur Group meeting on Question 6/2 "ICT and Climate Change" was held on 25 April 2016.


Radiocommunication Bureau Activities


​Ongoing Activities:
  • In accordance with ITU-R Resolution 60 as approved by RA-15 ITU-R Study Groups, studies of best practices to reduce energy consumption within ICT systems, equipment or applications operating in a radiocommunication service, are ongoing;
  • BR continues to represent ITU in WMO (Executive Council, IPT-SWeISS commission (Space Weather) and Steering Group on Radio-Frequency Coordination) and Group on Earth Observations (GEO Work Programme Symposium) events;
  • As part of the Global E-waste Statistics Partnership, the BDT Regional Office (ARB) in collaboration with the LSE Division and UNU have entered into a new project to develop a Regional E-waste Monitor for the Arab Region. The project will also enhance capacity of the Arab States in producing national e-waste statistics through a workshop;
  • CIS is supporting UNU in the preparation of a Regional E-waste Monitor for Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), Georgia, Turkmenistan and Ukraine;
  • ITU Area Office for Southern Africa in collaboration with LSE Division will organize a regional e-waste awareness workshop on e-waste management policies from African countries. The workshop will be held in Namibia in August/September 2019. This follows a request from the Ministry of ICT of the Government of Namibia to assist them with the development of an e-waste management policy;

    The two-day workshop will be followed by a one-day national stakeholder consultation meeting that will review the country’s e-waste policy and enforcement status, requirements and approaches prior to continued assistance in developing an e-waste management policy;
  • The ITU Asia Pacific Centres of Excellence is organizing an online training course on “IoT Security Challenges and Solutions” from 26 August to 6 September 2019;
  • The ITU Area Office for AP is organizing a training on ICT application relating to Smart City from 21 to 24 September 2019;
  • An ITU Caribbean Regional Regulatory Meeting on AI, IoT, Smart Cities and e-Government is planned to be held in October 2019;
  • BDT Regional Office (ASP) in collaboration with LSE Division and the United Nations University, is organizing an e-waste awareness workshop in India on the last week of November 2019. BDT representatives from Geneva and Bangkok held a conference call with the National Institution for Transforming India, a policy think tank of the Indian Government, to discuss the workshop. The workshop will raise awareness around the actions and partnerships required for the implementation of the e-waste component of India's resource efficiency and circular economy strategy.
Past Activities:

2019
  • The Regional Office for Americas organized the event on “ITU Innovation Week" with the theme on smart rural communities, ICT innovation and agriculture production from 4 to 6 June 2019 in Montevideo, Uruguay;
  • The ITU News (January edition) was dedicated to the economic, social and technical aspects of space sensing.
​2018
  • BR participated in the Group on Earth Observations (GEO) week 2018 held from 29 October to 2 November 2018 in Kyoto, Japan.​​
​2017
  • A new edition of WMO/ITU "Use of radio spectrum for meteorology: weather, water and climate monitoring and prediction" Handbook is available here.  
  • ITU-R and the WMO held the Second ITU/WMO Seminar "Use of Radio Spectrum for Meteorology: "Weather, Water and Climate Monitoring and Prediction" from 23 to 24 October 2017 in Geneva Switzerland;
  • ITU-R SG7 completed the revision of the Handbook on use of Radio Spectrum for Meteorology: "Weather, Water and Climate Monitoring and Prediction”; Recommendation ITU-R RS.1859-0 - Use of remote sensing systems for data collections to be used in the event of natural disasters and similar emergencies; and Recommendation ITU-R RS.1883 - Use of remote sensing systems in the study of climate change and the effects thereof. The predicted approval is given to be April 2017.
​2016
  • BR participated in the Sixteenth session of the Commission for Basic Systems (CBS-16), in November 2016.


Regional Offices

   
​Ongoing Activities:
  • An ITU Caribbean Regional Regulatory Meeting on AI, IoT, Smart Cities and e-Government is planned to be held in October 2019;.
Past Activities:

2019
  • The Regional Office for Americas is organizing and event on “ITU Innovation Week” with the them on smart rural communities, ICT innovation and agriculture production from 5 to 8 August 2019 in Montevideo, Uruguay.
​2017
  • ITU Regional Office for Americas supported a limited number of National Assessments related to the situation of e-waste
  • A study for developing an e- Waste Management Policy and Regulatory Framework for Jamaica has been completed;
  • The e-waste management policy and regulatory framework for Saint Lucia was finalized;
  • The ITU Regional Office for the Americas Region, organized the III Workshop and Follow-up of the regional activities on Emergency communications and Climate Change from 29 to 31 August 2017 in Bogota, Colombia;
  • A Forum on Internet of Things (IoT): Smarter Living in the Caribbean was held from 24 to 26 April 2017 in Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago. The forum highlighted the significance of IoT as a technological revolution that represents the future of computing and communications, and its development being dependent on dynamic technical innovation. It was attended by 98 participants from 14 countries. ECLAC and 13 other ICT sector entities also attended the event.
​2016
  • On 12 and 13 September 2016, the ITU Regional Office for the Americas Region with INICTEL UNI (Peru), and Mintel (Ecuador) organized a Workshop on technology to mitigate earthquakes and tsunamis effects and EWBS prototype demonstration on tsunamis emergency alert, in Ecuador.






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