The next UN Conference on Sustainable Development (UNCSD) will take place in Brazilian city of Rio de Janeiro. Also referred to as the Rio+20 or the Earth Summit 2012 due to the initial conference held in Rio in 1992.

The objectives of the Summit are: to secure renewed political commitment to sustainable development; to assess progress towards internationally agreed goals on sustainable development and to address new and emerging challenges. The Summit will also focus on two specific themes: a green economy in the context of poverty eradication and sustainable development, and an institutional framework for sustainable development.

Held every decade, the conference aims to further secure political commitment for the well-being of present and future generations through sustainable development.

In preparation for this major event, people in leadership positions from international organizations, governments, businesses and civil society met in Geneva from 1-2 December 2011 to attend a preparatory meeting for Rio+20 with a regional focus on Eastern Europe and Central Asia.

Organized by the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE), participants at the Geneva meeting agreed on key steps that need to be taken for the pan-European region to transition to a green economy and to improve an institutional framework for sustainable development.

Speaking at the conference, Mr. Jan Kubis, United Nations Under-Secretary General and Executive Secretary of the UNECE, commented on the paradox of development. “Although absolute poverty in the region has declined significantly, inequality has increased substantially in Europe and Central Asia.” He explained that despite significant progress in social and economic development, growth in income has also been associated with deterioration in key environmental indicators and the ongoing global economic downturn, now in its fifth year, has diverted attention and budgetary resources away from environmental targets.

Joint UN report on Eastern Europe and Central Asia Made Substantive Contribution to Rio+20
Reflecting on what United Nations organizations and specialized agencies can do to assist in the region’s preparation efforts for Rio+20 next year, Mr. Kubis drew attention to a collective effort undertaken by UN partners, including UNFPA, which converged in a study entitled, From Transition to Transformation: Sustainable and Inclusive Development in Europe and Central Asia.

The study demonstrates the commitment from the UN to work with countries on strategies and policies to advance green economies and sustainable development in Europe and Central Asia. The study was presented at the meeting in Geneva for discussion with government and other stakeholders. It highlights the challenges linked to sustainable development in the pan-European region and makes concrete policy proposals for managing the transition to a green economy.

“By bringing together the strong and complementary expertise of so many agencies, the report is an outstanding example of what can be achieved by the UN system when it “delivers as one,”’ said Mr. Kubis.

A human-centered dimension is at the core of the development paradigm advocated in the report. At the Geneva meeting, UNFPA Regional Director for Eastern Europe and Central Asia, Thea Fierens, echoed this view. “The world population has just passed the 7 billion threshold and it is likely to reach 9 billion by mid-century,” she said. “Without sustainable development, access to and availability of resources might become a significant challenge in the future.”

The Regional Director also noted that part of meeting this challenge is transitioning to a green economy that promotes sustainable consumption and production, as well as making the right investments in people. “We should be investing in the health and education of the region’s people,” she stated. “Having communities where people are educated, healthy and economically secure would yield enormous returns in sustainable development for generations to come.”

Population Dynamics and Sustainable Development are Strongly Inter-Connected
Today, as the world population has passed the 7 billion mark, UNFPA supports and advocates for a sound understanding of population dynamics and the adoption of strategies that incorporate appropriate policy options to manage and support population change.

Scientific evidence indicates that the rate of population growth, economic growth and the rate of technological progress play an important role in measuring human impact on the environment. While economic and technological growth rates can be addressed through efforts to transition to a green economy, the population growth angle has generally received little attention in policy-making. However, the impact that humans have on the environment cannot be adequately assessed in the absence of data that show how many people there are in the world, where they live and what they do, as well as what they consume and produce.

For more information, go to //www.earthsummit2012.org/