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Press Conference

Verso la Conferenza di Rio

PRESS CONFERENCE ON PRESS CONFERENCE ON PREPARATIONS FOR 2012 UNITED PREPARATIONS FOR 2012 UNITED NATIONS NATIONS (8.3.2011)(8.3.2011)

PRESS CONFERENCE ON PRESS CONFERENCE ON OUTCOME OF FIRST SESSION OF OUTCOME OF FIRST SESSION OF PREPARATORYCOMMITTEE PREPARATORYCOMMITTEE (20.05.2011)(20.05.2011)

UNITED NATIONS LAUNCHES UNITED NATIONS LAUNCHES CAMPAIGN FOR CAMPAIGN FOR ‘‘ RIO+20RIO+20’’CONFERENCE FEATURING CONFERENCE FEATURING (22.11.2011)(22.11.2011)

8 March 2011

Press Conference

Department of Public Information • News and Media Division • New York

PRESS CONFERENCE ON PREPARATIONS FOR 2012 UNITED NATIONS

CONFERENCE ON SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

The United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development, to be held in Rio deJaneiro, Brazil, next June, would give the international community a unique opportunity tobuild a global economic development model aimed at improving people’s lives and ensuringsocial equity while reducing environmental risks and ecological scarcity, the event’sSecretary-General said today.

“Rio 2012 is humanity’s chance to commit to a transition to a green economy, to liftpeople out of poverty. We cannot wait another 20 years. The time to commit is at Rio 2012,”said Sha Zukang, who is also the United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Economic andSocial Affairs.

It was fitting that the Conference, known as “Rio 2012”, would be held in Brazilbecause that South American country had an impressive track record in economic growth,poverty eradication and environmental conservation since it hosted the historic UnitedNations Conference on Environment and Development, or “Earth Summit”, in 1992, Mr. Shasaid during a press conference at Headquarters.

“ Brazil has certainly shown the world how to put sustainable development intopractice,” he said, adding that the Secretariat would work closely with Brazilian authorities toensure the event was successful. He made his comments as the second of threeintergovernmental consultations of the Preparatory Committee for the Rio summit concludedtoday in New York. (Please see Press Release ENV/DEV/11201).

Luiz Alberto Figueiredo Machado, Director-General of the Department forEnvironment and Special Affairs in Brazil’s Ministry of External Relations, said the Conferencewould allow the international community to take stock of progress in achieving the threepillars of sustainable development — economic growth, social development andenvironmental protection — as well as address emerging challenges towards that end.

The third session of the Preparatory Committee would be held from 28 to 30 May2012, just ahead of the actual Conference, scheduled to take place from 4 to 6 June 2012,Mr. Figueiredo Machado said. Its main themes would be creation of a green economy in thecontext of sustainable development and poverty eradication, and the institutional frameworkfor that.

Laudemar Aguiar, Minister-Counsellor of Brazil’s Ministry of External Relations, saidthe Conference would be held in downtown Rio, near the city’s port, and that related civilsociety activities would be staged close by to enable more interaction between people

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attending the official venue and side events. Stelio Marcos Amarante, International RelationsCoordinator of the Office of the Mayor of Rio de Janeiro, added that his Office would workclosely with federal and State authorities to ensure the Conference facilities werewell-equipped.

Asked if the Conference itself would be “green event”, Mr. Aguiar said indeed it wouldand that Brazilian authorities also aimed to showcase recent efforts, such as installingenergy-efficient transportation and sewage management systems, to make Rio a green city ingeneral.

Mr. Figueiredo Machado said the intention was to “make what is clean cleaner”,drawing on Brazil’s already widespread use of renewable energy such as biomass fuelledpower stations and hydroelectric power technology. “We’re not coming from a dirty matrix,we’re coming from a green matrix,” he said.

Asked what Conference outcomes they envisioned, Mr. Sha said participatingMember States were supposed to come up with a focused political document based on theevent’s three objectives: renewing political commitment for sustainable development;identifying progress and obstacles to achieving it; and addressing emerging challenges. Much had been accomplished already in environmental conservation, but the institutionalframework for achieving sustainable development was largely fragmented.

He hoped the Conference would result in bolstered United Nations support forsustainable development, a strengthened Commission on Sustainable Development andUnited Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), creation of guidelines to define the greeneconomy, and a greater commitment by Member States to provide the financing andtechnology needed to build it.

Mr. Figueiredo Machado said the Conference would provide a platform for specialistsin many fields, including from the business community and civil society, to hold ongoingdebates on issues of importance to societies worldwide such as poverty eradication.

Asked about Brazil’s focus on tolerance and diversity and how they related to theConference, Mr. Figueiredo Machado said they would help create the best possibleatmosphere for such a large-scale event and the widest level of participation among allsectors of society.

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For information media • not an official record

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20 May 2010

Press Conference

Department of Public Information • News and Media Division • New York

PRESS CONFERENCE ON OUTCOME OF FIRST SESSION OF PREPARATORYCOMMITTEE

FOR UNITED NATIONS CONFERENCE ON SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

The first Preparatory Committee in the run-up to the 2012 United Nations Conferenceon Sustainable Development, known as “Rio + 20”, had decided at its conclusion last night tohold intersessional consultations, since the eight days originally allocated for preparatorymeetings would not be enough, Committee Co-Chair John Ashe (Antigua and Barbuda) saidat Headquarters today.

Speaking at a press conference, Mr. Ashe recalled General Assemblyresolution 64/236, which set the course of the preparatory process, and made clear that therewould be three sessions of the Preparatory Committee. Three days would be allotted this year,two in 2011 and three again in 2012, for a total of eight. Those meetings would have noadditional financial implications, added Tariq Banuri, Director of the Division for SustainableDevelopment in the Department of Economic and Social Affairs, who accompanied Mr. Ashe. (For coverage of the first session, see Press Releases ENV/DEV/1138, ENV/DEV/1139,ENV/DEV/1141 and ENV/DEV/1142.)

Noting that the Conference would be returning to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, the originalbirthplace of Agenda 21, the Chairperson said the relevant resolution requested a look back toassess implementation gaps, and a look forward to set the course for full implementation andidentify challenges. It asked the Conference to look at two areas that had recently come to thefore — the green economy and institutional arrangements for sustainable development. Describing the current institutional framework as “somewhat fragmented”, he noted thatinstitutions had been set up to deal with the environment conventions — the United NationsEnvironment Programme (UNEP) on that side and the United Nations Development Programme(UNDP) on the development side. Since sustainable development was supposed to marry theenvironment and development, while also examining the social and economic aspects, “what isin place clearly does not work”, he said, adding that the preparatory process would decidewhether or not to put a new structure in place.

Elaborating on the two themes for the Conference, Co-Chair Park In-kook (Republic ofKorea) said they should shed new light on the future of the environment and sustainabledevelopment. In the first session of the Preparatory Committee, “we had a better chance tobridge the gap from perception and ways and means to achieve the goals”, he said, adding that ithad laid a solid basis for future preparations. There would be more focus on regional concernsand more tailored approaches to make the process a success. Participation by civil societywould be encouraged, he added.

Responding to a question, Mr. Ashe pointed out that Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon

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had announced at the conclusion of the Commission on Sustainable Development last Fridaythat Sha Zukang, Under-Secretary-General for Economic and Social Affairs, would serve asSecretary-General of Rio + 20. He had also indicated his intention to appoint two ExecutiveCoordinators, from the global North and South, and a dedicated secretariat.

Asked whether the Conference would produce an outcome document, Mr. Park said it“definitely” would. A Chair’s summary was expected at the end of each session of thePreparatory Committee and those texts would inform the outcome document in 2012.

To questions concerning additional meetings and the European Union’s participationin the Conference, Mr. Park said there had been long discussions on those issues, but hewas not in a position to elaborate, except to say “a good agreement” had been reached tohave extra meetings during the preparatory process.

Asked how prominently climate change would feature at Rio + 20, the panellists said that,in assessing gaps in implementing Agenda 21, those most affected and disadvantaged wouldclearly want to discuss that subject.

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For information media • not an official record

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22 November 2011

Press ReleaseENV/DEV/1243PI/2015

Department of Public Information • News and Media Division • New York

UNITED NATIONS LAUNCHES CAMPAIGN FOR ‘ RIO+20’ CONFERENCE FEATURING

GLOBAL CONVERSATION ON ‘THE FUTURE WE WANT’

Project Will Seek People’s Contributions to New Visions of Sustainable Future

The United Nations launched a new campaign today to promote next June’s “Rio+20”United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development and the need to engage people in aglobal conversation on the kind of communities in which they would like to live 25 years fromnow.

“Rio+20: The Future We Want” will work through public participation to envision howsocieties in all parts of the world can build a future that promotes prosperity and improves thequality of people’s lives without further degrading the natural environment.

“We need to imagine a different future,” United Nations Secretary-General BanKi-moon said. “What would our world look like if everyone had access to the food they need,to an education, and to the energy that is required to develop? What would our communitieslook like if we created a vibrant, job-rich, green economy? This is the future we want.”

The campaign aims to encourage people everywhere to engage in a globalconversation that will be collected and melded into visions of the future, to be exhibited at theConference in June 2012. Rio+20 will bring together world leaders and thousands ofparticipants representing all sectors of society, including academia, agriculture, business andindustry, indigenous peoples, mayors and local authorities, non-governmental organizations,trade unions, women and youth.

“ Rio+20 is our best chance to define pathways to a sustainable future,” saidConference Secretary-General Sha Zukang, who is also United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Economic and Social Affairs. “World leaders, along with thousands of participantsfrom the private sector, [non-governmental organizations] and other groups, will cometogether to shape how we can reduce poverty, advance social equity and ensureenvironmental protection on an ever more crowded planet.”

The United Nations also unveiled its new website, www.un.org/sustainablefuture,linking the Rio+20 Conference and “The Future We Want” campaign. The website alsoserves as a platform for informing the public about several key sustainable developmentissues, including cities, disaster resilience, energy, food, jobs, oceans and water. A widerange of actions on these key issues will be presented in Rio.

“With today’s launch of ‘ Rio+20: The Future We Want’, we are launching a globalconversation about our future,” said Kiyo Akasaka, United Nations Under-Secretary-General

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for Communications and Public Information. “Through this conversation, we are looking toengage people everywhere on what this future should look like, and what we need to do torealize this vision,” he added. “We need to do more to take sustainable development out ofthe realm of the abstract and make it real to people. We need to show, now more than ever,that it is possible to have development that generates prosperity for everyone and animproved quality of life while protecting our natural environment.”

For the campaign, the United Nations is working with the non-governmentalorganization The Future We Want to develop the exhibition for Rio. Through electronic andnon-electronic formats, especially for those without Internet access, the project asks everyoneto join the global conversation and voice their ideas for a better future. The onlinecontributions, together with people’s videos, photos, letters, essays and drawings offeringdifferent perspectives on a sustainable future, will form the basis of the exhibition.

The Conference will take place in Rio de Janeiro from 20 to 22 June.

For more information on the global conversation, visit www.un.org/sustainablefuture. For more information on the Rio+20 Conference, visit www.uncsd2012.org.

For media information, please contact Dan Shepard, United Nations Department ofPublic Information, tel.: +1 212 963 9495; or e-mail: shepard@un.org.

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For information media • not an official record

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