Race to Rio - Earth Summit 2012 News

We are just a year away from the next Earth Summit scheduled for June 4-6, 2012 in Rio de Janeiro, and interest in the gathering – officially labeled the UN Conference on Sustainable Development – is starting to grow.  Our hope is that the 2012 meeting – also dubbed “Rio+20” - will be the first truly “global” Summit, engaging citizens from around the world at every level and sector of society.  As part of our new “Race to Rio” campaign, we will be posting periodic compilations of news about important proposals, initiatives and activities related to the Summit. 

NRDC SEEKS CONCRETE DELIVERABLES FROM THE SUMMIT

On June 6th, NRDC launched our ‘Race to Rio’ campaign, calling upon countries, corporations, and communities to come to Rio with specific commitments to immediate actions.  As NRDC President Frances Beinecke wrote in her blog, “instead of making pledges or agreeing to statements, they should join with others in implementing new or reinvigorated initiatives to tackle problems where it really matters – at the national level and below”.   

NRDC staffers also blogged about their views on the opportunities presented by the 2012 Earth Summit:

-          Taking measures to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, such as phasing out subsidies for fossil fuels and deploying renewable energy.

-          Reducing marine debris by taking personal action to reduce the use of plastics; recycling; holding producers accountable; and stopping “ghost-fishing”.   

-          Creating an ocean acidification monitoring network, which is critical for dealing with the change in our oceans’ fundamental chemistry.

-          China was the first nation to publish a blueprint for national sustainability, and could be a leader at Rio if it broadened economic indicators to include the health of the environment.

-          India hosted the 2011 World Environment Day, and has the potential to strengthen many of the green policies it has recently put in place. 

-          Encouraging Latin America’s leadership in the transition to a green economy through clean energy, energy efficiency, and reducing deforestation.

-          Youth have a unique ability to affect change through new communication technologies and networks, and by both inspiring and holding leaders accountable.

 

BRITISH CIVIL SOCIETY GROUPS URGE THEIR PRIME MINISTER TO GO TO RIO

Twenty environment, development, and labor organizations in the United Kingdom, including Friends of the Earth, World Wildlife Fund and Oxfam, called on the British government to show significant leadership in the Earth Summit process.  In a June 6th open letter published in The Guardian, the groups requested that:

(1)  The Prime Minister pledge to attend the Summit;

(2)  The Government  appoint an ambassador or envoy to promote the goals of Rio+20 across the government, the public and to other nations;      

(3)  The Government convene world leaders to “forge a consensus on increasingly urgent issues, such as the green economy, the food system, and building a low-carbon future”.

 

BBC’s RICHARD BLACK BLOGS, “BIG SUMMIT SEEKS BIG IDEA”

BBC environmental correspondent Richard Black writes that the “Rio+20” conference has yet to attract much attention, but it “could be the most important environmental summit ever”.  He notes that early such gatherings - 1972 in Stockholm and 1992 in Rio – were very productive. He argues that this meeting seems to lack the “Big Idea” needed to excite and engage “leaders, citizens, youth, business, civil society, trade unions, legislators”, etc. in the process.   Two possibilities are the oceans and energy, and Black asked his readers to submit their own ideas.  So far, there have been 118 comments submitted in response to Black’s blog.

 

GREENPEACE ASKS, “ONE YEAR TO RIO+20 – IS THERE HOPE?”

Daniel Mittler, Political Director of Greenpeace, questioned whether much would come out of next year’s Earth Summit.   He is discouraged by the official preparations, and the lack of leadership from the host country Brazil and the United States. But he notes that politics can also be highly unpredictable – he points to Germany’s sudden decision to phase out nuclear power – and much could change between now and June 2012.  Greenpeace’s demands include concrete steps to be agreed upon at Rio, such as supporting an energy revolution and halting all deforestation by 2020.  They also highlight the dire lack of protection for seas that lie beyond national jurisdiction, and call for a new agreement under the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea to manage these areas “for the conservation of marine biodiversity and sustainable management of human activities.”    He ends with a hope note from one of Greenpeace’s founders:  "Big change looks impossible when you start, and inevitable when you finish."

 

NYU REPORT CALLS FOR INNOVATIVE APPROACHES TO THE Rio+20 EARTH SUMMIT

New York University researchers Alex Evans and David Steven released a detailed report on Making Rio 2012 Work: Setting the stage for global economic, social and ecological renewal.  The authors from NYU’s Center for International Cooperation note that:

“Over the two decades since the 1992 'Earth Summit', sustainable development has not materialized: as global GDP has risen, so have greenhouse gas emissions, species loss and environmental degradation. This failure is due to political reasons. Publics around the world remain focused on material standards of living; leaders are reluctant to expend political capital on long-term, global risk issues; multilateral 'bandwidth' remains low; in many cases it is unclear what solutions would look like.”

The authors argue that a successful Rio process needs to break out of the mold of previous such gatherings.  To deal with the world’s long crisis of globalization - where resource scarcity and environmental deterioration present fundamental security and economic concerns - the Summit needs to focus on “greening growth, equity in a world of limits, and building resilience to shocks and stresses.”   Evans and Steven are encouraged by the potentially central role of emerging powers on green growth, where China, India, Brazil, Mexico, and South Africa are seen – at least conceptually - as leaders.  They call for greater inclusiveness, proposing a “global crowd-sourcing process” to collect ideas before the Summit, and inviting leaders from civil society, business and academia to be full participants at Rio.  They encourage governments to send their heads of state or finance ministers to Rio, “eschew[ing] a summit of speeches and grandstanding” and instead determining how “must-have” actions could be carried out.   The authors also argue against creating new international institutions, and instead for improved “system coherence.”  They conclude that “Rio 2012 could still emerge as the turning point the world needs”.

 

KELLY RIGG CALLS RIO A “MOMENT FOR DECISIVE ACTION”  

In the Huffington Post, Kelly Rigg, Executive Director of the Global Coalition for Climate Action, recalls the many years of international climate discussions and negotiations, predicting that “Climate-saving measures will most likely slip in through the back door of the Rio process, taking the form of ambitious energy targets where win-win solutions are there for the taking. “

Rigg identifies three things that have to happen before the Summit:  

1)     The  public around the worlds needs to be engaged with  the Earth Summit,  to demand more of their leaders, and to listen to the young;

2)     “Businesses need to more consistently practice what their green PR preaches, and they must leave the fossil dinosaurs behind”;

3)     Governments need to come to Rio with more than empty promises.  Rigg proposes creating “a wiki to serve as the ‘Climate History Book’ as in, ‘will you go down in history as a climate hero or a climate criminal?’   

 

FELIX DODDS SEEKS HIGH-LEVEL COMMITMENTS AND A NEW ‘SPIRIT OF RIO’  

In a video statement, Felix Dodds, Executive Director of the Stakeholder Forum for a Sustainable Future, says: “We are recognizing at last that we have planetary boundaries.  Today, the principal goal of our economy must be to improve the lives of all the world’s people and to free them from want and ignorance – without compromising the planet itself”.  Dodds believes that 2012 Earth Summit is an opportunity to “clearly draw a roadmap” for achieving sustainable development, including a focus on greener procurement policies and more responsible consumption patterns.     

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BRICE LALONDE PROPOSES TO FOLLOW TRADE NEGOTIATION MODEL FOR SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

The UN Executive Coordinator for Rio+20 Brice Lalonde called for the negotiation of a “general agreement on sustainable development” - perhaps analogous to the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade – which would enshrine the principle that “healthy nature is good for economies”.   This initial agreement would be followed by rounds of talks on specific sectors such as energy and agriculture. The biggest objection to trade-style talks is how long it would take to negotiate binding agreements.

 

Compiled by Katherine Manchester

Please note that the linked articles and excerpts in this post are provided for informational purposes only and do not necessarily reflect the views or positions of the Natural Resources Defense Council.