The fourth session of the UN Environment Assembly (UNEA-4) will take place in Nairobi, Kenya, from 11-15 March 2019, on the theme of “Innovative solutions for environmental challenges and sustainable consumption and production (SCP).” The meeting will focus on food systems, resource efficiency through life-cycle approaches, and sustainable business development.

UNEA-4 will be preceded by the fourth meeting of the Open-Ended Committee of Permanent Representatives to UNEP (OECPR 4), taking place from 4-8 March 2019.

UNEA sessions usually adopt many resolutions, which are proposed and negotiated by Member States. Though not legally binding, the resolutions identify key issues for the global environment and provide impetus for coordinated action (see our summary report from UNEA-3). UNEA sessions also serve as forums for promoting the environmental dimension of the 2030 Agenda and providing input to annual sessions of the High-Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (HLPF).

UNEA-4 has three areas of focus:

• tackling the environmental challenges related to poverty and natural resources management, including sustainable food systems, food security and halting biodiversity loss;
• introducing life-cycle approaches to resource efficiency, energy, chemicals and waste management; and
• ensuring sustainable business development at a time of rapid technological change.

Finally, the Sixth Global Environmental Outlook report (GEO-6) and a summary for policy makers will be released at UNEA-4 – the first such comprehensive assessment to be published by UNEP in almost seven years.

UNEA-4 may continue to be a venue for subtle geopolitical struggles as Member States position themselves on issues such as sand and dust storms, and the environmental impacts of war and terrorism, even as the meeting seeks to navigate a purely ‘technical’ role for UNEP – a dynamic noted in our analysis of UNEA-3.

In the run-up to the Assembly, the Secretariat of the UN Environment Programme is leading a global campaign to #SolveDifferent. This campaign focuses on an informative and emotive approach to communicating the environmental cost of key consumption and production models.

Other events taking in conjunction with UNEA-4 include the Global Major Groups and Stakeholders Forum from 7-8 March, and the Science, Policy and Business Forum from 9-10 March. The Sustainable Innovation Expo, from 10-15 March, will showcase the latest developments in science, innovation and technology to support the theme of the Assembly by focusing on eco-innovation and sustainable financing to tackle some of the planet’s greatest challenges.

UNEA is the highest decision-making body on environmental matters in the UN system, and has universal membership of all 193 UN Member States, as well as the participation of Major Groups and other stakeholders.