Tag: UN

  Sustainability is now firmly on the global business agenda, but there is an urgent need to turn words into action. This is a key conclusion in the independent report: “Impact – Transforming Business, Changing the World” prepared by DNV GL on behalf of the United Nations Global Compact.   The report concludes that the UN Global Compact, as the world’s largest corporate sustainability initiative, and the business community have had an impact on the development of sustainability over the past 15 years. Recommendations that must be implemented to accelerate progress towards a more sustainable future are also highlighted in the report. “Our assessment shows there has been a clear shift in sustainability development, but in the future the necessary transformative change will only become a reality if we are all able to speed up, scale and strengthen our efforts. It's not sufficient that business alone is mobilizing. We must therefore offer arenas for collaboration, including for policy makers, science professionals and society at large,” says Dr Henrik O. Madsen, Group President & Chief Executive Officer at DNV GL. "This report confirms that the tide is turning in corporate practices. Over the past 15 years, companies around the world have ...

UN officials encourage young people to consider life of real adventure

Video message from UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon

  United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has appointed Dr Henrik O. Madsen, Group President & Chief Executive Officer of DNV GL, as a new board member to the UN Global Compact board, the world’s largest voluntary corporate sustainability initiative. As a Board member, Dr Madsen will join other leaders from business, labour and civil society, and serve as a champion of the UN Global Compact and its mission. He will act in a personal and honorary capacity for a period of three years, starting from 1 June 2015. In his letter of appointment, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon welcomes Dr Madsen to “this joint effort to strengthen and guide the United Nations Global Compact”, and says that he is looking forward to working with him “through the Board towards our shared vision of a sustainable and inclusive global economy.” More than 8,500 companies in over 160 countries participate in the UN Global Compact, along with additional stakeholders. Participating firms align their operations with universally agreed principles of human rights, labour, environment and anti-corruption, and strive for business development that benefits economies and societies. The Board is a cornerstone of the governance framework of UN Global Compact, helping to shape its strategy and ...

The Mediterranean Sea has sadly become "a sea of tears, a sea of misery," said United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon

  Micro-plastics – tiny pieces of plastic or fibres which may act as a pathway for persistent, bio accumulating and toxic substances entering the food chain – are increasingly being found in the oceans and may prove to be as harmful to marine life as more obvious, larger debris, such as plastic bags, according to a new report. The report – Sources, fates and effects of microplastics in the marine environment - a global assessment – has been published by the Joint Group of Experts on the Scientific Aspects of Marine Environmental Protection (GESAMP), an advisory body that advises the United Nations (UN) system on the scientific aspects of marine environmental protection. “While there is a need for further assessment of the problem, the report is the first attempt, at a global scale, to identify the main sources, fate and effects of microplastics in the ocean and offers improved understanding of the scale of the problem. The assessment suggests that there needs to be a wider awareness of the potential harm that microplastics in the oceans could cause,” said Dr Stefan Micallef, Director Marine Environment Division, at the International Maritime Organization (IMO), the Administrative Secretary of GESAMP.   “Even tiny ...

The Secretary-General of IMO called for coordinated action to safeguard migrants

IMO held the 102nd Session of its Legal Committee from 14-16 April 2015 in London

  In New York (7 April), the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS) represented global shipowners at an important United Nations meeting, having been invited to speak as a panellist as part of the UN Inter Consultative Process on the Law of Sea. The opportunity was taken by ICS to highlight the extent to which shipping is very effectively regulated by the International Maritime Organization (IMO) and the International Labour Organization (ILO) in order to deliver the United Nations’ sustainable development goals. With respect to environmental sustainability, ICS explained how shipping is the only industrial sector already to have a mandatory global regime in place, adopted by IMO, to regulate and reduce its CO2 emissions. A recent IMO study determined that total CO2 emissions from international shipping reduced by over 10% between 2007 and 2012. ICS also gave an overview of the global regulations adopted at IMO to reduce sulphur emissions from shipping and to limit the movement of invasive species in ships’ ballast water, and how the shipping industry was investing hundreds of billions of dollars to order to ensure compliance. With respect to social sustainability, ICS explained that shipping is also unique in having the comprehensive framework of global ...