Felix Dodds comments on sustainable development, coffee & life

The following seven podcast episodes are adapted from the book "Only One Earth" by Felix Dodds, Maurice Strong (the father of sustainable development), and Michael Strauss.    The podcasts will cover the development of the first environment and then sustainable development internationally from the 1960s to the Rio+20 Summit in 2012. Episode 4: The Journey from the Rio Earth Summit to Rio+5  In this episode, we follow the path from the 1992 Rio Earth Summit to its five-year review, tracing the creation and early years of the UN Commission on Sustainable Development. What began as a bold effort to coordinate global sustainability goals soon faced the friction of geopolitics, funding gaps, and institutional fatigue. We explore the political dynamics, role of Major Groups, and slow-building momentum on forests, finance, and climate change—all culminating in the Rio+5 Special Session. From SLUDGE to DREAMS, this is a story of ambition, disillusionment, and the groundwork for w...

The following s even podcast episodes  are adapted from the book  "Only One Earth" by Felix Dodds, Maurice Strong (the father of sustainable development), and Michael Strauss .   The podcasts will cover the development of the first environment and then sustainable development internationally from the 1960s to the Rio+20 Summit in 2012. Episode 3: The Journey to the Rio Earth Summit and its Outcomes A global movement was forming before stakeholder voices were common in UN negotiations. In this episode, we explore how diverse actors—from trade unions to youth activists—fought for a seat at the table leading up to the 1992 Earth Summit. Discover how this new era of participation helped shape the Rio Declaration, Agenda 21, the climate change and biodiversity conventions and the future of global sustainable development. "At a time of mounting threats to the sustainability of the planet, and as we prepare for the 20-year review of the original Rio Conference, it i...

 T he following s even podcast episodes   are adapted from the book  "Only One Earth" by Felix Dodds, Maurice Strong (the father of sustainable development), and Michael Strauss .   The podcasts will cover the development of first environment and then sustainable development internationally from the 1960s to the Rio+20 Summit in 2012. Episode 2: From Stockholm to Rio: The Emergence of Global Environmental Governance. This episode explores the twenty-year journey from the 1972 Stockholm Conference to the 1992 Rio Earth Summit, uncovering how a groundbreaking vision for the environment evolved into concrete institutions and global action. We delve into the creation of UNEP, the role of key figures like Maurice Strong, the rise of sustainable development, and the multilateral agreements that reshaped international environmental policy. Featuring insights from "Only One Earth" by Felix Dodds, Maurice Strong , and Michael Strauss, we explore the legacy of act...

As I write this blog Committee 2 is discussing whether the annual resolution on Agenda 21, Johannesburg Plan of Action and Rio+20 should be scrapped. The resolution has been extremely important in the last few years for the discussion of subjects such as the High Level Political Forum and the Technology Facilitation Mechanism, the regional dimension of sustainable development and Sustainable Consumption and Production. Since last year, some developed countries started to challenge the very existence of the resolution. Their argument is that it is no longer needed because the 2030 Agenda should cover all aspects of the three previous conferences. Although the 2030 Agenda does cover many of the aspects of Agenda 21, Johannesburg Plan of Action and Rio+20 it does not cover all and reduces the space YET AGAIN for debate and discussion on sustainable development. In response to the concerns expressed by developed countries, G77 proposed this year to shift the focus of the resolutio...

Introduction First, I have to say it is  very disappointing that the Intergovernmental Committee of Experts on Sustainable Development Financing (ICESDF) is again meeting in secret. So as we wait for the zero draft report to come out I thought I would make some suggestions for what I would hope would be in it.  Before I go into that, let me take you back on a journey about financing sustainable development. The Intergovernmental Committee of Experts on Sustainable Development Financing  was formed as an output of the Rio+20 Conference. “ The Future We Want” recognized the need for significant mobilization of resources and the effective use of financing, in order to give strong support to developing countries in their efforts to promote sustainable development. This includes thorough actions undertaken in accordance with United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development and for achieving sustainable development goals. The ICESDF committee (comprising 30...

Dear Friends,  Now is a great time to start thinking of ideas for Xmas presents for yourself, your partner, your children, your friends and your workmates. Over the past twenty years I have had the chance to write or edit a number of books. I have selected a few which I think are the best and would make great Xmas presents.  Wishing you a wonderful Xmas,  Felix Dodds From Rio+20 to a New Development Agenda by Felix Dodds, Jorge Laguna Celis and Elizabeth Thompson due out Feb 1 st 2014 Twenty years after the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development, "The Earth Summit", the Rio+20 conference in 2012 brought life back to sustainable development by putting it at the center of a new global development partnership, one in which sustainable development is the basis for eradicating poverty, upholding human development and transforming economies. Written by practitioners and participants involved in the multilateral process of negotiations, this...

UNCSD: THE GOOD, THE BAD AND THE UGLY Felix Dodds, Fellow at the Global Research Institute UNC and Associate Fellow at the Tellus Institute I cannot believe that today will see the twentieth meeting of the UN Commission on Sustainable Development (CSD) and its final session. I write as a member of a very small group of people that attended the Rio Earth Summit in 1992 and all of the CSD meetings to date, giving me a relatively unique perspective. It should be remembered that the CSD was a compromise between the UK and USA, in particular, who did not want any UN institution for sustainable development, and Maurice Strong (Secretary General of Rio 1992), Norway and some developing countries who wanted to either transform the Trusteeship Council to an Ecological Security Council or create a new Council of the General Assembly. It was in fact a group of NGOs who came up with the compromise, handing the suggestion that this new body be a functional commission of the UN Economic an...

In preparation for Rio+20 I, Michael Strauss with Maurice Strong wrote a book " Only One Earth: The Long Road via Rio to Sustainable Development - looking at the history of the last 40 years and what the challenges for the future are. Of course I would love you all to read the book. If you want some teasers then I produced four podcasts which you might want to listen to: EXCERPTS FROM 'ONLY ONE EARTH' - CHAPTER 1: STOCKHOLM 1972 EXCERPTS FROM 'ONLY ONE EARTH' - CHAPTER 2: EARTH SUMMIT 199 2, RIO DE JANEIRO EXCERPTS FROM 'ONLY ONE EARTH' - CHAPTER 3: WORLD SUMMIT ON SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT , JOHANNESBURG 2002 EXCERPTS FROM 'ONLY ONE EARTH' - CHAPTER 4: RIO+20 A NEW BEGINNING It is important as many of us are preparing to attend the UN General Assembly  in ten days time (23 September) where there will be important decisions on the road to the Post-2015 - to reflect on what we have learnt in the past. The book and the podcasts try and not ...

The summer has been a great time to start filling out what the agenda for the Nexus 2014: Climate-Water-Food-Energy Conference (3-7th March in Chapel Hill North Carolina). We have our first confirmed speaker the Adnan Amin the Executive Director of the International Renewable Energy Authority (IRENA). For those who do not know Adnan he has made considerable contribution to sustainable development over a career that has seen him direct UNEPs New York operations, head the secretariat for the UN Secretary Generals’ High Level Panel on System Wide Coherence which was one of the most successful Panels of the last two years and head the secretariat for the UN Secretary Generals Chief Executive Board (UN Cabinet). “In an increasingly resource-constrained world, there is a compelling case for decision makers to consider the interconnections between water, energy, food and climate – the Nexus. The nexus perspective increases the understanding of these interdepende...