Summary report, 14 May 2015

The 1st Global Stakeholder Meeting of the 10-Year Framework of Programmes on Sustainable Consumption and Production (10YFP), took place at UN Headquarters in New York, US, on 14 May 2015. The Global Stakeholder Meeting of the 10YFP brought together over 90 participants, from governments, academia, civil society and international organizations, to: illustrate and explore the universal nature and added value of shifting towards sustainable consumption and production (SCP) for achievement of sustainable development; promote the 10YFP as an implementation mechanism of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and post-2015 development agenda, with a focus on programmes, their delivery at regional and national levels, and measurement of capacity built through them; and explore the capacity of the 10YFP and its programmes to support the SDGs and the shift to SCP patterns.

The Stakeholder Meeting, under the aegis of the 1st Global Meeting of the 10YFP, was followed by sessions on Implementing and Inter-linking 10YFP Programmes on May 15 2015.

BRIEF HISTORY OF THE 10YFP

Unsustainable patterns of consumption and production were identified in Agenda 21, adopted at the UN Conference on Environment and Development, in 1992 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, as the major cause of global environmental deterioration. In response, the 2002 Johannesburg Plan of Implementation, adopted during the World Summit on Sustainable Development, which convened in 2002, in Johannesburg, South Africa, calls on stakeholders to “encourage and promote the development of a 10YFP.” It was further elaborated during the multi-stakeholder Marrakesh Process (2003-2012) and as one of the themes for discussion at the 18th and 19th Sessions of the UN Commission on Sustainable Development (CSD 18 and CSD 19). The 10YFP was initially to be adopted at CSD 19 but, in the absence of any conclusions from CSD 19, the 10YFP was integrated into the process leading up to UN Conference on Sustainable Development (UNCSD or Rio+20). The 10YFP was adopted as one of the operational outcomes contained in “The Future We Want” (A/CONF.216/5). The UN Environment Programme (UNEP) was requested to act as the Secretariat and to administer the Trust Fund to implement SCP in developing countries.

REPORT OF THE MEETING

On Thursday, 14 May, Elliott Harris, Director, UNEP New York Headquarters, opened the meeting. President of the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) Martin Sajdik (Austria) stressed the importance of 2015 for sustainable development, saying SCP is more relevant than ever. He noted it is encouraging to see that implementation of the 10YFP is gaining momentum, underscoring the potential to support countries and stakeholders in the shift towards SCP patterns, and highlighting that the 10YFP is a key implementation mechanism for the post-2015 development agenda.

10YFP Chair Ulf Jaeckel (Germany) welcomed participants, naming stakeholder engagement and a bottom up approach as the path to success for the future of the 10YFP. He noted the meeting would showcase “collective impact” as a means to achieve the scale and reach of the 10YFP to address changing SCP patterns.

Harris highlighted the opportune timing to meet, and influence the parallel processes to set the course for sustainable development over the next 15 years, welcoming active engagement in the design of the 10YFP implementation.

Kai Sauer, Permanent Representative to the UN, Finland, noted the importance of scaling up programmes to achieve SCP. He emphasized that SCP is a positive agenda about doing “more, better, with less,” rather than a threat to economic activity, and stressed it is also about fulfilling peoples’ needs in a sustainable manner. He said the meeting should consider the branding of 10YFP in order to attract investors.

Fernando Carrera Castro, Permanent Representative to the UN, Guatemala, said SCP offers a path to sustainable development for Guatemala, integrating environment and economy. He emphasized that governments in the Latin American and Caribbean (LAC) region are committed to implementing SCP, building on regional dynamism to implement both the 10YFP and the post-2015 development agenda.

DELIVERING ON THE 10YFP MANDATE

10YFP Board Co-Chair Edda Fernandez (Mexico) moderated the session, which discussed opportunities for change through continued development of the 10YFP programmes.

Charles Arden-Clarke, Acting Head, 10YFP Secretariat, UNEP, presented objectives of 10YFP, highlighting the social and environmental benefits expected from activities and outlining the six 10YFP programmes. He suggested that the 10YFP could generate new and major sources of funding to support a transformation in the way societies produce and consume.

Noting that traditional, individual, approaches to social problem solving fail to address complex issues, Mark Kramer, co-author of ‘Collective Impact,’ proposed using the paradigm of “collective impact,” in which many actors develop a common agenda to solve specific social problems at scale. He said there are five key conditions for collective impact: common agenda; shared measurement; mutually reinforcing activities; continuous communication; and a backbone organization to enable. He said there are cascading levels of collaboration from global to local, calling for engaging stakeholders across governments, academia, local communities, non-governmental organizations, and the private sector at all levels in order to engage in a deeper type of dialogue to co-create the future.

Delivering Change Through the 10YFP Programmes: The panel included presentations by leads and co-leads of current 10YFP programmes. Ian Fenn, Consumers International, presented on the Consumer Information Programme (CIP), saying the goal of the CIP is to support the provision of quality information on goods and services and the identification and implementation of the effective strategies to engage consumers in sustainable consumption.

Farid Yaker, UNEP, shared activities of the programme on Sustainable Public Procurement (SPP), identifying the focus of SPP implementation as, inter alia: assess, monitor and measure impact; address barriers with innovative solutions; and collaborate with private sector.

Gunilla Elsässer, WWF, outlined the programme on Sustainable Lifestyles and Education (SLE), highlighting SLE priorities, including: developing and replicating sustainable lifestyles through education; building capacity for educators; and mobilizing resources and support to increase stakeholder engagement.

Ismo Tiainen, Ministry of Environment, Finland, addressed the Sustainable Buildings and Construction (SBC) programme, noting the aim of SBC is to reach, by 2030, a common understanding of sustainable building and construction by all stakeholders in the sector.

Nada Roudies, Ministry of Tourism, Morocco, outlined the Sustainable Tourism Programme (STP), noting STP work in four key areas: integrating SCP in tourism related policies and frameworks; collaborating with and among stakeholders; fostering tools to mainstream SCP; and enhancing sustainable tourism investment and financing for SCP.

Moderator Fernandez opened discussions on the role of collective action and its potential impact on 10YFP. Participants raised questions on, inter alia: the difference between collective impact and good governance; how to resolve livelihood and education issues; and the absence of energy in the programme scope.

Many participants welcomed and supported the concept of collective action. Tiainen underscored the importance of taking time to develop a process grounded in capacity building for long-term impacts. Elsässer reiterated the importance of integrating the education and private sectors into the 10YFP and including SCP criteria in all financial flows.

Kramer lauded the ambition of the 10YFP programmes, noting the need for intense engagement by stakeholders at the regional and local levels in order to build trust and create synergies. He noted the need to identify “quick wins” to keep people engaged. One participant highlighted the opportunity to implement programmes in partnership with Indigenous Peoples at the national and local levels. Yaker agreed with the need to create enabling environments for collaboration through building trust and dialogue, highlighting the opportunity to engage players that already are demonstrating SCP.

One participant noted the need for win-win partnerships between the state and the private sector. Another, supported by Tiainen, emphasized the need to further engage business and industry, suggesting appealing to the global leaders early on as champions in SCP implementation.

Several participants spoke of the importance of education, one participant said that programmes should find a way to shift paradigms in educational systems, particularly in Africa, were SCP is not currently a priority at any level. Another participant proposed engaging academia to develop multi-stakeholder partnerships for sustainable tourism.

Several participants commended the productivity of UNEP to date, while raising concerns over the lack of funding for 10YFP. Kramer commented that collective impact is a matter of channeling and leveraging existing resources, rather than solely creating new sources. Yaker added that the challenge lies in human resources and required increased commitment and political will. One participant proposed focusing on building a clear and strong mandate to encourage positive actions and access to resources. Another participant said the 10YFP is a flexible and evolving programme, relieving the pressure to identify every opportunity at this point in time.

Moderator Fernandez concluded by noting the need to continue improving the visibility and participation of all regions and sectors to create innovative opportunities to do more with less. She outlined future success through the pursuit of common agendas, scaling up synergies and communications, and a shift in how resources are used.

SCALING UP AND REPLICATING AT REGIONAL AND NATIONAL LEVELS

Moderator Alf Håvard Vestrheim, Permanent Mission to the UN, Norway, said the 10YFP presents a great opportunity to scale-up and share experiences.

Taking Action in Regions: Arden-Clarke outlined actions in various regions, including development of region-specific strategies and roadmaps, and creation of 10YFP country profiles highlighting SCP activities at the national level to increase awareness of existing SCP strategies and trigger action by other countries.

10YFP Board Co-Chair Edda Fernandez (Mexico) presented on SCP in the LAC region, including the development of the ‘2015 Roadmap, Regional Strategy on SCP for the 10YFP Implementation in LAC (2014-2022),’ saying priorities include: development of national SCP policies, programmes and strategies; action on the six 10YFP programme areas; and inclusion of small and medium enterprises (SMEs). She said the regional commitment to SCP is strong.

Arden-Clarke provided an update on SCP in the Asia Pacific region, noting the SWITCH regional programmes gave a “tremendous head start” in developing the regional roadmap, noting this demonstrates the value of bringing people and projects together.

Responding to Priorities and Implementing SCP on the Ground: Americo Beviglia Zampetti, EU Delegation to the UN, highlighted the SWITCH regional programmes in Asia, Africa and the Mediterranean to support SCP. He said that within the EU SCP actions focus on resource efficiency and a circular economy, stressing that success depends on an enabling framework and adoption on innovative technologies and business models. He noted resource efficiency requires global action, calling for improving dialogue between partner countries and conclusion of the global agreement to promote SCP.

Yong-Joo Kim, Korean Environmental Industry and Technology Institute, presented 10YFP Trust Fund projects on SPP, including: introducing Product Service Systems to implement SPP in South Africa; developing the Uruguayan Public Procurement System; and establishing a comprehensive Green Public Procurement programme in the Philippines. 

Michael Myles, National Environment and Planning Agency, Jamaica, discussed modernizing and transforming the energy efficiency of the Caribbean tourism sector. He described the Resource and Energy Efficiency for Modernizing Caribbean Tourism Economies Project, saying it aims to reduce the dependence on fossil fuel-based energy sources and decrease CO2 emissions by applying SCP principles.

Nada Roudies, Ministry of Tourism, Morocco, addressed the proposal of the International Climate Initiative, which will commence in eight countries in Asia, Africa and Latin America in October 2015, to support implementation of the 10YFP through, inter alia: developing consumer information programmes; identifying and developing 10YFP-related Nationally Appropriate Mitigation Actions; and strengthening technical assistance for Sustainability Information System to foster SCP and mitigate greenhouse gas emissions.

During discussions, one participant raised the question of how to successfully run SCP programmes in areas without supportive national policies in place. Roudis responded by sharing the experience of developing a participatory system, focused on general sustainable tourism, noting that partnerships were helpful in establishing governance tools.

Several participants outlined national support for the 10YFP, including dedication by Japan of US$500,000 for the Trust Fund and US$2,000,000 for bilateral SCP projects, and collaborative efforts between the EU and the Netherlands to combine resources for monitoring activities. 

Moderator Vestrheim concluded by commenting on the potential for using global and regional instruments to create change at the national level.

ACHIEVING THE SDGS THROUGH THE 10YFP

Moderator David Donoghue, Permanent Representative to the UN, Ireland, introduced the session by illustrating the role of SCP as a cross-cutting enabler to achieve many of the proposed SDGs through the implementation of the 10YFP.

SCP Targets in the SDGs: Raquel Breda, Ministry of Environment, Brazil, proposed that achieving the SDG Target 12.1 on the 10YFP will have a transformative and significant impact on all SDGs. She shared examples from Brazil that demonstrate how social, economic and environmental criteria have led to progress in eradicating poverty without undermining human development and environmental conservation.

On sustainable and resource efficient industry in SDG Targets 9.2 and 9.4, Cleo Migiro, National Cleaner Production Center, Tanzania, reflected on the history of involvement of businesses and industry to promote inclusive industrialization. Migiro proposed the addition of another programme to focus on manufacturing schemes and SMEs to provide opportunities to use the 10YFP to address these targets.

On sustainable food production in SDG Target 2.4, Robert Azofeifa, Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock, Costa Rica, said the target will ensure resilient practices are implemented, and also lead to strengthened capacity to adapt to climate change and drought. He explained that the 10YFP can impact government and other actors to achieve the target by sharing experiences locally, regionally and internationally.

Peter Repinski, Stockholm Environment Institute, discussed sustainable lifestyles as reflected in SDG Target 12.8. Noting the poor ecological footprint of Sweden, he identified as cause for hope surveys that suggest that Swedes value good health, access to education and more time with family and friends, rather than many material items. He suggested the need for policy shifts at the national level and called for common indicators.

Tim Scott, UN Development Programme (UNDP), addressed capacity building and partnerships as defined in SDG Targets 17.9 and 17.16, noting the 10YFP is already supporting capacity development and partnerships, and identifying the STP as a good example. He stressed the 10YFP is a means of implementation for all SDG Targets.

Moderator Donoghue opened discussion, asking for reflection on how the 10YFP can effectively support achievement of SDGs, what further innovation is required in the post-2015 development agenda, and how achievements under the 10YFP can be measured.

On measurement, 10YFP Board Co-Chair Fernandez said indicators must be easy to measure and applicable across countries to provide a common language for discussing SCP, stressing this is necessary to ensure inclusion of SCP in national planning and implementation programmes. One participant noted the need to measure how far we currently are from true sustainability. Another participant called for regional-level assessment.

On innovation, one participant noted the need to use local initiatives as a catalyst for action, stressing the need to identify and share innovation. Scott highlighted the UNDP Equator Initiative as an example of looking for and sharing local programmes. Another participant called for capitalizing on adoption of the SDGs to get a broader audience interested in SCP.

A participant called for regional-level focus on implementation, including all initiatives in the Global 10YFP Clearinghouse. Repinksi commented that involving many Ministries in SCP policy development increases implementation buy-in at the national level.

Several participants debated the value of bottom-up grassroots approaches to address lack of top-level political will versus a top-down approach, in part necessitated by lack of local capacity. A number of participants noted the importance of local-level capacity building.

One participant pointed out that many developing countries can avoid some of the mistakes made in the development of locked-in infrastructure in developed countries. He noted the role of national policies and cross-municipality partnerships.

On collective impact, Arden-Clarke underscored the grassroots genesis of collective impact, stressing it is an “extraordinarily powerful tool” to possibly catalyze much of what is being said in the room. One participant stressed that collective impact is exactly what is needed, noting that there are many fantastic and completely “siloed” projects being implemented. She highlighted the 10 Million Better campaign, which created a shared cause around monitoring and scaling up social and environmental benefits from travel for the tourism industry and took a collective impact approach to magnify outcomes.

Yaker explained that collective impact is something UNEP has been trying to do for years, without having any specific name for it. He said it is exciting to have the approach defined and underscored the powerful role of regional cooperation to share innovation and avoid duplication.

INDICATORS FOR SCP AND CAPACITY-BUILDING

Moderator Ivo Havinga, UN Statistics Division (UNSD), introduced discussions, referencing the challenge of converging multi-stakeholder partnerships and policies, indicating the need to have this informed by statistics.

MEASURING PROGRESS TOWARDS THE SDGS, MEASURING CAPACITIES FOR THE SHIFT TOWARDS SCP: Arden-Clarke provided an overview of the UNEP Discussion Paper, ‘Sustainable Consumption and Production Indicators for the Future SDGs.’ He identified the need to reduce the number of indicators in order ensure progress, outlining methodologies to identify targets relevant to SCP, synergies among all indicators and assessment of current data available to apply indicators. He explained the aim is to utilize science-based indicators to promote objectivity, concluding that data is required to be able to effectively measure progress.

Alessandra Alfieri, UNSD, presented the statistical response to support integrated policies through the coordination of data systems into a single information system. She introduced the System of Environment-Economic Accounting (SEEA), which works to integrate various data sets into an integrated accounting framework for monitoring and reporting. She called for implementation of a centralized data system in more countries as a critical step to supporting and measuring success of the proposed SDGs, noting the goal to increase implementation through the development of training modules for national focal points.

Rodrigo Pizarro, Ministry for the Environment, Chile, underscored the necessity for a common framework on indicators, noting numerous demands for environmental indicators both nationally and internationally, which are rapidly proliferating and involve immense costs. He emphasized that any good new system of indicators will fail for these reasons as long as there is not a conceptually integrated system.

In response to questions, Arden-Clarke stressed that lifecycle assessments (LCAs) are fundamental, but add an entirely new level of complexity to the process of data collection. He noted that interoperability of LCA databases is critical. He also noted that the integration process still has far to go and that although data is being collected, it is not yet being used to inform policy-making.

Alfieri said the next step is figuring out how to harmonize originally siloed data and demonstrate the value of this approach. She said the SEEA has not been well communicated to policy makers. Pizarro noted the separation of statisticians and policy makers is problematic and called for developing simple indicators that will affect policy processes. He emphasized that an integrated system addresses the issue of statistical standards, noting it is a broad concept that will take time to evolve.

In conclusion, Moderator Havinga underscored the importance of data literacy.

CLOSING SESSION

Moderator Elliot Harris welcomed a successful meeting.

10YFP Board Chair Jaeckel remarked on the strong political backing for the 10YFP and an increased support for implementation. He highlighted the programmes as the core driver of concrete progress, noting opportunities to work further on statistical issues.

Arden-Clarke celebrated the first truly global stakeholder discussions and recounted the support for the 10YFP programmes. He reviewed discussions on interlinkages of the 10YFP with the proposed SDGs, which revealed new insights and affirmed that opportunity for a “true transformation.”

The session closed at 6:03pm on Thursday, May 14 2015.

UPCOMING MEETINGS

Intergovernmental Negotiations on the Post-2015 Development Agenda – Fifth Session: The fifth session of the intergovernmental negotiations on the post-2015 development agenda will focus on follow-up and review. dates: 18-22 May 2015  location: UN Headquarters, New York  contact: UN Division for Sustainable Development  phone: +1-212-963-8102  fax: +1-212-963-4260  email: dsd@un.orgwww: http://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/post2015

Third drafting session of the outcome document of the Third International Conference on Financing for Development (FfD3): The third drafting session of the outcome document for FfD3 will take place in June. dates: 15-19 June 2015  location: UN Headquarters, New York  contact: UN Financing for Development Office  phone: +1-212-963-4598  email: ffdoffice@un.orgwww: http://www.un.org/ffd3

Intergovernmental Negotiations on the Post-2015 Development Agenda – Sixth Session: The sixth session of the intergovernmental negotiations on the post-2015 development agenda is expected to focus on negotiating the outcome document for the September 2015 Summit to adopt the post-2015 development agenda. dates: 22-25 June 2015  location: UN Headquarters, New York  contact: UN Division for Sustainable Development  phone: +1-212-963-8102  fax: +1-212-963-4260  email: dsd@un.org www: http://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/post2015

Third Meeting of the High-Level Political Forum (HLPF 3): HLFP 3, which will take place under the auspices of ECOSOC, will focus on the theme, “Strengthening integration, implementation and review – the HLPF after 2015.” The HLPF is mandated to meet every year under the auspices of ECOSOC and every four years at the level of Heads of State and Government under the auspices of the UN General Assembly. dates: 26 June - 8 July 2015  location: UN Headquarters, New York  contact: UN Division for Sustainable Development  fax: +1-212-963-4260  email: dsd@un.org www: http://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/index.php?menu=1838

FfD3: FfD3 will be held at the highest possible political level, including Heads of State or Government, relevant ministers―ministers for finance, foreign affairs and development cooperation―and other special representatives. The conference will result both in an intergovernmentally negotiated and agreed outcome and summaries of the plenary meetings and other deliberations of the Conference, to be included in the report of the Conference. dates: 13-16 July 2015  location: Addis Ababa, Ethiopia  contact: UNFfD Office  phone: +1-212-963-4598  email: ffdoffice@un.org www: http://www.un.org/ffd3

Intergovernmental Negotiations on the Post-2015 Development Agenda – Seventh and Eighth Sessions: The seventh and eighth sessions of the intergovernmental negotiations on the post-2015 development agenda will focus on negotiating the outcome document for the September 2015 Summit to adopt the post-2015 development agenda. dates: 20-31 July 2015  location: UN Headquarters, New York  contact: UN Division for Sustainable Development  phone: +1-212-963-8102  fax: +1-212-963-4260  email: dsd@un.org www: http://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/post2015

UN Summit to Adopt the Post-2015 Development Agenda: The Summit is expected to adopt the post-2015 development agenda, including: a declaration; a set of SDG targets, and indicators; their means of implementation and a new Global Partnership for Development; and a framework for follow-up and review of implementation. dates: 25-27 September 2015  location: UN Headquarters, New York  contact: UN Division for Sustainable Development  fax: +1-212-963-4260  email: dsd@un.org www: http://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/post2015/summit

For additional meetings, see http://sd.iisd.org/