On 11 August 2010 Fundación Ambiente y Recursos Naturales- FARN (Argentina),  in collaboration with Asociación Civil Red Ambiental (Argentina) and the Asociación Nacional para la Conservación de la Naturaleza (Panama), will host a half-day “working breakfast” web conference to facilitate discussion between Latin American civil society representatives on the IEG reform process.  FARN,  a not-for-profit organization, aims to promote sustainable development through policy, law, and the democratic participation of society. Executive Director María Eugenia Di Paola, was selected as a one of thirteen Global Environmental Governance Project Emerging Leaders to participate in the 2009 Glion Forum and committed to organizing a conference on global environmental governance for public sector and academic leaders in Argentina.

Tentatively scheduled to convene at the UNEP Regional Office in Buenos Aires, the conference objectives include: increase participants’ understanding of the results of the Global Environmental Governance Forum and the Belgrade Process on international environmental governance reform, solicit input from civil society and academia in the region on the issues discussed in the Belgrade Process and strengthen the network of Latin American civil society leaders working on global environmental governance.  Participants will include senior level environmental practitioners, academics, independent environmental researchers, and representatives from multilateral organizations such as the World Bank, IBD, UNDP, and UNEP. As part of the agenda, María Eugenia Di Paola will offer insights into her experience at the Glion Forum, the latest GEG Project documentary “Quest for Leadership” will be shown, and participants will be structured into working groups to analyze challenges, leverage points and opportunities for action within the framework of the Belgrade Process. For a discussion on the IEG process thus far and a timeframe, please visit our online July 2010 newsletter.

On the 7-9 July 2010, the first meeting was conducted in Nairobi, Kenya, for the Consultative Group of Ministers or High-level Representatives on International Environmental Governance (IEG), established under UNEP Governing Council decision SSXI/1. Delegates from 59 countries participated in the meeting which was co-chaired by Ms. Paula Lehtomäki, Minister for Environment of Finland, and Mr. John Njoroge Michuki, Minister for Environment and Mineral Resources of Kenya.

The outcomes of the consultations are presented in a Co-Chair’s Summary, reflecting the interactive dialogue that occurred among the delegates. The starting point for discussion was a background document entitled ‘Ideas for Broader Reform of International Environmental Governance’ which outlined 24 possible reform options. Annex I of the Co-Chair’s Summary contains a revised table reducing the number of options to an indicative number of 9. The remaining options do not necessarily command consensus and other ideas will still be considered, but the new table shows what has the broadest support by governments so far. Annex II of the Co-Chair’s Summary outlines a revised roadmap for the implementation of decision SSXI/1. A standardized format for analysis of options was also tabled.

The consultation meeting in Nairobi was closed to observers, but views from civil society on IEG was considered through a Major Groups and Stakeholders Input Summary, compiled by the Global Environmental Governance Project Director Maria Ivanova based on input from a broad range of civil society actors around the world, and circulated to governments as an official background document. The second meeting of the Consultative Group will take place in Helsinki, Finland in November 2010. According to the roadmap, civil society will be invited to contribute through web-based consultations in September.

Universities  all over the world are not doing enough in order to help society to cope with the challenges posed by climate change. This is one of the findings of the “World Climate Change Survey”, a research initiative aimed at identifying  the general level of awareness of and needs of university students about climate change in university programmes worldwide. Undertaken by the Hamburg University of Applied Sciences in Germany as part of the International Climate Change Information Programme (ICCIP – http://www.iccip.net) the survey was targeted to university students so that first-hand information on current practice  could be gathered and reality-based suggestions could be made to address any identified problems or needs.

The results of the survey are presented as the first chapter of the newly-launched book “Universities and Climate Change” published by Springer.

The survey also points out a number of information and communication needs that exist and that should be met in order to allow a better integration of climate-related issues in the university curriculum across the world. Details on the survey and the results gathered can be accessed at: http://survey.climateonline.net/

source: climate list (IISD)

Nominations are now open for a limited number of civil society representatives to participate in the MDG Summit at the UN Headquarters in New York 20-22 September. Applications can be submitted until Tuesday 27 September via an online form here. Conducted with the overall objective to accelerate progress towards all the Millennium Development Goals, the summit will be structured around six roundtables on different themes with four civil society representatives in each. Civil society consultations on the MDGs carried out earlier this year resulted in an 80-page report, also available in a 6-page executive summary format, along with individual contributions submitted by participating organizations here.

UNEP has decided to act upon an unanimous recommendation by major groups and regional representatives who participated in the 11th Special Session of the UNEP Governing Council in Bali, by creating a Civil Society Advisory Group on International Environmental Governance (IEG). Nominations are open until 13 August 2010 for possible candidates who may be elected members of the Advisory Group.

The Advisory Group will be spearheading and guiding a dynamic and multidimensional process within major groups and stakeholders to communicate key messages to the governmental negotiations and foster constructive engagement of global civil society, in line with Governing Council Decision SSXI/1 paragraph 9.

The members of the Advisory Group should ideally have all the following qualifications:

• Relevant experience, expertise and interest in the  IEG process
• Broad knowledge of international organisations, UN bodies and procedures
• Proven interest and availability to invest time in reviewing thoroughly the relevant documents
• Preparedness to present regional interests
• Preparedness to present interests of other major groups and stakeholders
• Readiness to consolidate received inputs and comments and make them available in an easy-to-read format
• Ability to work towards strict deadlines
• Availability to travel, if elected, to represent the Advisory Group at relevant meetings
• Ability to be effective in inter-governmental negotiations.

There is no guarantee that UNEP can cover the costs of participation in the Advisory Group, and candidates must be aware that their contribution may be entirely on non-payment basis.

If you wish to nominate yourself or someone else to be a candidate of the Civil Society Advisory Group on IEG, you need to read the TORmgIEG 10.08.10, fill in the NomineeMotivationForm(2) and submit by 13 August to civil.society@unep.org. Include your contact details, gender, major group and organization, along with a description of how you meet all the above listed qualifications, your motivation to become a member of the advisory group, and your previous experience with international governance.

Are you planning an environmental conference, training course or meeting? Make sure that your event is completely imbued by environmental concerns, not only in theory but also in practice. Meetings in person provide great opportunities for discussing, exchanging experiences, networking and advancing ideas for sustainability. Thinking and talking is imperative, but for real change to happen we must also act to be the change we want to see. For this purpose, UNEP in cooperation with ICLEI produced a Green Meeting Guide in 2009, full of useful advice on how to reduce negative environmental impacts of organized events. The Guide provides a checklist for everything from how to choose the venue and cater for meals and accommodation, to heating and cooling the premises and communicating the necessity of green meetings. The Guide is written for UN staff but will be of interest to non-UN event organizers as well. The work builds on extensive experiences of ICLEI’s Greening Events Initiative. Download the Green Meeting Guide as PDF here.

On 4 June, Dr. Franz Perrez was appointed Switzerland’s new Ambassador for the Environment. In this capacity he will lead the Swiss delegations at all important international negotiations in the area of the environment, including the climate negotiations and top level meetings. Franz Perrez also just assumed the role of Head of the International Affairs Division at the Swiss Federal Office for the Environment (FOEN), succeeding Thomas Kolly. Read FOEN’s media release here. Exactly one year ago, Dr. Perrez participated in the GEG Forum organized in Glion, and in October 2009 he was featured here on the GEG Website with a video presentation on global environmental governance. The GEG Project wishes Franz every success in his new endeavors.

Global environmental governance was announced  as one of the priority areas for the United Nations in its 65th Session of the General Assembly (UNGA). Swiss national Mr. Joseph Deiss was elected president of the Session, which will open on 14 September 2010. In his first speech, as is customary for the president-elect, Mr. Deiss announced the issues that will be given most attention and that will mark the work of the UNGA in the course of the year.

“New global challenges such as climate change, food security, and economic and financial crises need collective and urgent responses,” he stressed. The search for lasting solutions to these challenges will require governance that better reflect the new balance of the power in the world.”

In a press conference on 15 June, Mr. Deiss elaborated that a key aspect of improved global governance will be to further promote the effectiveness and credibility of the work of the UNGA. A reform should be sought of both the General Assembly and the Security Council in order to revitalize each entity. Building bridges between UN bodies will be imperative for achieving greater coherence within the United Nations, where various agencies are operating through different vantage points while seeking solutions to the same problems. The UNGA should work to establish connections also with new groups, including the Group of 20. Read the Greening the Blue article on the press conference here.

Beyond governance, issues such as poverty, human rights, food security, climate change and biodiversity will be priorities of the president elect’s tenure. Increased efforts should be made towards the achievement of a green economy, as a topic closely linked to the environment, global warming and poverty eradication. The UNGA will open with the MDG Summit, a high-level debate on progress and gaps in meeting the Millennium Development Goals.

Mr. Deiss ensured his absolute commitment and motivation, and reminded the member states: “Our mission is to do our best to cooperate for the benefit of our planet and of human kind. The people of the world are watching us with hope, and we do not have the right to let them down.”

The corporate world is moving into a new era, as sustainability issues are becoming core to corporate operations. This is shown in the recently published United Nations Global Compact CEO Survey 2010, conducted in partnership with Accenture and based on completed responses from 766 CEOs from different industries and parts of the world. 93 percent of the chief executive officers reply that sustainability issues will be critical to the companies’ success in the next 10 years.

This largest survey for investigating corporate sustainability efforts is conducted every three years, and the comparison of the survey from 2010 with the results in 2007 shows a significant growth in the attention given to sustainability issues by CEOs. 96 percent of this year’s respondents say sustainability should be “fully embedded into the strategy and operation of a company,” while three years ago only 72 percent shared that same opinion.

What are then the factors motivating CEOs to take action on sustainability? Brand, trust and reputation top the list, while economic calculus and personal motivation almost tie. The survey findings can be studied in more detail in the UN Global Compact- Accenture CEO Study 2010.

The 2010 survey was published in tandem with the UN Global Compact Leaders Summit, taking place 24-25 June in New York.

A Consultative Group of Ministers or High-Level Representatives was launched at the 25th Session of the Governing Council of the United Nations Environment Programme in February 2009 in the so-called Belgrade process. In the first week of June 2010, input from civil society was solicited and collected by the Major Groups and Stakeholders Branch at UNEP. The Global Environmental Governance Project compiled a summary of the contributions from major groups and stakeholders on the options for broader reform of the international environmental governance process. All contributions are featured below in their entirety.

Major Groups and Stakeholders Input Summary

Input from Major Groups and Stakeholders (Business and Industry, Children and Youth, Farmers, Indigenous Peoples and their Communities, Local Authorities, Non-Governmental Organizations, Scientific and Technological Community, Women, Workers and Trade Unions)

Children and Youth

General IEG Input submitted by Children and Youth Representative Sara Svensson, Tunza Network

Specific IEG Input submitted by Children and Youth Representative Sara Svensson, Tunza Network

Local Authorities

IEG Input submitted by Susanne Salz, ICLEI- Local Governments for Sustainability

Non-Governmental Organizations

IEG Input submitted by NGO Representative Daniel Magraw, Director, Center for International Environmental Law

Women

IEG Input submitted by Women Representative Sascha Gabizon, Women in Europe for a Common Future

Stakeholders

IEG Input submitted by Joy Muller, International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies

IEG Input submitted by Hans F. Schwensberg, President, Public Awareness Education Programs

Input from Regions (Africa, Asia and the Pacific, Europe, Latin America and the Caribbean, North America, West Asia)

Africa

IEG Input submitted by African Regional Representative Robert Bakiika

Europe

IEG Input submitted by European Regional Representative Karine Danielyan, Chairperson, “For Sustainable Human Development”/UNEP National Committee

Latin America and the Caribbean

IEG Input submitted by Latin America and the Caribbean Regional Representative Alida Spadafora, Directora Ejecutiva, Asociación Nacional para la Conservación de la Naturaleza (ANCON)

North America

IEG Input submitted by North American Regional Representative Maria Ivanova, Director, Global Environmental Governance Project and Assistant Professor, College of William and Mary

IEG Input submitted by Kenneth W. Abbott, Professor of Law and Global Studies, Arizona State University

IEG Input submitted by Ed Barry, Director, Sustainable World Initiative and Sustainable Living Advisor

IEG Input submitted by John Coo, Green Cross Canada

IEG Input submitted by Harris Gleckman, Director, Benchmark Environmental Consulting

IEG Input submitted by Warwick J. McKibbin and Adele Morris, Harvard Project in International Climate Agreements, The Brookings Institute

West Asia

IEG Input submitted by Habiba Al Marashi, Chairperson, Emirates Environment Group