Tag: Rio+20

The Government has signed up to a global oceans partnership at Rio+20 The Rio+20 conference which opened on Wednesday is being held in 20 years on from the original Earth Summit in Brazil.In her address, Environment Minister Amy Adams told the summit that New Zealand is particularly concerned about harmful fisheries subsidies which are depleting global fish stocks.She said ensuring small island developing states get a greater share of their marine resources is a priority.The oceans agreement signed up to by New Zealand is aimed at better management of fisheries, protecting marine environments and addressing pollution.Nine other countries are in the partnership, including Australia, South Korea and Norway, and 63 organisations including fishing and seafood companies.'Moving forward'United Nations secretary-general Ban Ki-moon warned at the opening of the summit that progress on sustainable development was too slow and that words must translate into action.The Green Party says New Zealand has failed to meet promises made at the Earth Summit.Ms Adams says that while she would have liked to see some things come to fruition, the summit is getting all countries to move forward.She told Morning Report the conference brings together hundreds of countries with considerably different economic and political frameworks."I think ...

Selected as World Maritime Day theme for 2013 The IMO Council has endorsed a proposal by IMO Secretary-General Koji Sekimizu to adopt "Sustainable Development: IMO's contribution beyond Rio+20" as the World Maritime Day theme for 2013.The theme was chosen in order to focus IMO's efforts during 2013 on the commitments to be made at the UN Conference on Sustainable Development, better known as Rio+20, to be held from 20 to 22 June in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.Addressing the IMO Council, meeting for its 108th session in London, Mr. Sekimizu said that IMO would renew its commitment to sustainable maritime development at Rio+20."Twenty years ago, the 1992 United Nations Conference on Environment and Development in Rio adopted the so-called 'Agenda 21', which included a set of recommendations related to shipping and the role of IMO. IMO's response to Agenda 21 has, over the years, been both multifaceted and robust," Mr. Sekimizu said."The two main themes of Rio+20 are the creation of a 'green economy' and a new institutional framework for sustainable development. Key elements of sustainable shipping include energy efficiency, new technology and innovation, maritime education and training, maritime security, maritime traffic management and the development of maritime infrastructure in both ...

UN launched a campaign engaging people in a global conversation

Animation video from Pew Environment Group and the Zoological Society of London

Summit Beginning With Mixed Expectations As Brazil welcomes nearly 120 heads of state and government for a summit on global development this week, the mood could not be more different than it was two decades ago, when global leaders gathered here for the landmark Earth Summit.Back then, once-arcane concerns about climate change and deforestation had finally grabbed the world's attention, leading to a global treaty on biodiversity and decisions that cleared the way for the Kyoto agreement on greenhouse gases.Now, though, the minds of global leaders are elsewhere.Instead of clean energy, food, the oceans and other topics scheduled for debate at Rio+20, as the summit is known, political focus is attuned to a teetering Europe, turmoil in the Middle East and a presidential campaign in the United States.Although more than 50,000 visitors are expected in Rio de Janeiro by the end of the three-day event starting Wednesday, few concrete results are expected from the summit.At best, officials could agree on clarity for proposed "sustainable development goals," a loose tripod of economic, environmental and social objectives that proponents believe could help guide global development.So dim are the prospects that Brazil's lead negotiator in the run-up warned that the summit risked being ...

IMO will explain how international shipping contributes significantly to sustainability IMO at Rio+20 will explain how international shipping contributes significantly to the three pillars of sustainable development, the eradication of poverty and the widespread development of green growth. It will also present IMO's vision of a framework for Sustainable Maritime Development.Shipping is the most efficient and cost-effective method of international transportation for most goods; it provides a dependable, low cost means of transporting goods globally, facilitating commerce and helping to create prosperity among nations and peoples.IMO at Rio+20 will not only highlight the huge contribution already being made by shipping and by IMO towards greater sustainability, it will also showcase the many positive and pro-active steps that are currently being taken to ensure that shipping continues to serve the needs of an expanding global population while becoming greener, more efficient and more effective.For more information, click here.Source: IMO

Expectations for action are low despite UN assessment that environment is declining rapidly Twenty years after trying and failing to halt humanity's destruction of our planet, the governments of the world will gather again in Rio this month for a "once-in-a-generation" Earth Summit that will open with great fanfare but low expectations of success.With a new United Nations study warning that the deterioration of the environment is accelerating, more than 130 national leaders will attend the Rio+20 conference from 20-22 June to try to thrash out a new blueprint for a "green economy" and a stronger system of global governance.Despite the urgency of the task, negotiators have been hamstrung even before the event starts by the European financial crisis, US election campaign and longstanding differences between rich and poor countries. David Cameron, the British prime minister, and German chancellor Angela Merkel will send deputies. US President Barack Obama has yet to confirm. In their likely absence, the political weight will be tilted towards the emerging economies of Brazil, Russia, India and China, all of which will be represented by national leaders.The Rio+20 United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development is much bigger than its two predecessors - Stockholm in 1972 and ...

New IMO video