The document discusses preparations for the 2012 United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development (Rio+20). It outlines discussions at an intersessional meeting to prepare the conference's outcome document. It also discusses the challenges of increasing disaster risk and the need to strengthen commitments to disaster risk reduction as part of sustainable development. Upcoming Rio+20 events are noted, including discussion of the outcome document in January and the launch of the High-Level Panel on Global Sustainability's final report.

1. Rio+20: Making it Happen
Newsletter of the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development
15 December 2011, Volume 2, Issue 23
The second Intersessional Strengthening Sustainable Development through Disaster Risk Reduction
Meeting for Rio+20appro
AAs s Rio+20 fast begins Just before the
today and ends tomorrow, 16 UN-sponsored Durban
December. climate talks got underway
Member States and other on 28 November, mother
stakeholders at this meeting nature struck the east coast
will discuss the structure and of South Africa with record-
format of the Conference’s high torrential rains that left
Outcome Document. about 10 dead, over 700
Our next edition will bring houses destroyed and
you highlights of the meeting. thousands homeless.
Unsustainable development
practices, ecosystem degra-
In this Issue dation, poverty as well as
ISevere flooding in Bangladesh threatens the country’s sustainable development.
© Gary Braasch/World View of Global Warming.org climate variability have led
- Disaster Risk Reduction to an increase in both man-
Page 1 made and natural disaster risk at a rate that poses significant threats to lives and development efforts.
According to the 2011 Global Assessment Report, the proportion of world population living in flood-prone
- Global Sustainability Panel river basins has increased by 114 percent, while those living on cyclone-exposed coastlines have grown by
- New Brief on IFSD 192 percent over the past 30 years. Furthermore, over half of the world’s large cities, with populations
- Workshop on Partnerships ranging from 2 to 15 million, are currently located in areas of highly vulnerable to seismic activity.
- Upcoming Events
Page 2 While developing countries, particularly Small Island Developing States and Least Developed Countries, are
disproportionately affected, the Great East Japan earthquake and tsunami sent a clear message that even
developed countries are also vulnerable to such severe disasters. Official indicators have shown that since
1981, economic loss from disasters, including floods and tropical cyclones, is growing faster than GDP per
capita in the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries. This means that
the risk of losing wealth in weather-related disasters is now exceeding the rate at which the wealth itself is
being created.
In response to these challenges, UN Member States adopted the 2005 Hyogo Framework for Action (HFA),
describing the work needed from different sectors and actors to reduce disaster losses and increase
resilience. It is expected this will substantially reduce disaster losses in lives and in social, economic and
www.uncsd2012.org environmental assets, by building the resilience of nations and communities to disasters.
The past five years have seen major progress with regard to HFA implementation by many governments in
Follow Rio+20 strengthening disaster management and legislative arrangements and mechanisms. Regional and
sub-regional strategies, frameworks, plans and programmes have been developed, as well as national and
local government-lead disaster reduction initiatives. Over 900 cities and local governments have joined the
UN International Strategy for Disaster Reduction (UNISDR)-led campaign on Resilient Cities and committed
Send us feedback to make their cities safer from disasters. However, the recent HFA Mid-Term Review also revealed the
uncsd2012@un.org uneven implementation of the framework. Some of
the remaining challenges include the lack of system-
atic multi-hazards risk assessments and early warn-
ing systems that takes into account social and
economic vulnerabilities, as well as insufficient
Quote integration of disaster risk reduction into sustain-
“ will not achieve sustain-
We
able development policies and planning at the
national and international levels.
able development without
addressing inequality...Nor As we look towards Rio+20, the political and finan-
can we live with deterioriating cial commitment to disaster risk reduction needs to
ecosystems...We need fresh be reinforced as a core component of sustainable
ideas and a renewed commit- development and climate adaptation, in order to
ment by all countries to fairly achieve the HFA objectives. Indonesian children learn about disaster risk reduction.
“ © International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent
share and protect the global To increase awareness of the benefits of disaster Societies (IFRC, 2008)
commons. risk reduction in the context of Rio+20 process,
- UN Secretary-General UNISDR issued a discussion paper entitled “Preparing for Rio+20: Redefining Sustainable Development,”
Ban Ki-moon accessible at www.unisdr.org. In addition, the Rio+20 Secretariat has also published a brief on “Disaster Risk
Reduction and Resilience Building” at www.uncsd2012.org.
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2. RIO+20 Outcome Document
16-18 January 2012 (tbc), New York,
USA - Initial discussions on the “zero
draft of outcome document” for
Rio+20 will be held at the UN
Headquarters.
The “zero draft” or first negotiating
draft will become the primary docu-
ment to be agreed to by world
leaders at the Conference to secure
renewed political commitment for
sustainable development.
Nikhil Chandavarkar (left) addressing a group of Swedish Parliamentarians. With him is Ambassador Staffan Tillander
of Sweden (Photo UN-DESA) In a related event, the President of
Conference Secretary-General Sha Zukang addressing the audience in Brazil the General Assembly will organize a
Members of the High-level Panel on Global Sustainability at their Fourth Meeting in New York.
retreat for Member States on the
outcome document and the role of
Secretary-General Ban Urges Panel to Address Equity in Report partnerships in sustainable develop-
13 December 2011, New York, USA- Speaking at the Fifth Meeting of his High-level Global ment on 17 and 18 December 2011
Sustainability Panel, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon called on the panel members to address at Glen Cove, USA.
the issue of equity in their final report. “All the issues that will be on the table in Rio - climate
change, demographics, water, food, energy, global health, women’s empowerment - are
intertwined. All the pillars that underpin the Rio process - stabilizing the global economy,
safeguarding the environment, and ensuring social equity - are parts of a single agenda,” Mr. Ban Upcoming Events
noted.
The Panel’s report to be released on 12 January 2012 “can also make a major contribution to the World Sustainable Energy Conference
Rio+20 process...and will help shape the UN system’s policies on sustainable development for 10-12 January 2012
years to come,” he added. Geneva, Switzerland
[more information]
The 21-member Panel established in 2009 and co-chaired by Presidents Tarja Halonen of Finland
and Jacob Zuma of South Africa was mandated to develop a new blueprint for a sustainable
Launch of Final Report of High-level
future on a planet with deteriorating ecosystems. More information on the Panel is accessible at
Panel on Global Sustainability
www.un.org/wcm/content/site/climatechange/pages/gsp.
12 January 2012
New York, USA
“Issues Brief” on IFSD Published [more information]
The Rio+20 Secretariat recently published its third “Issues Brief” on the Institutional Framework Forum international francophone:
for Sustainable Development (IFSD), one of the main themes of the Conference. The Brief, entitled Jeunesse et emplois verts
“Regional, National and Local Levels of Sustainable Development,” addresses the main issues 16-19 January 2012
involved in strengthening governance for sustainable development at the regional, national and Niamey, Niger
local levels. [more information]
At the regional level, it not only considers how to strengthen coordination among UN bodies
engaged in providing normative and operational support to Member States, but also looks at the National Conference on Science, Policy
issue of broader coherence with other relevant institutions. and the Environment
Furthermore, at the national and local levels, the Brief focuses on how country-specific institu- 18-20 January 2012
tions can be strengthened closely to implement aspects of the sustainable development agenda. Washington, D.C., USA
[more information]
Finally, it addresses linkages across governance levels – what is commonly referred to as ‘vertical
integration.’ For more information on this and the other IFSD Briefs please visit Towards Democratic Environmental
http://www.uncsd2012.org/rio20/index.php?menu=63 Governance at Global Level
31 January 2012
Partnerships Workshop Held Paris, France
14 December 2011, UN Headquarters, New York, USA - The Rio+20 Secretariat in collaboration [more information]
with the UN Office for Partnerships (UNOP) held a workshop on "Partnerships Best Practices and
their Contribution to Rio+20.” 2nd Asia-Pacific Water Summit
5-6 February 2012
Approximately 60 representatives from Governments, CSD-registered Partnerships, research
Bangkok, Thailand
institutions, Major Groups and the UN system entities participated in the event, which focused on
[more information]
strengthening the consideration of partnerships at Rio+20. In accordance with draft resolution
A/C.2/66/L.59, the participants discussed the elements that could be addressed at the Rio+20
Colloque sur les forêts
Partnerships Forum.
5-7 February 2012
Speakers included Maurice Strong, Secretary General of the 1972 UN Conference on Human Lyon, France
Environment and the 1992 Rio Earth Summit; Amir Dossal, former Executive Director of the UNOP [more information]
and the current Chair of the Global Partnership Forum, and Elizabeth Thompson, Executive
Coordinator of the Rio+20 Secretariat. A summary of the discussions will be made available at Complete listing of meetings and events
www.uncsd2012.org available at www.uncsd2012.org
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