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Meeting of Senior Government Officials Expert in Environmental Law on the Midterm
Review of the 4th Programme for the Development and Periodic Review
of Environmental Law (Montevideo Programme IV)

7-11 September 2015 | Montevideo, Uruguay


Highlights for Friday, 11 September 2015

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Daily Web Coverage — About | 7 Sep | 8 Sep | 9 Sep | 10 Sep | 11 Sep | Summary

The dais at the end of the meeting

The meeting of the senior government officials expert in environmental law on the midterm review of Montevideo Programme IV reconvened for its final day on Friday, 11 September in Montevideo, Uruguay. Discussions on identifying and debating priority areas for action in the field of environmental law for the period up to 2020 were concluded, and the draft recommendations were considered.

Discussions on priority areas for action addressed: promoting more coordinated and holistic approaches in international environmental law to address a broad cluster of global environmental issues, in which a possible feasibility study for a framework convention in the field of chemicals was discussed; understanding the linkages between the environment and security, with some proposing to delete this from the draft recommendations; strengthening country support for developing and adopting policies and laws; and, cooperating in an expeditious and more determined manner to secure environmental protection objectives in international trade, investment, and financial laws and policies.

Discussions then turned to consider the draft recommendations that had been drawn up by the drafting group on Thursday evening. These were discussed in the morning and throughout the afternoon. Several amendments were proposed, including: development of incentives to move towards sustainable development through economic approaches such as environmentally sustainable economy, green economy or others; the undertaking for UNEP to conduct regular reviews on the implementation of the Montevideo Programme; reference to adequate and equitable access to safe water and water supply; and, a recommendation on illegal mining and illegal felling. Delegates approved the recommendations.

The meeting then considered the draft report, which was adopted with minor amendments.

The meeting was closed at 6:52pm.

IISD Reporting Services, through its ENB+ Meeting Coverage, has provided daily web coverage and a summary report from the Meeting of Senior Government Officials Expert in Environmental Law on the Midterm Review of the 4th Programme for the Development and Periodic Review of Environmental Law (Montevideo Programme IV). Available in ENB Mobile at: http://enb.iisd.mobi/unep-law-montevideo4/


Priority Areas for Action in the Field of Environmental Law for the Period up to 2020,
Bearing in Mind Montevideo Programme IV

The working document

Marina Céline Bayeba, Côte d’Ivoire

Carlos Michelen, Dominican Republic


Jean Kenfack, Cameroon


Ernest Rukangira, Conserve Africa Foundation

Joanna Abrego, Panama


L-R: Michael Shewchuk, UN Division for Ocean Affairs and the Law of the Sea; Dan Bondi Ogolla, UN Framework
Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) Secretariat; and Timothy R. Epp, US

Daniel Jeudy, Haiti

Santiago Uribe, Colombia


Murad Al-Madani, Palestine

Teresa Dolores Cruz Sardiñas, Cuba


Delegates from Latin America and the Caribbean region meeting during the morning session

Leonardo Campaña Llive, Ecuador

Loretta Feris, University of Cape Town


Du Qun, Wuhan University

Astrid Puentes Riaño, Interamerican Association
for Environmental Defense (AIDA)


L-R: Irene Barreira, Conference Officer,
and Ingrid Irrazabal, Uruguay

Picon Bibolini, Peru


L-R: José Luis Maccarone, Argentina; Elena Trigo, Switzerland; and Marcus Schroeder, Germany, discussing the draft report

Muhammed Tawfiq Ladan, Ahmadu Bello University,
reading the draft report


Closure of the Meeting

Jorge Rucks, Under-Secretary, Ministry of Housing, Territorial Planning and Environment, Uruguay,
addressed participants at the end of the meeting

L-R: Chair Marcelo José Cousillas, Ministry of Housing,
Land Planning and Environment, Uruguay, and
Masa Nagai, Deputy Director, DELC, UNEP

L-R: Elizabeth Mrema, Director, DELC, UNEP, and Jorge Rucks, Under-Secretary, Ministry of Housing, Territorial Planning and Environment, Uruguay


Participants at the end of the meeting

Around the Venue

L-R: Dan Bondi Ogolla, UNFCCC Secretariat, and Elizabeth Mrema, Director, DELC, UNEP

L-R: Matjaž Roter, Holy See; Sala Josephine Stowers-Fiu, Samoa; Elisabetta Scialanca, Italy; Maximiliano Koch, Holy See; and Cristiano Piacente, Italy

L-R: Loretta Feris, University of Cape Town,
and Nazek Al Khatib, Lebanon


L-R: French interpreters Luciana Ogando and
Amandine Movilland-Etienne

L-R: Murad Al-Madani, Palestine; Imad Obaid Jasim Albo Radhi, Iraq; and Nasir Mohamed Al Ali, United Arab Emirates


L-R: Charles Hughes, Lucía Corradi and Florencia de Castro, Uruguay, sharing a laugh during the morning session.

L-R: Du Qun, Wuhan University, and
Elizabeth Mrema, Director, DELC, UNEP

L-R: Jolyon Thomson, United Kingdom, and Michael Shewchuk, UN Division for Ocean Affairs and the Law of the Sea


L-R: Sallyane Cotter, Saint Lucia, and Nazek Al Khatib, Lebanon, during their yoga session before the start of the meeting

L-R: Raj Bhesh Sharma, Nepal, and Dan Bondi Ogolla, UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) Secretariat


L-R: Francisco Vásquez, UNON,
and Masa Nagai, Deputy Director, DELC, UNEP

L-R: Santiago Uribe, Colombia; Rodrigo Garcia Galindo, Mexico; and Astrid Puentes Riaño, AIDA


L-R: Claudia S. de Windt, Organization of American States (OAS), and Leonardo Campaña Llive, Ecuador

L-R: José Luis Maccarone, Argentina, and Andrea Brusco, UNEP


L-R: Chair Marcelo José Cousillas, Ministry of Housing, Land Planning and Environment, Uruguay, and Daniel Barstow Magraw, Johns Hopkins University

Sokhamphou Sum, Cambodia, looking at Río de la Plata from the venue


Conference staff

Delegates from Latin America, the Caribbean and Africa, at the end of the session

Members of the Uruguayan police outside the meeting room

Daily Web Coverage — About | 7 Sep | 8 Sep | 9 Sep | 10 Sep | 11 Sep | Summary
Funding for coverage of the Meeting of Senior Government Officials Expert in Environmental Law on the Midterm Review of the Montevideo Programme IV, has been provided by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP)
UNEP