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8th Meeting of the Commission on Sustainable Development
New York, USA; 24 April - 05 May, 2000
 

Side Events for Wednesday 03 May


Environmental Protection and Land Use:How are the States in the United States Integrating Environmental Protection
New Jersey, Minnesota and Pennsylvania and a few other states in the United States have begun to more seriously integrate environmental protection considerations into land use decisions. In the US, the states have control over land use. This presentation reviewed what Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Minnesota are doing to better integrate environmental issues into land use decision making. Tools considered included state land use plans, smart growth, model ordinances, protection of important environmental areas, intensive use of geographical information systems (GIS), the use of environmental models in decision making, programs to support sustainable communities, sustainable development indicators, operationalizing ecosystem and watershed approaches.

 

Michael Bedrin, Chief Counsel for the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, said a panel was established to find out what environmental issues will be faced by Pennsylvania with two prominent results: Land use issues were the most pressing problem; and the most important issue was environmental education and environmental stewardship. He said local officials need greater tools and greater education, as they are not elected on a land use platform. He emphasized the need to revitalize the urban areas to counter sprawl, and highlighted the Land Recycling Program, which is a series of three statutes: changing rules for cleaning up urban sites and put them back into productive use; uniform cleanup standards and standardized review procedures; and release of liability, a powerful incentive to put properties back into use. He said, with the provision of financial assistance, 700 sites have been cleaned up. He also highlighted the importance of data in decision making and the need for identifying a set of environmental indicators.

For additional information on how Pennsylvania is integrating environmental considerations into land use decisions, contact: Michael Bedrin <Bedrin.Michael@dep.state.us> or Don Brown <Brown.Donald@dep.state.us>.

DEP website: www.dep.state.pa.us
21st Century website: www.21century.state.pa.us
Pennsylvania Consortium for Interdisciplinary Environmental Policy: www.Pciep.org
Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development: www.dced.state.pa.us


Raymond E. Cantor, Assistant Commissioner for Land Use Management and Compliance, New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, said New Jersey is known for having the most toxic waste sites and is the most densely populated state in the United States. He said development, particularly sprawl, is the primary factor that is harming ecosystem problems He said people have not really thought about the impact of this development on the environment. He drew attention to getting all the information into the GIs system and getting it out to the counties and that the problems that exist must be recognized to begin with.In conclusion, he said that recognition of environmental impacts is still in the early stages, regional perspectives are beginning and upfront planning avoids problems later.


Donald A. Brown, Senior Counsel for Sustainable Development, Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, discussed the case of Minnesota. He discussed the concept of "smart growth" which describes the application of the sustainable developemnet concept to land use issues. It means smart management of resources in both growing and declining communities. Smart growth, like sustainable development, is fiscally prudent and environmentally, economically and socially sound while enhancing the choices people have for housing, jobs, recreation and transportation. The long-term needs of people, business and the environment ultimately define what is smart growth and sustainable and what is not. He highlighted strong growth boundary system, with circles around communities, and all growth inside these areas. He said it has taken longer in the US than in European states to get sustainable development moving into a new stage broader than sprawl. integrate, env, econ and social planning at state level still losing sprawl what would you like to see next tools with respect to env land use. penn; better handle on data and what are actual conditions, He highlighted the need to achieve a better level of knowledge through further education of municipal and county officials. For more information contact sustain@mnplan.state.mn.us or visit www.mnplan.state.mn.us

Presentation of the Millennium Young People congress outcome and launch of the Millennium Action Fund.

Peace Child International hosted this side event, gathering panelists from UNICEF, UNDP, UNEP, the Hague Appeal for Peace, the Trickle-Up Program, and the UN Youth Unit. Individuals on the panel spoke about their programs and experiences which engage and empower youth. Underlying questions were addressed on the roles that youth occupy, implementation of Chapter 25 of Agenda 21 to involve young people in decision-making; obstacles to engaging youth, and how international organizations, governments, NGOs and the private sector can best form partnerships with young people. The event was attended by youth delegates to the CSD-8, national government delegates, UN agencies, and NGOs.


Photo (left to right) : Andres Guerrero, UNICEF; William Angel, UN Youth Unit; Richard Jolly, UNDP; Donovan Slack, Peace Child International; Mildred Robbins Leet, Trickle-Up; Cora Weiss, Hague Appeal for Peace; David Woollcombe, Peace Child International.


Photo: William D. Angel, Director, United Nations' Youth Unit (left); and Richard Jolly, Special Adviser, UNDP (right).

William D. Angel, UN Youth Unit : The sustainable development of youth platforms is important to the UN, and many programs and agencies have actively engaged youth in various ways. The establishment of the UN Youth Fund, which disburses some $700,000 to government ministries and youth organizations, has brought to attention the need for understanding surrounding what Angel refers to as "the sustainable development of youth platforms". This refers to the need for youth organizations to provide accountability and coherence with related programs at various levels of responsibility and implementation. Angel notes that more rigorous scrutiny always accompanies increases in funding and opportunities to engage youth decision-making practices, and it its in the best interests of the sustainability of youth organizations to be aware of these requirements.

Donovan Slack of Peace Child International, described the organization's education and partnership programs related to SD implementation, focused on their program called the Millennium Action Fund (MAF) – a fund that facilitates low-cost, youth-led SD projects around the world. The organization solicits sponsorship and raises funds for 288 international youth-created projects (Youth Action Proposals) while providing infrastructure to support these youth in the implementation of their projects. Projects address environmental conservation, HIV/AIDS, public health, water/sanitation, alternative energy, small-enterprise development, primary education, new media/communications, community development, peace, and refugees.
 
For more information on Peace Child International or the MAF, visit : http://www.peacechild.org/


Moderator Donovan Slack, Peace Child International.


Andres Guerrero, UNICEF.

Andres Guerrero, UNICEF, related that though UNICEF's programs are largely influenced by the Convention on the Rights of the Child and are centred on serving youth interests, the challenge remains as to engaging youth in leadership roles.  Out of 302 programs, all report the involvement of youth action in various areas of concentration such as civil society, children's rights, HIV/AIDS, etc. yet only 12 report youth in head positions, and only 8 have youth in analytical/problem-solving roles. The organization actively seeks out new and innovative ways to balance these trends.

Dr. Noel Brown, UNEP, an ardent supporter of youth participation, notes that we are well beyond the point of definition... the challenge now is action. Impressed with the Youth Action Proposals, young people are identifying things that are within their spheres of expertise and ability. Now the question remains as to the creation of mechanisms to fund, support and engage youth projects on a regular basis. Dr. Brown suggested that each UN agency and program should create youth funding windows in order to provide such mechanisms of entrustment for young people, as they are in a season of life full of creative and valuable ideas.


Dr. Noel Brown, UNEP

 
 

David Woollcombe, Peace Child International

David Woollcombe, Director, Peace Child International outlines the desires of youth for education that builds relationships with the environment, world peace, a commitment to human rights, the elimination of corruption and poverty, health issues, population growth, and not only engages youth, but involves them actively in decision-making. In doing so, Woollcombe captures the compelling integrity of the youth representatives who articulated their collective vision at the Millennium Young Peoples' Congress (Hawaii).



ENB Summary of Ad Hoc Open-Ended Intergovernmental Group of Experts on Energy and Sustainable Development
CSD-8 Intersessionals
Linkages CSD page
UN - CSD website with official documents 
ENB's "Introduction to CSD"

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