The last 30 days have started. One month from now, we will be in Rio de Janeiro, where thousands of negotiators and delegates will be hashing out the text of the final outcome document for Rio+20.
But what is Rio+20 all about now? The UN Conference for Sustainable Development, as it is officially called, takes place 20 years after the original Rio summit, back in 1992. Its first aim is therefore to look back at the progress made over those 20 years, to reaffirm the commitment to continue working towards a more sustainable future, but also to evaluate new challenges which have emerged since 1992 – e.g. (youth) unemployment, growing water shortages, and a majority of world population living in cities.
In addition to these objectives, the conference has two particular thematic focuses. First, it looks at the ways of achieving a green economy, which will be low carbon, resource-efficient, and socially inclusive. Second, a decision is only as effective as its implementation. So in order to secure a better follow-up of the results of the conference, we will try to strengthen and sometimes even reform the institutional framework for sustainable development (IFSD).
So, in order to recap, Rio+20 has 3 Objectives and 2 Themes:
- Renew political commitment
- Assess the progress and gaps since Rio 1992
- Address new and emerging challenges
- Green Economy in the Framework of Sustainable Development and Poverty Eradication
- Institutional Framework for Sustainable Development
Central at Rio+20 of course, is the notion of sustainable development, and the way to get us there. Sustainable development, is development which allows the current world population to have a healthy, decent, and fulfilling life, while preserving the planet for the generations coming after us. It therefore requires a balance between social, economical, and environmental progress.
Initiated with a UN General Assembly resolution in late 2009, the Rio+20 process will culminate in the high-level segment of the conference, June 20-22 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Until then, there are about 10 days of preparatory negotiations left, and dozens of side-events to increase discussion on the crucial topics of the conference.
In order to keep you updated, we will post a couple more introductions to these topics in the coming days and weeks. Once we are actually in Rio, we will also be reporting back on the negotiations and events going on, using the website and social media. So like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to stay tuned!