Last
week, the zero draft document for Rio+20 was released. This is the first version of the document
which will be discussed and amended over the coming months, and after revision
and addition, hopefully accepted by Member States attending the Rio+20 conference
in Brazil, June 2012.
As SI UN Representative
Bette Levy reported last week, Rio+20 is a milestone in a series of major UN
conferences going back more than 30 years which seek to establish sustainable
development as a top international priority. Rio+20 will bring together the UN,
governments, international institutions and major ‘thematic’ groups (including Women)
to agree on a range of initiatives which protect the environment and reduce
poverty whilst promoting economic growth and equitable use of natural resources.
The Rio+20 ‘zero-draft’ document is the
product of the many hundreds of submissions from Governments, NGOs and private
sector organisations received towards the end of 2011. In total, submissions
amounted to more than 6,000 pages which have now be distilled into this 19 page
outcome document.
Soroptimist International
contributed to the call for submissions through the Women’s Major Stakeholder
Group and the DPI NGO conference which took place in Bonn in September 2011. Through
working together with like minded organisations, Soroptimist International
focussed on the language around gender, lobbying for women to be recognised as
particularly important stakeholders in the sustainable development agenda – especially
rural women in the Global South.
The document, hopefully
titled ‘The Future We Want’, certainly reflects the expectations attached to Rio+20 with an ambitious array of
topics, statements and intentions captured. Some commentary has likened it to a
‘shopping list’ for the ideal planet – suggesting the broad range of topics may
prove counter productive. However, it is hoped that by including so many
topics, therefore touching on many different political and national
interests, there is more chance of broad agreement.
Rio+20 and Gender
The role of women as
particular stakeholders in sustainable development is recognised (paragraphs
102-104). More specifically, the economic contribution of women, both in and
outside of the formal ‘cash’ economy, is recognised as crucial in establishing
a sustainable, equitable and green economic model for the future. The
inequities which continue to deny women full economic empowerment is acknowledged
with concern and identified as something national Governments must work to
overcome.
Should this section of
the zero draft document be accepted without change, Member States agree to
prioritise measures to promote ‘gender equality in all spheres of our
societies, including education, employment, ownership of resources, access to
justice, political representation, institutional decision making, care giving
and household and community management’ (para 103). Soroptimist International
welcomes the recognition that sustainable development also requires societies
to be socially sustainable and equitable, in addition to economically and
environmentally sustainable. For this reason, Soroptimist International
strongly supports the Rio+20 definition of ‘sustainable development’ being
comprised of three thematic areas: the environment, the economy, and society.
SI welcomes the attention drawn to the contribution of women, small holders and
indigenous farmers to global, national and sub-national food security.
Soroptimist International is pleased to see that the language of this recommendation,
forwarded in part by the Soroptimist International delegation during the DPI
NGO conference in Bonn, has been included in this
zero-draft document.
Rio+20 and Civil
Society
The document does not focus
on legally binding agreements. Instead, the circumstances of each country are
permitted to guide the response to the outcomes of Rio+20:
“We recognise that each
country, respecting specific realities of economic, social and environmental
development as well as particular conditions and priorities, will make the
appropriate choices” (para 28).
Rather than viewing this
as a reason to be pessimistic about the likelihood of radical and swift action
as a result of Rio+20, the document sees this as a chance to allow each country
to respond as it sees fit, taking into account the particular stage of their
economic development and the composition of their economy.
Civil society, in the
broadest understanding of the term, is urged to step forward and hold
Government to account, leading by example. The document clearly states that “a
fundamental prerequisite for the achievement of sustainable development is
broad public participation in decision making” (para 17). Citizens must be as
invested in a sustainable future as their decision makers, and urge their Governments
to make the “appropriate choices” to ensure Rio+20 is not another missed
opportunity for global change.
Soroptimist
International, as a global network of community level clubs, has a
responsibility to speak out in response to their Government’s proposals and to
hold their decision makers to account when possible. Present in 124 countries/territories
around the world, with a global membership of more than 85,000, Soroptimists
have the potential to influence over 60% of the UN member states attending
Rio+20.
Soroptimist International
will be posting more news relating to Rio+20 over the coming months and we urge
you to monitor the response of your Government to both this version of the
draft document, and subsequent versions, as we move further down the road to
Rio. If you have any questions about Rio+20, or would like to discuss ideas for engaging your
local and national decision makers, please contact hq@soroptimistinternational.org.
Related Documents
Click here to read the full Rio+20 Zero Draft Document.
Click here to read the UN press release.
Related articles from Soroptimist International:
SI Attends Rio+20 Second Intersessional Meeting in New York
SIE Attends Rio+20 Preparatory Meeting in Geneva
SI Attends International Women’s Forum on Sustainable Development in Beijing
SI Signs Women’s Major Group Submission to Rio+20
SI Additions to the Final DPI/NGO Conference Declaration Accepted