News

By Inger Andersen, Executive Director, UN Environment

The Amazon rainforest, this wonder of nature sprawling across nine countries in Latin America, holds a special place on this planet.

Faced with stark climate and biodiversity crises, we cannot afford more damage to it – or to human health from the haze that hangs over communities and cities. We must help Brazil extinguish these fires and offer long-term support to prevent further illegal deforestation.

To get the job done, it is important to understand that while fires are burning in record numbers, they happen every year. The blazes and wider deforestation are driven by demand for agricultural land to meet the growing global demand for beef and animal feed. Rising global temperatures are also an exacerbating factor.

There is a lot Brazil itself can quickly do once it has dealt with the immediate crisis of extinguishing the blazes. The country has a strong historical tradition of protecting the Amazon; in fact, between 2004 and 2012, Brazil managed to reduce deforestation by over 80 per cent. Yet since then we have gone backwards. In the immediate term, we need to do three key things.

Firstly, it is time to return to stronger enforcement. More than 100 countries including Brazil have legislation enshrining the right to a healthy environment. But it is useless if it is not enforced properly. The message needs to be sent actions that destroy our natural world will not be tolerated.

Secondly, recent global assessments have shown that indigenous communities living close to nature are far better stewards of the forests and land. It is essential that they are given more control and their rights are protected. This way our vital ecosystems will be stewarded effectively.

Offering incentives to landowners and farmers – such as payments for conservation – has also worked. The international community and private sector have a clear role to play here. The Sustainable Commodities Facility is one route to provide finance to Brazilian farmers to grow soy on already cleared land instead of causing more deforestation.

But the Amazon is just one piece of the puzzle. Just as the rainforest is a haven for biodiversity and a natural defence against global warming, so too are the Congo Basin and Indonesian rainforests. 

Wildfires are raging across Indonesia, as they do regularly. According to an analysis of satellite data run by the UNEPGRID centre in Geneva, there were more fires burning in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Angola than Brazil between 19 and 26 August.

Protecting mega forests is clearly a global imperative. And the biggest positive action we could take is to reform the global food systems that are driving the climate crisis, biodiversity loss, water insecurity, and soil and water pollution.

Agriculture and related land-use change are responsible for over 70 per cent of tropical deforestation and around one quarter of all greenhouse gas emissions. 

Brazil’s drop in deforestation ended when commodity prices increased, demonstrating a clear link to the production and export of soy, beef and, to a lesser extent, ethanol/sugarcane. Increases in commodity prices have always led to more land grabbing globally. They have been a major driver of the Indonesian fires since the early 1980s.

We can break this cycle.

The private sector must step up, adopting zero-deforestation and sustainable commodity supply chain targets. Governments need to shift to more long-term public policies for sustainable agricultural production, integrated land-use planning at the national scale and sustainability standards. And citizens should continue to stand up and demand more responsible environmental policies from their governments – and their right to do so must be protected.

If we used all of the food we produced – we currently waste or lose about one-third – there would be less need to clear land. By switching to more sustainable proteins and a more plant-based diet, we can reduce the global demand for meat. Our actions on an individual level are important.

As we head towards 2020 – a crucial year in which the Paris Agreement will hit full stride, we need to remember the heart-breaking images of this natural wonder ablaze and do everything in our power to change our relationship with nature before it is too late.

Management of solid waste is a daunting challenge globally but increasingly offers an opportunity to advance the circular economy agenda. With the aim of strengthening decision making and institutional quality of the integrated management of urban solid waste, the Second International Congress on Integral Management of Urban Solid Waste (GIRSU) was organized on 12-14 June 2019 in Argentina.

Contributions of PAGE to the event helped to place the inclusive green economy thinking in the center of the discussions and to make a case for seizing opportunities for green jobs. The National PAGE Coordinator of Argentina, Mr. Joaquín Etorena, while addressing the panel on “Strengthening of the Integrated Solid Waste Management sector, Opportunities and challenges of a just transition towards a Green Economy in Argentina” shared insights from PAGE work. Discussions at the event contributed to develop a joint vision on how the solid waste management system can be transformed into a circular economy without posing a risk to the jobs. 

The session on just transition towards a Green Economy highlighted that there is a high degree of informality in the recycling sector. Participants highlighted that transition to an integrated system of the circular economy may imply profound changes that will bring social consequences, such as the risk of losing some jobs. While acknowledging this risk, PAGE shared ideas on how the transition could bring the possibility of creating new opportunities and improving employment conditions while addressing sustainability and social inequality challenges. Participants underlined the importance of improved quality of education and development of new professional skills to overcome challenges of low productivity, lack of opportunities and youth unemployment. 

Throughout the discussion, social dialogue was identified as a key element for a just and fast transition towards sustainable development. In the context of solid urban waste, participants agreed that i) new legislation needs to be discussed in multistakeholder for a, ii) the vision for transition must pay special attention to generating new opportunities for those who are engaged in recycling of materials, and iii) role of cooperative economic schemes should be duly recognized for its contribution to decent job-creation in green sectors. Other factors and challenges discussed included: i) technological changes, ii) the need to reskill the labour force, iii) need for stimulus to accelerate innovation, iv) urgency of investment in necessary infrastructure, and v) development of value chains associated with the emergence of new sectors.  

Participants at the conference concluded that developing green economies has a positive net effect on employment in terms of quantity and quality. They highlighted that a paradigm shift from a linear economy model to a circular model is necessary and has the enormous potential to generate green jobs. 

Senegal has made important commercial discoveries of natural gas and oil, which based on 2015 estimates, would make the country be the world’s 40th largest oil producer and the 20th largest gas producer. Since 2015, even larger reserves have been discovered off-shore, making oil and gas play a highly significant role in the national economy, putting the country at crossroads in its trajectory towards sustainable development. Production of oil and gas is expected to start in 2022.

This is a critical moment when Senegal is in the process of issuing legislation on the management of funds expected from oil and gas. Responding to the request of the Government of Senegal to inform the legislation, PAGE has developed the report on "Funds and mechanisms for the management of oil and gas revenues to support sustainable development”. It will serve as a milestone reference for Senegal’s mitigation of hydrocarbon-related risks and to assist the country in achieving its ambitions for an environmentally resilient and prosperous future. 

On 30 July 2019, the report was presented to the High Council on Social Dialogue of Senegal. The High Council on Social Dialogue brings together senior-level representatives from all professional sectors and is mandated by the President of Senegal to play a central role in the national dialogue around oil and gas.  The PAGE report was much welcomed and stimulated important discussions. The High Council devoted a full session from 30 July to 1 August to discuss the conclusions of the report as an input for the deliberations at its 15th plenary session. 

Among others, the report discusses principles and international standards for natural resource revenue management and distribution, covering macroeconomic challenges and the good governance of extra-budgetary funds, which are commonly found in natural resource-rich countries— In addition, it examines measures to address environmental and social impacts of extractive activities and offers several policy options for consideration.

The opening of the session took place in the presence of High-Level local authorities including Ms Awa Marie Coll Seck, Senior Minister and President of Senegal National Committee of the Initiative on Transparency in Extractive Industries; Ms Innocence Ntap Ndiaye, President of the High Council on Social Dialogue; Ms Priya Gaijraj, United Nations Resident Coordinator in Senegal; and Mr Charles Faye the Vice-president for Employers’ and Mr Lamine Fall Vice-president for workers’ organizations in the High Council on Social Dialogue.  

Ouagadougou, 8 July 2019 - Burkina Faso adopted the National Strategy on Green Economy (NSGE) last month, marking a major milestone in the country’s inclusive green economy transition. The Strategy promotes the creation, development and consolidation of a critical mass of competitive, sustainable, value-adding industries and decent jobs providers, primarily in the transformation of local raw materials. 

The adoption of the Strategy creates a pathway for strong commitment from national authorities at the highest level for a transition of the country to green industry. It also promises the commitment of the private sector in the implementation of green economy principles in industrial activities.

Targets & Activities

The targets of the Strategy are to increase the manufacturing industry's share of GDP from 6.6% in 2016 to 12% in 2023, increase the share of manufactured goods in the export of goods and services to 20% in 2023 and improve the country’s 'Ease of Doing Business' ranking from 143rd in 2016 to 130th by 2023.

The activities within the Strategy can be defined within five strategic axes:

1. Improvement of the legal, institutional and organizational support framework for the industrial sector;
2. Support for development industrial projects;
3. Consolidation of existing industrial firms by modernization of facilities and promotion of green industry;
4. Support for improvement of financing access for the industrial sector,
5. Development of industrial infrastructures and promotion of the sustainability of industrial firms.

Background

In African countries, industrialization is essential as a means of increasing incomes, creating jobs, developing value-added activities and diversifying economies. The high economic growth rates of the past 10 years in Africa have proven that commodity-based economies do not lead to the structural transformation needed. African incomes are still the lowest in the world, and 34 African countries rank among the least developed countries with manufacturing sectors' share of gross domestic product lower than it was 30 years ago.

In order to stimulate and enable an environment conducive to industrial expansion, Africa needs government-driven industrial policies to add value and strengthen industrial upgrading. However, in the light of the current context of climate change, scarcity of natural resources and ethics, the “Business as Usual” way is not the solution. Instead, industrial policies should integrate issues of environmental degradation and resource depletion. Countries must adopt green growth strategies that will be supported by green industry.

PAGE Support

In Burkina Faso, UNIDO, through the framework of PAGE, conducted a green industry study that demonstrated the opportunities for the country to promote an inclusive green industry strategy given its characteristics, its development imperatives and its dependence on natural resources. The study also highlighted the commitment and compatibility of green economy with the political vision of development. Thereby, the Government with the support of PAGE has developed this new green industrialization strategy.

Opportunities Going Forward

The operationalization of the Strategy will bring together various stakeholders, including ministries, local and regional authorities, the private sector, technical and financial partners, academia and civil society organizations. This commitment from national authorities is essential as the necessary reforms for this transition will engage the entire productive apparatus and will inevitably affect the established interests of certain sectors and actors.

Moreover, the industry diagnosis phase identified that many national manufacturing firms operate in an inefficient and resource-intensive manner. These inefficiencies represent an opportunity for significant progress, as investment in new technologies promoted by the Strategy can lead to significant economic and environmental gains. Thereby, the implementation of the Strategy will help the country overcome, among other challenges, the reduction of the production factors’ costs, the increase of productivity and the transition to the green industry in order to link competitiveness and sustainability.

New York, 16 July 2019 - The Partners for Inclusive Green Economy hosted a high-level panel discussion, Fast, Fair and Green, at the UN High-level Political Forum for Sustainable Development (HLPF) in New York. The discussion explored the question, "How can we create an economic transition fast, fair, and green enough to achieve the SDGs and NDCs?"

Event Webcast

If you weren't able to make the event, click below to view the full webcast of the discussion from UN Web TV.

Speakers

The speakers for the event included Hon. Ola Elvestuen, President of the UN Environment Assembly (UNEA) and Minister of Climate and Environment, Norway, Hon. Rita Schwarzelühr-Sutter, Parliamentary State Secretary, Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety, Germany, Mr. Gabriel Quijandría, Vice-Minister of Environment, Peru, Hon. Ms. Elizabeth Thompson, Permanent Representative of Barbados to the United Nations, Ms. Astrid Schomaker, Director, Global Sustainable Development, Directorate General for the Environment, European Commission, Ms. Inger Andersen, Executive Director, UN Environment, Mr. Guy Rider, Executive Director, International Labour Organization, and Mr. Jo Confino, Executive Editor, Impact & Innovation, The Huffington Post.

Key Takeaways

Diverse institutions, including the OECD, ILO, UNDP, UNEP and the Green Economy Coalition, called for a different approach to governing economies in order to avoid environmental breakdown, one that puts people and nature first.

The panelists recognized that few countries are on track to achieve either their national targets for tackling climate change or the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Humanity is facing unprecedented and interrelated challenges, including climate change, biodiversity loss and growing inequality. As such, business as usual cannot continue.

Key steps for the transition to inclusive green economies include recognising the multiple values of nature in economic decision-making; prioritising wellbeing and the equitable distribution of opportunity and outcome; aligning prices, subsides and incentives with the true costs to society; embracing new models of development that enable economic growth without raising resource consumption; and supporting public participation and social dialogue.

Launches

The event coincided with several important launches. Among them were two new knowledge platforms: the Green Industry Platform and the Green Finance Platform. These platforms provide the financial and private sectors with the latest research, data, guidance, and tools from leading experts and institutions to help green their operations. Read more about these new platforms in a press release from the Green Growth Knowledge Platform.

This event also marked the launch of the Five Principles of Green Economy, which provide a valuable compass as countries around the world transition to sustainability. The principles comprise a series of catalytic activities and key priorities to guide collective action in diverse contexts. Read more about the five principles and their role in delivering the SDGs in a press release from the Green Economy coalition.

Partners

The event was jointly organized by the Partners for Inclusive Green Economy, an initiative involving UN Environment, the Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI), the Green Economy Coalition (GEC), the Green Growth Knowledge Partnership (GGKP), the International Labour Organization (ILO), the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), Poverty-Environment Action for SDGs (PEA), the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), the United Nations Partnership for Action on Green Economy (UN-PAGE), and the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ).

Uruguay, 5 June 2019 - Lanas Trinidad, NIDO, URUPLAC, Prendetec and Repapel were among the winners of the first-ever Uruguay Circular Economy Award, given out on World Environment Day this month. The Award was created by the PAGE Uruguay Programme to recognize initiatives and projects that are contributing to the country’s transition towards a circular economy. It is the first award of its kind in the Latin-America and Caribbean region.

The Award recognized winners in five categories: Large Companies, Cooperatives, MSMEs (Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises), Educational Institutions and Communities.

Winners

Lanas Trinidad was the winner of the Large Companies category and received the prize from the Undersecretary of Industry, Energy and Mining, Olga Otegui. Lanas Trinidad was recognized for promoting environmental sustainability in the productive process and for circulating and valuing materials that would normally be treated as waste in a linear economy.

The prize in the Cooperatives category was taken by NIDO and was awarded by the National Director of Environment, Alejandro Nario. NIDO, a cooperative composed of eight women, works to promote conscious and responsible consumption with a focus on social inclusion.

URUPLAC was the winner of the MSMEs category, a prize awarded by the President of the Board of Directors of the National Development Agency, Martín Dibarboure. URUPLAC consists of two partners who have been working in recycling for more than 20 years. The company was born in 2012 as an effort by the partners to find a recycling alternative for potentially unprocessed products that are not processed in Uruguay due to lack of productive alternatives.

The prize for the Educational Institutions category, delivered by Manuel Albaladejo, the representative of the UNIDO Regional Office, was awarded to PRENDETEC of Ceibal. Ceibal has delivered almost two million devices in the Uruguayan public system, managing around 13 tons of waste and electronic devices on a monthly basis. PRENDETEC is an example of how collaboration between the education system and private companies can be used to build new assets.

Pablo Montes, the Coordinator of PAGE Uruguay, presented the award to Repapel in the Communities category. The Repapel community offers a solution to the problem of garbage throughout the country. In Uruguay, the average person generates 1.1 kg of garbage daily. At least 15% is paper or cardboard and more than 20% is plastic. Repapel promotes a system of classification and subsequent recycling of paper and PET plastic throughout the country. In doing so, Repapel generates recycled paper and plastic supplies for public schools that participate in the project and environmental education programs for all organizations.

Going Forward

Uruguay is one of the partner countries of PAGE (Partnership for Action on Green Economy), which seeks to contribute to the incorporation of the concept of green growth in public development policies, with the purpose of promoting the efficient use of resources and environmental sustainability. This successful first year of the Uruguay Circular Award is an important step in advancing the country's path towards sustainability.

Check out the winners profiles:

Lanas Trinidad

NIDO 

URUPLAC

CEIBAL PRENDETEC

Repapel

Guyana, 28 May 2019 – The Green State Development Strategy Vision 2040, 20-year national development strategy for Guyana, was officially received by President of Guyana, Mr. David Granger, marking an important milestone for the country’s transition towards inclusive green economy. The Strategy provides a long-term vision and guidance for Guyana's economic, social and environmental development placing sustainability at the heart of national development up to 2040. It will guide the national development policies for the next 20 years, under a vision of development that is inclusive and prosperous, provides a good quality of life for all its citizens, based on sound education and social protection, low carbon and resilient development, providing new economic opportunities, justice and political empowerment. 

At the official launch ceremony, UN Environment’s Director for Latin America and the Caribbean, Mr. Leo Heileman presented the Vision 2040 to the Head of State.  Reflecting on this accomplishment, upon reception of the document, Mr. Granger said:

“The world is realizing almost by the day that climate change is a grim, relentless reality. There is no avoidance. Hardly a day passes that we do not see the adverse impact of climate change. It is great for us to be ahead of the game. We have challenges with our coastal zone management; we have cycles of El Nino, drought and flood in our hinterland; we have industries which are now starting to have an impact on air quality and water quality”.

In the context of building its greener and equitable future, Guyana joined PAGE in 2017 whose engagement in the country is, ever since, centered around supporting the elaboration of the GSDS Vision 2040. The new Vision 2040 actually builds on previous commitments to sustainable development, such as the Low Carbon Development and Climate Resilience Strategy Action Plan. The Strategy thus reflects the President’s vision of an inclusive and prosperous state providing a good quality of life for all its citizens and based on sound education, social protection, low-carbon and resilient development, providing new economic opportunities, justice and political empowerment. It promotes three key topics: management of natural resource wealth; support of economic resilience and building of human capital and institutional capacity.

SDGS brings in new modalities of financing the development through the Natural Resource Fund Act. The President explained that the revenues from oil and gas are to be invested in a wise manner to avoid the Dutch disease. He also pointed out the importance of grass-root education of the population, and especially youth on environmental consciousness to compliment the successful implementation of the strategy. 

PAGE workstreams in Guyana reflect the three main areas from GSDS. Through the work of its partner agencies, PAGE supports the mainstreaming of sustainable development into national development strategies planning and macro-economic policies, works on sectoral and thematic policies to as well as operates capacity building effort. So far, PAGE has been supporting the multi-stakeholder consultation process and has been informing the political process on SDGS. Through its work on green industry and trade & green jobs assessment, PAGE is fostering the thematic reforms in line with the Vision 2040. In addition, PAGE has been building capacity for green economy decision making through trainings on modeling to enhance the national ownership of the strategy execution.

The implementation of the Vision 2040 strategy is set to begin in 2020 following the creation of an implementation team as Ms. Ndibi Schwiers, Director of the Department of Environment at Ministry of the Presidency stated.