So, now we’ve had the conference, we can see that the environment, is safe in our representatives hands!
So, that alright then. No need to worry!!
I’m old enough now, to remember a lot of the progress of these meetings. The series of attempts, to save the planet, from ourselves.
The older I get, the more of an Anarchist I become. I mean it!
Representative Democracy, is a good idea. If it worked. But it doesn’t.
Like Tony Benn, I can think of not a single idea that my representatives have had, that then they have gone out and pursued in all our interests, with our consent. The whole thing ALWAYS tends to the perceived self interests of those ‘in the club’.
My representatives have usually been dragged through a hedge backwards, after civil insurrection in the street, make them pay some attention. Then times later, a much ‘watered down’ idea of law or action emerges, that is next to useless for our needs.
Sorry, but that is my understanding of politics for you!
* United Nations Conference on the Human Environment – Stockholm 1972
* United Nations Conference on Environment and Development – Rio 1992
* United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change – Kyoto 1997
* World Summit on Sustainable Development – Johannesburg 2002
Much of this ‘progress’ is described in this piece:
Chronicle Essay – The Road from Stockholm to Johannesburg By Lars-Göran Engfeldt
http://www.un.org/Pubs/chronicle/2002/issue3/0302p14_essay.html
Good God! Is it not time to recognize that sustainable development has become a matter of survival, which must be given the same priority as traditional security policy. The landmark agreements from Rio show the way, but the key problem before Johannesburg is that implementation is seriously lagging. The scientific community tells us that we have perhaps 20 to 25 years to rectify the situation. The widespread insight that business as usual is not an option is inevitably tempered by our incapability to take long-term decisions in our own interest as human beings. Perhaps this is starting to change. Experiences from international negotiations over this thirty-year period give a perspective to the complex challenges of today, which could be useful to negotiators and decision makers.
Some say it will take a catastrophy, for politics to take notice. Well, we have one of those every day!
However, I think it will the loss of thousands of lives, with the clear and obvious potential, of the loss of thousand more, here in the Developed West before any of this gets the priorities that these issues deserve. Shame and idiotic, but me thinks, true!
International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD)
Linkages Portal to the Johannesburg Summit 2002:
http://www.iisd.ca/wssd/portal.html
Links to further summit resources:
http://www.iisd.ca/wssd/links.html
World Summit on Sustainable Development:
http://www.earthwire.org/wssd/
Daily Summit Blog:
http://www.dailysummit.net/
The Earth Times – Daily Web Edition:
http://www.earthtimes.org/
Notes earlier in this blog at start of conference:
http://tash_lodge.blogspot.com/2002_08_25_tash_lodge_archive.html#80684273
Watching the news, and reading the paper, people seem quite disappointed in the outcomes of each of these conference. But, really, I ask you, did you expect it to be any different?
