Mary Robinson: “What do celibate men know about the lives, health and the decisions of poor women?"

by Aoife O'Grady

In an interview with Brazilian paper 'O Globo', former UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Mary Robinson, has criticised the Vatican's stance on the reproductive rights of women, asking the question “What do celibate men know about the lives, health and the decisions of poor women?” Ms. Robinson was referring to the Vatican's alleged influence in the removal of reference to women's reproductive rights from the outcome document at Rio+20, the UN Conference on Sustainable Development which concluded on Friday.

Rio+20: Cities bring sustainability to sub-national level

by Lidija Grozdanić

Few urban settlements outside the South American continent exhibit such visible thirst for space as Brazil’s Cidade Meravilhosa. The vortex of mixtures and co-existing extremes, permeating all aspects of Rio de Janeiro’s life, creates an urban continuity glued together by a single unifying force – the desire to live in the city. Clinging to steep hill slopes, burdened by poverty and inadequate infrastructure,  informal settlements are pulsating tentacles of the urbanscape, reminding the Rio+20 participants of the urgency of addressing sustainable urbanization issues.

UN calls for new means of measuring sustainable wealth

by Peter Bjerregaard

It makes little sense to talk about growth if it’s not sustainable. That’s why the United Nations called for a new index at the Rio+20 Summit that seeks to change the way prosperity is measured.

The Sustainability of “Feminine” Thinking : Women Leaders' Summit on the Future Women Want

Prominent women leaders, gathered at the Rio+20 side event on Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment, have branded the predominant women empowerment mechanisms, operating mainly through aid programs, as anachronistic. Refusing to be seen as yet another vulnerable group, women insist on being part of the decision-making process. 


By Lidija Grozdanić

Ecological resilience: a life insurance policy for communities

by Peter Bjerregaard

What is the Green Economy really? That was the key question posed by UNEP here in Rio this week when experts and policy makers met in the UNEP Pavilion for a discussion on the link between research and policy during the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development (Rio+20).

Final stage of Rio+20 negotiations: Between failure and balance

by Lidija Grozdanić 

Weak vocabulary marks the final stage of the Rio+20 negotiations. Expressions like “acknowledge”, “agree upon strengthening” and “reaffirm” reverberated across the corridors of Riocentro Convention Center on 19 June. Representatives of the 193 participating countries agreed on the latest version of the document, finally approving it at the plenary session. According to Nikhil Chandavarkar, the head of communications for Rio +20, the outcome document is a well balanced text, but one that still fails to address several pressing issues.

The principles put forward during the 1992 Earth Summit, and the means of implementation of these principles which include technology transfer, financing and capacity-building for developing countries were reaffirmed, leaving the big issues essentially unresolved.

The much anticipated concretization of Sustainable Development Goals has resulted in informal agreements, establishing them as a concept to be integrated in a post 2015 agenda.

The matter of upgrading of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) into a United Nations Environment Organization (UNEO) fell short of the initial ambitions, with an overall agreement on elevating its status and augmenting future funding.

Though unlikely to happen, as the countries have already expressed their positions, the heads of states and governments who arrived today in Rio for the official part of the conference reserve the right to change the final document.

Youth representatives protest Rio+20 plenary

Representatives of the youth and children major stakeholder group held a demonstration earlier this week to protest what they perceive as an exclusion of future generations from the sustainable development discussions in Rio.

by Mati Kalwill

A common vision agreed at Rio+20?

by Aoife O'Grady 

'Our Common Vision' is the title of the text apparently agreed by all negotiators around the table close to 3am Tuesday morning at the UN Conference on Sustainable Development in Rio de Janeiro. The (as yet) text is being furiously circulated through the wires and fibres of the Rio Centro conference although it has not yet been adopted in plenary. 

Children and youth NGOs are already expressing their dissatisfaction with a process that they believe has shut them out by protesting at the plenary session with tape over their mouths. A big disappointment for them is the fact that there is no mention in the text of a High Commissioner for Future Generations, something for which they had been lobbying hard.

Meanwhile, the press await an official statement and confirmation that the Brazilians have managed to tame what was an incredibly unruly text up to a few days ago. Expect reactions from countries, NGOs and business to come thick and fast in the coming hours...

Rio+20: Giving momentum to resource economics

by Peter Bjerregaard

Growth. Even before the concept is defined, we know what’s on the agenda. It’s not about plant growth, hair growth or growth in quality of life, it’s about economic growth. And the kind that is measured in GDP. However, Rio+20 might mark a paradigm shift in the way we measure growth and wealth. 

The Robot Bird teaches kids about recycling

A fun, interactive sculpture installed in Belgrade aims to animate and educate the citizens and their children about the importance of recycling.


by Lidija Grozdanić

Photo courtesy of the Octopus Association.

Unwaste

Sustainable designers explain how we could restyle our old objects. 

by Cecilia Anesi 

Renata.

New power for renewable energy

Brno, the second largest city in the Czech Republic, has been recently called “the Czech Silicon Valley”. This city is home to scientific research and many of big technology companies in the country. The newly established Centre for Research and Utilization of Renewable Energy wants to take advantage of this new reality and connect industry with scientific research.

by Martin Maska 

Brno, the Czech Silicon Valley. Photo by Martin Maska.

Turning waste plastic bottles into solar bulbs

Providing interior lighting for the poor, one litre at a time. 


by Lidija Grozdanić  

Photo courtesy of A Liter of Light.

Andris Piebalgs on bioenergy

An interview with the European Commissioner for Development.

by Edgars Skvariks

Coffee can fuel more than just your day!

Using coffee waste as an alternative energy source might be excellent news for people who love starting their day with a cup of coffee.

by Lidija Grozdanić

Capannori the first “zero waste” municipality in Italy

An ambitious project in the hearth of Tuscany. 

by Michele Lapini 

Photo by Capannoli 1, FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Italy’s movements for social and environmental justice get ready for Rio+20

On the run to The Peoples’ Summit, a collateral event to the United Nations’ conference, Roberto Musacchio, of the “pRIOrity future” campaign, told us why and how the Italian networks of people are preparing a document of alternative proposals. 

by Cecilia Anesi

“Grow the Planet”: the first green social network on Earth

by Michele Lapini and Cecilia Anesi 

Photo by Michele Lapini.

Cotton bag is the new shopping bag

Statics have shown that governments can put pressure on customers’ environmental responsibility by charging for nonreusable plastic bags 

by Ngalula Beatrice Kabutakapua 

Majority of plastic bags become litter. Photo by Ngalula Beatrice Kabutakapua.

Back to the woods

by Ilaria Lonigro