The last UN Commission on Sustainable Development

A nice photo at the last morning session of the stakeholders attending the UN CSD in May. It was reported as the last CSD and with the failure later that day or rather the next morning of the CSD to pass any text the question is what will take its place?

There is some discussion on a sustainable development council of the UN General Assembly to discuss new and emerging issues such as climate security, food security, water security, energy security and the inter linkages. The UN has no where yet to discuss this and that would place sustainable development at the highest level of the UN. Another idea is reform of the UN Economic and Social Council but this has been tried before with out much success. In addition there is a concern at the lack of UN inter agency coordination which after the UN Inter agency Committee on Sustainable Development was closed down in UN reform process in 1998 and replaced in the next century by UN Oceans, UN Water and UN Energy. So some work to be done here.

What about the work at the national level? With the hope in Rio in 1992 of National Councils on Sustainable Development to be set up in all countries not fulfilled what can Rio+20 do to relight this approach at the national level? Perhaps these national Councils should be formerly linked to a new UN process on sustainable development at the global level. If it was then countries might re-establish these multistakeholder platforms post Rio+20.

Finally what about the local level? Rio+20 should relight the Local Agenda 21 process that was so intense after 1992 but now with the knowledge of what works and doesn't it could be a real bonus to making the link between local and global.

Just a few thoughts on this Tuesday afternoon.