Baby steps toward achieving
sustainable development
by Karin Krchnak, World Resources Institute
Since
the World Summit
Rio+11 was finalized last year when the Commission on Sustainable
Development (CSD) concluded its first meeting since the World Summit
on Sustainable Development on May 9, 2003 with an agreement on its
future program and organization of work for the next 15 years. Approximately
40 ministers, other government representatives, heads of UN agencies
and other international organizations, and over 900 representatives
of non-governmental organizations and other stakeholders attended
the two-week meeting in New York.
Some major changes were introduced at CSD-11. First, the CSD will
work in seven two-year cycles, with each cycle focusing on selected
thematic clusters of issues. Moreover, delegates will not negotiate
text at each meeting. "Review" sessions will alternate years with
"Policy" sessions; means of implementation will be addressed in every
cycle and for every relevant issue, action, and commitment. Linkages
to cross-cutting issues (such as poverty eradication, changing unsustainable
patterns of consumption and production, and gender) are also to be
addressed in every cycle.
CSD-11 reaffirmed that voluntary multi-stakeholder partnerships contribute
to the implementation of inter-governmental commitments and that they
are a complement to, not a substitute for, inter-governmental commitments.
A set of criteria and guidelines for partnerships were agreed to at
CSD-11, and the CSD will have the role of overseeing the partnerships.
CSD-11 was also new in that a Partnerships Fair was held, as well
as a Learning Centre aimed at building the capacity of those attending
CSD as well as other interested persons.
Many in civil society point out their disappointments in the Summit
and CSD-11. I have been one of them, but at the same time, I feel
we also need to give CSD a chance, and not just at CSD-12. These are
not easy issues and as the world seems to get more complex, we need
to rethink how we define "success." We are prone to criticize but
not really offer suggestions on how we would solve these problems
on a practical level. In the end, it will take all of us working together.
CSD-12: Review of water, sanitation and human settlements
CSD-12 began with a review of the thematic cluster of water, sanitation,
and human settlements. That does not mean that all other issues such
as agriculture, energy, climate change, biodiversity, etc. are forgotten
until their turn in the cycle system. The new CSD will try to address
these issues in the context of the thematic cluster. Being part of
the Freshwater Caucus, I know we have not just an uphill road but
rather a mountain to scale.
When it comes to unsustainable patterns of production and consumption,
humans have put the squeeze on available water resources with increasing
withdrawals for agriculture, industry, and domestic use. Water stress
and contamination are severe worldwide and a major cause of widespread
disease. Human misuse of water resources is causing water tables to
drop around the world, creating the need for integrated water resources
management and consideration of the value of freshwater sources for
their ecosystem services. Many numbers are quoted as to the current
number of people without access to drinking water and sanitation;
looking ahead, however, by 2025, approximately half of the world's
population could live under conditions of water stress.
Coordinating within civil society
One of our greatest challenges in addressing these issues is in coordinating
sooner rather than later and doing so on a regular basis. Often, as
a result of limited time and resources, civil society organizes itself
only at the UN meeting, typically that first Monday morning. This
means that our input is pasted together under severe time limitations
and the fatigue of meeting until the late hours of the night.
The UN is making strides in improving coordination. For example,
a new inter-agency Task Force on Gender and Water has been established
to facilitate gender mainstreaming in policies and programmes and
assist in the implementation of gender-sensitive water and sanitation
activities within and outside the UN system. It is important for civil
society to develop better mechanisms for coordination outside of the
UN meetings.
Another obstacle facing us when addressing water is being willing
to think in a new way that focuses more on what can we do together.
as opposed to whom we can blame for the situation. For example, there
is a lack of comprehensive and consistent data on water quantity and
quality. Some countries are working to develop pollution release and
transfer registers (PRTRs) and environmental information systems,
but much more needs to be done in terms of environmental monitoring
and recordkeeping. Access to reliable and up-to-date information by
all stakeholders is needed to address unsustainable production and
consumption.
Taking advantage of the opportunities
Ultimately, if our goal is sustainable development, we need to think
of how to ensure policy decisions at the global, national, and local
levels involve all stakeholders. The CSD, unlike many other entities,
offers civil society significant access. We should think about how
to use the CSD process to not only build upon this within the CSD
but also find ways to increase participation in other processes. Last
year, the CSD secretariat gave civil society the opportunity to provide
input for CSD-12 through an on-line survey; that month the UN also
collected online input on UN-civil society relations. In addition,
the CSD Bureau agreed to meet with Major Groups representatives at
its third meeting in November 2003 in New York. Such opportunities
suggest the UN is willing to address civil society's concerns and
recommendations; we need more in-depth coordination in advance of
such meetings, to ensure the best possible input and dialogue into
such processes.
We need to come together—governments, Major Groups, UN agencies,
Caucuses, etc.—if we really think we have a chance of ensuring
healthy freshwater ecosystems, drinking water and sanitation for all,
conflict-free transboundary waters, and ultimately, global sustainable
development.
Editor's note: Preparations are now underway for receving civil
society input for the 13th Session of the CSD, which will now focus
on policies needed for water, sanitation and human settlements.