“It will be no small feat to produce a new consensus over the next six months that will set a real path towards the future we need. If the world is serious about achieving these new goals, we will need a strong and coordinated governance institution -- one with resources and jurisdiction to facilitate and enforce compliance: a Global Environmental Organization. ”
—From “Why We Need a Global Environmental Organization,” an editorial on international environmental governance, co-signed by Secretary-General Bonian Golmohammadi, and the leadership of 14 of our member UNAs, including the UK, Australia, New Zealand, Sri Lanka, Cote d’Ivoire, Iceland, Sweden, Denmark, Russia, Luxembourg, Portugal, Macedonia, Peru, and Argentina.
Canada blocks asbestos from hazardous chemicals list at UN summit
thestar.comCanada has opposed listing chrysotile asbestos as a hazardous chemical, the United Nations confirmed Wednesday, even as the Conservative government maintained its silence back home.
At a summit in Switzerland, Canada’s delegation ended days of silence and speculation by opposing the inclusion of asbestos on a UN treaty called the Rotterdam Convention.
“Yes, I can confirm they intervened in the chemicals contact group meeting this afternoon and opposed listing,” Michael Stanley-Jones of the UN Environment Program said in an email.
Vietnam, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan also opposed the listing.
Listing asbestos on Annex III of the convention would force exporters such as Canada to warn recipient countries of any health hazards. Those countries could also then refuse asbestos imports if they didn’t think they could handle the product safely.
Canada has twice before played a lead role in blocking the inclusion of asbestos under the Rotterdam Convention, which operates by consensus.
Until Wednesday, it appeared Canada’s strategy was to abstain while other asbestos-exporting countries blocked the move.
Stay classy, Canada.
Unep And The Countries That Participate In The Rio +20 Presents Data And Proposals For The Conference ! http://newish.info/169120-unep-and-the-countries-that-participate-in-the-rio-20-presents-data-and-proposals-for-the-conference
Countries That Participate In The Rio +20 And Unep Data And Present Proposals For The Conference ! http://newish.info/169618-countries-that-participate-in-the-rio-20-and-unep-data-and-present-proposals-for-the-conference
Renewable Energy Produced 16% of All World Energy in 2010, Investment at Record High
un.org13 July 2011 – The renewable energy sector has continued to perform well despite the global economic slowdown, cuts in incentives, and low natural-gas prices, according to a United Nations-backed report unveiled today, which shows that the sector supplied an estimated 16 per cent of global energy last year. The sector also delivered close to 20 per cent of the world’s electricity production, according to the report commissioned by the Renewable Energy Policy Network for the 21st Century (REN21), whose secretariat is supported by the UN Environment Programme (UNEP).
Germany installed more solar photovoltaic (PV) in 2010 than the entire world added in 2009. PV markets in Japan and the United States almost doubled relative to 2009. Globally, wind power added the most new capacity, followed by hydropower and solar PV, but for the first time ever, Europe added more PV than wind capacity. Last year, investment reached a record $211 billion in renewables – about one-third more than the $160 billion invested in 2009 – and more than five times the amount invested in 2004.
UNEP. A lot of motivations to understand why use gotogether
unep.orgGotogether will helps to save your city, just using your car.
Decoupling Natural Resource Use And Environmental Impacts From Economic Growth
unep.org“Unsustainable levels of consumption could triple resource use by 2050”, writes Achim Steiner - UN Under-Secretary General and Executive Director, UNEP (Nairobi, Kenya, March 2011).
In an effort to propose new paths for a sustainable development, “decoupling represents a strategic approach for moving forward a global Green Economy – one that ‘results in improved human well-being and social equity, while significantly reducing environmental risks and ecological scarcities’…”.
You’ll find the full report on the same page (also in Arabic, Chinese, and French).
From Roots to Canopies: In the Healing Arms of the World's Forests
John Muir once said, “The clearest way to the universe is through a forest wilderness.” It is quite fitting really, for the woods have, since the beginning of time, provided us with everything from food and clothing to clean air. Day in and day out, sometimes without our knowing it, we use something which has roots that can be traced back to a forest somewhere. Claims by indigenous tribes of the forests’ magic and connection to all life in the world don’t seem so far off when you think about it.
For all its influence in mankind’s existence, you could say that the forests are nature’s form of public service. One contribution, in particular, has shaped man’s way of life.
The Renewable Future
project-syndicate.orgA very interesting read I recommend.
Plus this:
The IPCC estimates that the costs of triggering a renewable revolution could range from $3 trillion to more than $12 trillion between now and 2030. That sounds pricey – and it is. But so are fossil-fuel subsidies, which, with barely a murmur of protest, are currently running at more than $600 billion a year.
Yet in 2009 the world spent $1531 billion for waging wars…
