Friday, May 9, 2008

The Chair’s Report — Urgency or Complacency?

It is Friday. Starting today, and finishing over the weekend, the Chair and the CSD secretariat will work to have the Chair’s Summary, Part I finalised and distributed on Tuesday. The important synthesised results from panels, dialogues, presentations and discussions will have found their ways into the report. Next year’s CSD will discuss policy decisions based on this report. With wrong priorities, incomplete arguments, failed analysis and disagreement over how to overcome obstacles, the policy outcome next year can seriously set the world back. The Chair’s credibility and CSD’s credibility is at stake.

By: Jan-Gustav Strandenaes, ANPED

One week into a new CSD, and again we can quietly observe: Rarely has the relevance of the agenda topics struck a more resonant chord associated with the quest for the survival of our planet and the well being of its people. Are we ready to tackle this momentous task?

Urgency must drive the outcome of this CSD. Suddenly a global food crisis may be looming affecting not only the poor people of the world but every citizen. And the driving forces behind this precarious situation are those underpinning the sought after living standards of human well being: increased material wealth. But increased material wealth is not sustainable human well being.

The writing is still on the wall, in pretty much the same way as it was written 30 to 40 years ago.

The major difference between today and then is that the problems, the interrelationships the consequences of all our actions are much better researched, documented, understood. So we cannot feign ignorance, even though we seem to forget easily: The Millennium Ecosystem-Assessment launched in 2000 and the UNEP GEO 4 Report launched last year carry the same message: we understand the problems and we know many of the solutions.

Without a healthy and living nature, there is no life. In this case, speaking about earning money would be an illusory activity, progress in any direction an absurdity.

What was well conceived and begun in Stockholm in 1972, further developed at Rio in 1992, and carried further in Johannesburg in 2002, must now be brought to a successful end with a result focussed enough for all to develop a policy upon which future strategies, plans, programmes and projects for the sustainability of this world can be built.

Never is our innermost satisfaction brought to a higher pitch than when we can stare our opponent straight in the eye and triumphantly exclaim: I told you so. Despite this desire, it gives civil society no pleasure in saying we told you this would happen 40 years ago.

Changing our ways to sustainable development today is no longer a question of lacking knowledge or not having enough resources. It is a question of political will, and doing the right thing for all. And the choices we are about to make, may take us forward in a right or wrong direction.

Civil society has always been concerned with getting the philosophy, its topical challenges and policy results of the CSD out to its constituency, which in a larger context is the foundation of the UN, the “We, the peoples ...” The purpose of this outreach has always been to inspire to a reasonable, knowledge based and coherent implementation. This cannot be accomplished without the concrete support of governments and intergovernmental institutions. Guiding policy and actions will depend on a Chair’s report of high quality.

CSD with a strong message to the world

The world expects a strong and forceful message coming from the United Nations and its Commission on Sustainable Development this year.

We cannot wait, the world cannot wait, humanity cannot wait any longer for politicians and market forces to make the right decisions to safeguard the environment and ensure sustainable development, not merely as an overarching principle, but as implementable parts of every plan, every product, every project, every development.

Letting us down with a mediocre report would be tantamount to betraying the very principles embedded in the Charter of the United Nations: We would in effect be turning our backs on humanity.