In order to implement paragraph 21 of General Assembly resolution A/RES/64/236, which "encourages the active participation of all major groups" at all stages of the preparatory process, the Rio+20 Secretariat, in partnership with the Stakeholder Forum, and with the support of the European Commission Directorate General for the Environment, is offering a series of capacity building workshops.

The attached scedule gives an overview of the time, location and themes of the side events for the informal consultations on zero draft of UNCSD outcome document (March 19-23) and the Third Intersessional Meeting of UNCSD prepcom (March 26-27).

The UNCSD secretariat has confirmed that the plan of work for the 25 - 27 January initial Discussion on the zero draft includes opportunities for major groups to deliver statements as per the previous informal.

The Eye on Earth Summit Declaration, a key outcome of the Summit, which will provide input to the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development (UNCSD) to be held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, in June 2012, was signed by the UAE Ministry of Environment and Water, Environment Agency - Abu Dhabi (EAD) and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) after endorsement from the public and representatives of government, business, and civil society.

The United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development, "Rio +20", will be held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, from 20 to 22 June 2012. The conference will be preceded by the third Preparatory Committee meeting of the Conference, from 13 to 15 June 2012. In accordance with General Assembly resolution A/C.2/66/L.53, the pre-registration for participation in the preparatory meeting and in the Conference by relevant NGOs and other major groups is now open.

Date: April 28, 2012
Time: 10-16:00
Location: The Church Centre, 777 United Nations Plaza, New York, NY 10017

The Ministry of the Environment of Finland and Stakeholder Forum, along with partners, are working together to establish a network through which NSDCs can share best practice and promote sustainable development domestically and internationally. The aims of this work are to:

When: Thursday 15 March 2012  9.30 – 16.30

Where: European Economic and Social Committee, room TRE 7701. Entrance: 7Th Floor, Trèves Building, Rue des Trèves, 1040 Brussels

Innovative thinking on fair natural resource sharing

The Bureau of the UNCSD preparatory process met on 22 December 2011 and agreed on the following schedule for "informal-informal" negotiations on the outcome document. 

In preparation for the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development (UNCSD; Rio+20 Conference), scheduled to take place in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, in June 2012, member States of the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (ECE) and representatives of major groups, United Nations agencies and other international bodies met in Geneva to identify the specific challenges and priorities of the ECE region with regard to the Rio+20 Conference, including policy recommendations and good practices.

Humanity has come to think of ocean resources and their potential as limitless. But the planet and its resources are finite. Humanity has carelessly exploited the oceans and its resources. This puts at risk the ability of oceans to continue to provide food, economic values and environmental services to billions of people.