News facts
MEDIA ADVISORY
7–10 July | Pattaya, Thailand | In-person
Climate experts from across Asia are set to convene to boost information sharing on scaling up and financing the climate technology projects that will support the region as it seeks to urgently address the crisis of climate change. The 2026 Asia Nationally Designated Entities (NDE) Forum will bring together government representatives from across Asia, together with international climate experts, financial institutions, and technology providers, from 7-10 July in Pattaya, Thailand.
The event brings together key Asian country climate experts (Nationally Designated Entities, or NDEs) to learn from climate technology projects implemented in the region. The regional climate experts will be trained on how to integrate clean energy technologies into their national climate plans, at a time when rapidly growing economies - and the surging electricity demands of artificial intelligence - are putting unprecedented pressure on energy infrastructure. Participants will visit Thai Eastern Group Holdings PCL, a leading integrated renewable energy producer, and work through cases of energy technology integration, storage challenges, and policy barriers to clean energy deployment.
Another challenge in the region is matching private sector technology providers with country climate experts; the event will host a Network Fair to support collaboration on energy and AI-related climate solutions.
The Asia NDE Forum is organised by the UN Climate Technology Centre and Network (CTCN) and hosted by Thailand's Office of National Higher Education Science Research and Innovation Policy Council. Participants will include representatives of the Green Climate Fund, the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, and country delegations from across Asia.
High-Level Speakers include:
- Mr. Yodchanan Wongsawat, Minister, Ministry of Higher Education, Science, Research and Innovation, Thailand
- Ms. Ariesta Ningrum, Director, Climate Technology Centre and Network (CTCN)
- Dr. Surachai Sathitkunarat, NDE of Thailand
- Representatives of the UNFCCC Technology Executive Committee, CTCN Advisory Board, Green Climate Fund, and AIIB
Notes for Editors
Quotes
“Turning climate ambition into implementation requires more than technology alone. It requires the right connections between national priorities, innovation, finance and the expertise needed to turn solutions into real impact. As Thailand’s NDE, NXPO helps connect national climate technology needs with the country’s higher education, science, research and innovation ecosystem, while also linking practical solutions with international technology and finance partners. In partnership with the CTCN, UNEP and GCF, the 2026 Asia NDE Forum provides an important platform for countries across the region to share experiences, strengthen cooperation and identify practical pathways to advance climate and clean energy solutions that respond to national needs, strengthen resilience and contribute to sustainable development across Asia.”
— Dr. Surachai Sathitkunarat, President, Office of National Higher Education Science Research and Innovation Policy Council (NXPO)
"Asia and the Pacific is on the front line of the climate crisis — and also where some of the most promising climate technology solutions are emerging. The challenge now is connecting that innovation to the finance that lets it scale. By bringing climate technology and climate finance focal points to the same table, this Forum helps countries across our region turn proven pilots into investment-ready projects, and ambition into impact on the ground.
— Dechen Tsering, Regional Director and Representative for Asia and the Pacific, UNEP
"Asia is at the epicentre of a defining energy challenge: how to power rapidly growing economies and the surging electricity demands of AI, cleanly and affordably. We have seen what is possible — in Thailand, CTCN support helped place green hydrogen at the heart of the country's net-zero pathway; in Pakistan, we turned climate ambition into a concrete technology implementation roadmap. We need more of this, and faster. That is why I am particularly excited about this week's Coordination meeting between national climate leads and financial authorities — the first in a decade. With more climate finance available than ever, the coordination between these two communities has never mattered more. We are here to bridge the gap between ambition and implementation."
— Ariesta Ningrum, Director, CTCN
About the Climate Technology Centre and Network (UN CTCN) The CTCN is the implementation arm of the Technology Mechanism of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), hosted by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). It promotes the accelerated transfer of environmentally sound technologies for low-carbon and climate-resilient development at the request of developing countries, drawing on a global Network of over 1,000 member organisations across 165 countries.
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