A Call To Commitment – A Roadmap to Rio+20

Declaration and celebration: That sums up the closing ceremony for the 64th Department of Public Information NGO Conference in Bonn. After three days of intense negotiations, NGOs and volunteer organizations agreed on a draft declaration as a roadmap to Rio+20.

They called on stakeholders to become involved in Rio+20 and set their own commitments within the framework  of the Sustainable Development Goals. They called on governments to:

come to Rio + 20 represented by Heads of State or Government, with concrete commitments to take individual and collective actions towards sustainable development and address the gaps and emerging issues,
based on the principle of common but differentiated responsibilities; 

But more than just attending the conference with their own Sustainable Development Goals, they also called on governments to

produce a politically-binding outcome document that recommits governments
to achieve sustainabledevelopment;

It won’t be easy. Even the NGOs and Volunteers had difficulty agreeing on the wording of the draft proposal, which outlines how countries should transition to green economic models to ensure civil sustainability, develop an institutional a framework for sustainable development, and included a draft of their own sustainable development goals.

But despite some backroom bickering, the closing ceremony was celebratory. Delegates, participants and volunteers listened to Deutsche Welle’s international choir, who came dressed in costumes representing their countries of origin, harmonize to songs from around the globe.

And our final film – well, it knocked their socks off.

We all agreed it was a weekend well spent and are looking forward to the next UN conference.

Goodbye Bonn – hello Rio+20!

–Kateri Jochum, AV Trainer and Webmaster

Meet Dr. Judy: Volunteer, Doll Maker and Short Sleeper

(c) Mariya Ruettinger

by Guilherme Correia da Silva

Dr. Judy Kuriansky doesn’t sleep very much. In fact, during the last three days of this conference, she has only slept about three hours a night. “I think that sleep is a waste of time,” she said. Walking through the Media Room, stopping to talk to people along the way, she doesn’t seem very tired, though.

With a long blue coat, black and blue striped scarf and black pumps, the clinical psychologist, author and professor then stops to sit with young journalists, giving them feedback on their stories and answering questions.

Because in this room, Dr. Judy Kuriansky is just “Dr. Judy” – and she’s more like Dr. Mom. She co-founded the DPI/ NGO Student Journalism Program, which has been inviting young students from all the over the world to cover the group’s annual conferences. This year, here are the stats: 18 student journalists arrived from all five continents to cover the four round tables and the dozens of workshops and side events for three days.

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Gender issues struggle for attention in the sustainability discussion

By André Leslie

Of the 37 workshops to take place so far at this conference, only two have specifically tackled the issue of gender inequality and it’s place within sustainable development. This, despite the fact that women are undoubtedly the hardest hit by the effects of poverty and hunger.

Felix Dodds, the Chair of the conference, says that the main reason for the lack of gender-based workshops is due to the late registration of participants interested in that topic.

“We had a lot of interest from groups after the closing date,” says Dodds. “My guess is that if you did the registrations now, you would have a huge amount of workshops on this issue. The groups dealing with this problem are definitely here at the conference”. keep reading

Education and Sustainability

Civil societies, volunteering,  environment and consumption: These were the main foci of workshops during the UN Conference. Education did not feature in any of them.

Bärbel Vogel, one of the participants, pleaded for an inclusion of the concept of “sustainable education” into the final declaration of the UN Conference.

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Lack of Finance is Holding Back the Nigerian Green Economy

It is easy to be sustainable in countries like Germany. But how is the “green economy” movement affecting people in the developing world? Surveyor Efik gave the audience an African perspective during the round table discussion “Green Economy and Poverty Eradication”. He currently is serving on Nigeria’s National Inter-Ministerial Committee on Climate Change, helping the government better understand the social projects taking place in the country. We sat down with him to get some more details:

What kind of projects are there and how are they funded?

You are talking about the REDD projects, a UN strategy for Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation. Is this the main environmental problem Nigeria is facing – or are there others?

Are you trying to solve these issues on your own – or are you working with other stakeholders for financing?


André Leslie, Mariya Ruettinger

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Sustainable Below The Belt

By Chiponda Chimbelu

When you walk into the Weltladen in Bonn, the first thing you see is a table full of vibrant colors – various shades of pink, blue, and green. And the real eye-catcher isn’t the colors, but the rather the product – and the unusual brand name. “Pants to Poverty” is an underwear collection from India – and the label in the back certifies them Fairtrade.

Sustainable underwear? Are you kidding me? At around 17 euros a pair, they are not exactly fair to my pocketbook. But maybe this is what you do when you are into sustainability. When I asked participants at the 2011 UN DPI NGO conference, no one admitted to wearing them – but most people thought it was a funny and a good idea.

“At the end of the day, you are gonna have to beat poverty one way, and if it’s through pants and it works what’s the problem?” one said, noting that making the distinction between fairtrade underwear and ordinary underwear clear would help consumers like these.

But are the undies really fair trade?

It is hard to tell the difference between fair trade and regular underwear just by looking at it. If it wasn’t for that label from Fairtrade International and the rather unusual name, Pants to Poverty would be just like any other pair of knickers: Solid colors, white waistband, brief cut. keep reading

Noorma Isaczai: “Volunteerism is a part of my culture”

By Rim Najmi & Amine Bendrif

Sustainable Bonn

Bonn – our home town. It’s a UN city, which is the main reason the 64th UN DPI NGO Conference was held here. But Bonn is also pretty sustainable. We buy at local green markets, ride bikes and use an energy flush on our toilets – among other things.

By Amine Bendrif & Chiponda Chimbelu

 

From our UN Partners: Earth, Wind and Fire – The Opening Party Reception

Copyright:
Dr. Judy Kuriansky, Co-founder of the UN NGO International Student Journalism Program
Nejeed Kassan, Canadian Student Activist, Conversations for Change

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