Convergence between MDGs and SDGs: a huge and necessary challenge At the Rio+20 Summit the United... more Convergence between MDGs and SDGs: a huge and necessary challenge At the Rio+20 Summit the United Nations General Assembly (GA) resolved to put in place a set of Sustainable Development Goals (§ 245-251 of “The Future We Want”). For this purpose, an Open Working Group for Sustainable Development Goals was established on 22nd January 2013 by decision 67/555 (see A/67/L.48/rev.1) of the GA. Since that decision, several meetings of the Open Working Group have taken place at which numerous representatives from governments and civil society have expressed the view that the post 2015and the SDG-framework should be merged into a single process. Although by no means a simple task, the authors of this article are in support of such a merger, arguing it is necessary to fully transform the development agenda, putting environmental sustainability at its core, and avoid the development of “green MDGs” that simply enable business-as-usual. The predominant focus of development cooperation on a “tr...
Ist Europa bereit für die Agenda 2030 für nachhaltige Entwicklung? … noch nicht
Die Agenda 2030 fur nachhaltige Entwicklung ist weltweit gultig, was bedeutet, dass sie auch in E... more Die Agenda 2030 fur nachhaltige Entwicklung ist weltweit gultig, was bedeutet, dass sie auch in Europa umfassend umgesetzt werden muss. Sie zielt darauf, eine bessere Welt fur die gesamte Menschheit zu schaffen und gleichzeitig unseren Planeten zu schutzen. Ist die EU bereit fur diese Agenda, die einen Paradigmenwechsel anstrebt und die Bedeutung von Politikkoharenz unterstreicht? Leida Reijnhout bezweifelt dies und beschreibt im Global Governance Spotlight 6|2016 zentrale Aspekte eines Transformationsprozesses, der fur eine erfolgreiche Umsetzung der Agenda erforderlich ware.
In this article, the authors list some of the main challenges that need to be overcome in order t... more In this article, the authors list some of the main challenges that need to be overcome in order to make the transition to a Europe founded on resource justice, arguing that it is important to move beyond focusing solely on resource efficiency to a focus on reducing absolute resource use. Despite increased awareness about the importance of protecting the environment, mainstream economic theory and practice, as well as mainstream politics and governance, still fails to consider environmental costs; Europe’s absolute resource use remains one of the highest globally and it continues to use more than its fair share of resources. Europe is highly dependent on imported resources causing significant negative impacts in third countries, including the Global South. To address this, the authors argue that it is essential to measure and monitor all the resources embodied in a product throughout its full life-cycle, from extraction to consumption taking a consumption-based, or footprint, approac...
De samenleving in beweging : België op weg naar duurzame ontwikkeling?
Beweegt de Belgische samenleving twintig jaar na de Aardetop (1992) in de richting van duurzame o... more Beweegt de Belgische samenleving twintig jaar na de Aardetop (1992) in de richting van duurzame ontwikkeling? Of bevinden we ons op een hellend vlak? Twee redacteurs, beide van de ‘Rio-generatie’ en afkomstig uit twee gemeenschappen van dit land, gingen de uitdaging aan om in het eerste deel van De samenleving in beweging die vraag te onderzoeken. Zij stelden diezelfde vraag ook aan sleutelfiguren uit de maatschappij. Vrouwen, jeugd, allochtonen, ngo’s, lokale overheden, werknemers, werkgevers, wetenschappers, boeren…: coauteurs die deze groepen vertegenwoordigen of goed kennen hebben het in het tweede deel over deze evolutie, over hun ervaringen en hun verwachtingen. In het derde deel vragen experten zich af of wij de huidige ontwikkeling terdege met indicatoren opvolgen en hoe de jeugd via educatie wordt voorbereid op de toekomst die hen wacht. De vaststellingen in De samenleving in beweging zijn soms verrassend maar ze covergeren minstens op een punt: de uitdagingen zijn enorm en...
Convergence between MDGs and SDGs: a huge and necessary challenge At the Rio+20 Summit the United... more Convergence between MDGs and SDGs: a huge and necessary challenge At the Rio+20 Summit the United Nations General Assembly (GA) resolved to put in place a set of Sustainable Development Goals (§ 245-251 of “The Future We Want”). For this purpose, an Open Working Group for Sustainable Development Goals was established on 22nd January 2013 by decision 67/555 (see A/67/L.48/rev.1) of the GA. Since that decision, several meetings of the Open Working Group have taken place at which numerous representatives from governments and civil society have expressed the view that the post 2015and the SDG-framework should be merged into a single process. Although by no means a simple task, the authors of this article are in support of such a merger, arguing it is necessary to fully transform the development agenda, putting environmental sustainability at its core, and avoid the development of “green MDGs” that simply enable business-as-usual. The predominant focus of development cooperation on a “tr...
In the Viewpoints section, academics, practitioners and experts share their perspectives on polic... more In the Viewpoints section, academics, practitioners and experts share their perspectives on policy questions relevant to sustainable development. In this issue, experts address the question: "What do you think should be the two or three highest priority political outcomes of the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development (Rio+20), scheduled for Rio de Janeiro in June 2012?" From the perspective of younger generations, Rio+20 has the potential to take a giant step forward in promoting what sustainable development truly is about: intergenerational equity. Yet, in order to grasp this opportunity, we have to think outside of the box of what is the most politically feasible and start thinking in terms of what is really required to implement this fundamental principle. When considering institutional frameworks for sustainable development, the conference should ensure that the current governance arrangement in place is upgraded to assure that we effectively balance the "needs of the current generation with those of future generations". At this point we are lacking the necessary machinery to deliver the needed cooperation and guidance to meet the complexity of the challenges ahead. Or, as the Brundtland Report noted duly, "We borrow environmental capital from future generations with no intention or prospect of repaying [.. .] We act as we do because we can get away with it. (World Commission on Environment and Development, 1987, p. 24)" Hence, Rio+20 should give voice not just to the needs, but to the rights of future generations. This can be by reforming the current trusteeship council into a trusteeship for young and future generations. Complementing an up-scaled UN Commission on Sustainable Development (CSD) into a Sustainable Development Council, answering to the United Nations General Assembly, we could rotate topics (e.g. agriculture, energy, etc.) to transition in a just manner to sustainable development. We believe that only through these reforms could the rights of the current generation be strengthened while safeguarding those of future generations.
In their own battles and strategy meetings since the early 1980s, EJOs (environmental justice org... more In their own battles and strategy meetings since the early 1980s, EJOs (environmental justice organizations) and their networks have introduced several concepts to political ecology that have also been taken up by academics and policy makers. In this paper, we explain the contexts in which such notions have arisen, providing definitions of a wide array of concepts and slogans related to environmental inequities and sustainability, and explore the connections and relations between them. These concepts include: environmental justice, ecological debt, popular epidemiology, environmental racism, climate justice, environmentalism of the poor, water justice, biopiracy, food sovereignty, "green deserts", "peasant agriculture cools downs the Earth", land grabbing, Ogonization and Yasunization, resource caps, corporate accountability, ecocide, and indigenous territorial rights, among others. We examine how activists have coined these notions and built demands around them,...
Journal of Political Ecology Vol. 21, 2014 20 Abstract In their own battles and strategy meetings... more Journal of Political Ecology Vol. 21, 2014 20 Abstract In their own battles and strategy meetings since the early 1980s, EJOs (environmental justice organizations) and their networks have introduced several concepts to political ecology that have also been taken up by academics and policy makers. In this paper, we explain the contexts in which such notions have arisen, providing definitions of a wide array of concepts and slogans related to environmental inequities and sustainability, and explore the connections and relations between them. These concepts include: environmental justice, ecological debt, popular epidemiology, environmental racism, climate justice, environmentalism of the poor, water justice, biopiracy, food sovereignty, "green deserts", "peasant agriculture cools downs the Earth", land grabbing, Ogonization and Yasunization, resource caps, corporate accountability, ecocide, and indigenous territorial rights, among others. We examine how activists h...
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