/linkages/journal/ Volume 7 Number 2 1 February 2002 Published by the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) The PDF (formatted and printable with wall calendar) version is available at http://enb.iisd.org/journal/link0702e.pdf The following is the ASCII version of Vol. 7 No. 2 of /linkages/journal/ - a monthly snapshot of the Linkages WWW site, available at http://enb.iisd.org/. /linkages/journal/ may not be reproduced, reprinted or posted to any system or service without specific permission from the International Institute for Sustainable Development info@iisd.ca. This limitation includes distribution via Usenet News, bulletin board systems, mailing lists, print media and broadcast. For more information, send a message to malena@iisd.org Linkages Journal offers the latest news, information and analysis from international environment and development negotiations. The February 2002 issue of Linkages Journal includes: * media reports, including news on the transformation of the UN Centre for Human Settlements into a UN Programme, "UN-Habitat"; * briefings on key meetings held in January 2002, including the Financing for Development fourth PrepCom, the penultimate meeting of the Open-ended In­tergovernmental Group of Ministers or their Representatives on In­ternational Environmental Governance, and the Technical and Legal Working Groups of the Basel Convention; * details of new journal articles, books and online reports; * a comprehensive list of upcoming meetings. EDITOR'S NOTE A message from Linkages Journal's Editor PREPCOMS PICK UP THE PACE? Sustainable Development Governance… and financing? After a quiet start to the New Year, international negotiations relating to sustainable development picked up considerable momentum toward the end of January. The World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD) preparatory process returned to UN Headquarters in New York mid-January with the convening of an informal brainstorming session. The meeting allowed delegates to express their views on the outcomes of the regional preparatory meetings held during the second half of 2001, and to discuss the way forward heading into the WSSD. During the talks, the question of how much emphasis should be placed on sustainable development governance in the lead-up to the WSSD emerged as potentially divisive, with some delegates preferring to focus solely on the international environmental governance (IEG) process and the role of the CSD at the Summit. The subsequent one-day IEG meeting, also held in New York prior to WSSD PrepCom II, reinforced that a concrete conclusion to this complex process is still some distance away. Some delegations seemed anxious about the prospects for success, stressing that the Chair's report summarizing views expressed by delegates at the meetings would remain open until it was negotiated in full. At the same time, negotiations at the fourth session of the PrepCom for the International Conference on Financing for Development (FfD) were also taking place in New York. In fact, a number of delegates had their work cut out trying to cover both sets of meetings. The mood at the meeting was not overly optimistic, with negotiations dragging on until Sunday, two days after their expected conclusion. With the FfD taking place in less than two months, some delegates are now openly questioning whether the process can be a success. WSSD PrepCom II in full swing As this issue of Linkages Journal went to press, the WSSD's PrepCom II was reaching the end of its first week. To keep up with the latest news from this two-week meeting, go to http://enb.iisd.org/2002/pc2/ for daily updates in the Earth Negotiations Bulletin. Other events on the agenda include the conclusion of the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting, which is being held outside of Davos, Switzerland, for the first time. February will also see the Delhi Sustainable Development Summit, the Seventh Special Session of the UNEP Governing Council/Global Ministerial Environment Forum, and the meeting of the Ad Hoc Intersessional Working Group on Article 8(j) of the Convention on Biodiversity (for Earth Negotiations Bulletin meeting coverage starting on 4 February visit: http://enb.iisd.org/biodiv/wg8j-2/). The second World Social Forum will finish in early February, while the 40th Session of the UN Commission for Social Development is scheduled for mid-February in New York, and will focus on integration of social and economic policy. Note new UNFF meeting venue! At the end of January, delegates were alerted that the second session of the UN Forum on Forests, scheduled for early March, will be moved from Costa Rica to UN Headquarters in New York. Malena Sell Editor, Linkages Journal RECENT MEETINGS Information on recent conferences, workshops and symposia in the field of environment and development negotiations SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT LAUNCH OF THE INTERNATIONAL YEAR OF ECOTOURISM: This event took place on 28 January 2002 at UN Headquarters in New York. Organized by the World Tourism Organization (WTO/OMT) and UNEP, the event highlighted the aims and activities of the Year, which will seek to provide an opportunity for local and national stakeholders to review the social and environmental benefits that the ecotourism industry can bring. A series of global and local events, publications and discussion platforms will be organized to allow the review of the ecotourism industry's effect on biodiversity, its potential contribution to sustainable development, its social, economic and environmental impacts, and the degree to which regulatory mechanisms and voluntary programmes are effective in monitoring and controlling those impacts. United Nations Deputy Secretary-General Louise Frechette launched the Year. During the event, WTO/OMT Secretary-General Francesco Frangialli stressed that ecotourism is crucial to developing a balanced, sustainable and responsible tourism sector. UNEP's Executive Director Klaus Töpfer, who also spoke, argued that "(if) handled properly, ecotourism can be a valuable tool for financing the protection of ecologically sensitive areas and the socio-economic development of populations living in or close to them." For more information visit: http://www.uneptie.org/pc/tourism/ecotourism/launchpressrelease.htm, http://www.uneptie.org/pc/tourism/ecotourism/, http://www.world-tourism.org/frameset/frame_sustainable.html For information on upcoming meetings relating to the Year of Ecotourism, see the upcoming meetings section. FINANCING FOR DEVELOPMENT FOURTH PREPCOM: The Fourth Substantive Session of the Preparatory Committee (PrepCom) for the International Conference on Financing for Development (FfD) was held in New York from 14-27 January 2002 at the UN Headquarters in New York. The session sought to finalize a text aimed at mobilizing the resources needed to boost the economic growth of developing countries and fulfill internationally agreed social and humanitarian goals, to be transmitted to the FfD conference to be held in Monterrey, Mexico from 18-22 March 2002. Negotiations on the text, known as the "Monterrey Consensus," and drawn up by the Conference's Facilitator, Mauricio Escanero (Mexico), continued throughout the two weeks scheduled for the PrepCom. Certain paragraphs, including on international trade, official development assistance (ODA), and emergency financing, proved to be particularly divisive, and the draft negotiated text for the "Monterrey Consensus" document was only agreed during informal consultations that extended through to Sunday, 27 January – two days after the meeting's scheduled end. The document contains sections on: confronting the challenges of financing for development - a global response; mobilizing domestic financial resources for development; mobilizing international resources for development - foreign direct investment (FDI) and other private flows; using international trade as an engine for development; increasing international financial and technical cooperation for development; dealing with external debt; addressing systemic issues - enhancing the coherence and consistency of the international monetary, financial, and trading systems in support of development; and staying engaged in financing for development. An additional PrepCom meeting will be held shortly (the exact date had yet to be announced at the time of going to press). This additional meeting is expected to officially adopt the document. For more information visit: http://www.un.org/News/Press/docs/2002/DEV2358.doc.htm, http://www.un.org/News/Press/docs/2002/DEV2367.doc.htm, http://www.un.org/esa/ffd/index.html MEETING OF THE OPEN-ENDED INTERGOVERNMENTAL GROUP OF MINISTERS OR THEIR REPRESENTATIVES ON INTERNATIONAL ENVIRONMENTAL GOVERNANCE: The penultimate meeting of the Open-ended Intergovernmental Group of Ministers or their Representatives on International Environmental Governance (IGM) was convened in New York at UN Headquarters on Friday, 25 January 2002. Over one hundred delegates from 67 countries participated, including five environment ministers. Approximately 75% of the participants came from their New York missions to the UN. Participants were informed that a depleted International Environmental Governance (IEG) Trust Fund had imposed a limit on the number of ministers and Permanent Representatives to UNEP who were able to attend. A decision to convene the one-day meeting in New York was taken at a joint meeting of the Bureau of the UNEP Governing Council, the Committee of the Permanent Representatives to UNEP and the Commission on Sustainable Development (CSD) on 23 May 2001. In the words of UNEP Governing Council President David Anderson, who is also Canada's Environment Minister, the meeting was convened so that the IEG process could continue to benefit from the views of New York-based delegations and to ensure a close linkage with the preparatory process for the World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD). Many of the participants were also preparing to take part in the second session of the Preparatory Committee for the WSSD, scheduled to take place at UN Headquarters from 28 January - 8 February. A number of delegations, including Australia and the EU, indicated that they had been led to understand that the New York meeting had been convened for informational purposes. During the one-day meeting, participants took part in morning and afternoon plenary discussions, offering general and then specific responses to President Anderson's revised "building blocks" paper, now entitled the Draft Report of the President of the UNEP Governing Council for Consideration by the Open-ended Intergovernmental Group of Ministers or their Representatives on IEG (UNEP/IGM/SS/2). Keen to underline and protect the inclusive and participatory nature of the IEG process, with its inputs from experts, civil society, the UN system as well as State representatives, President Anderson announced that he had purposely avoided the use of bracketed wording in his new document, which incorporates new elements agreed at IGM-4 in Montreal late last year. He explained that the objective of the IEG process was to achieve a consensus agreement rather than engage in traditional formal negotiation. He suggested that this approach would help participants to collectively refine recommendations without losing sight of their overall objective. Participants used the plenary sessions to restate and elaborate their views on the IEG process and on the President's draft recommendations on: the role and structure of the Global Ministerial Environment Forum (GMEF); the strengthening of UNEP's role, authority, and financial situation; improved coordination and coherence of multilateral environmental agreements (MEAs); capacity building, technology transfer, and country-level coordination for the environment pillar of sustainable development; enhanced coordination across the UN system, including the role of the Environmental Management Group (EMG); and the future perspective. Members of the G-77/China and the US continued to express concern over the President's insistence that what the US described as a "true negotiation" be avoided in the lead up to the final IGM meeting on 12 February in Cartagena, Colombia. At this time, President Anderson will present a detailed report that will seek to reflect all the views presented during the IEG process. Some participants cautioned that the President's recommendations would remain open until they could negotiate. The Earth Negotiations Bulletin report outlining these discussions in detail can be found at: http://enb.iisd.org/unepgc/iegnyc/ FIRST MEETING OF THE GLOBAL COMPACT ADVISORY COUNCIL: The first meeting of the Global Compact Advisory Council - the first UN advisory body to be composed of both public and private sector leaders - took place on 8 January 2002 at UN Headquarters in New York. The purpose of the meeting was to strengthen UN Secretary- General Kofi Annan's Global Compact initiative, which promotes cooperative solutions to the challenges of globalization, and includes nine principles on human rights, labor rights, and the environment. The meeting was attended by senior business executives, international labor leaders, and heads of civil society organizations from different parts of the world. Participants focused on questions of Global Compact governance and strategy, including key long-term issues geared towards protecting the integrity of and strengthening the initiative. In addition, Advisory Council members discussed further developing the Compact's primary areas of activity and its reach and effectiveness in their respective country, region and segment of society. For more information visit: http://www.un.org/News/Press/docs/2002/eco22.doc.htm, http://www.un.org/News/Press/docs/2002/note5705.doc.htm PREPARATIONS FOR THE JOHANNESBURG SUMMIT 2002 INFORMAL BRAINSTORMING SESSION PRECEDING THE SECOND SESSION OF THE PREPARATORY COMMITTEE FOR THE WORLD SUMMIT ON SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT: An informal brainstorming session preceding the second session of the Preparatory Committee (PrepCom II) for the World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD) took place from 16- 17 January 2002, at UN Headquarters in New York. Over 100 participants attended the session, including representatives of governments, intergovernmental organizations, NGOs and other major groups. During the brainstorming session, participants considered two clusters of issues. The first cluster involved a review of the implementation of Agenda 21 and other Rio outcomes, including accomplishments, shortfalls/constraints and lessons learned, as well as key themes and priorities emerging from the regional preparatory meetings. The second cluster related to strengthening implementation, including promoting an integrated and strategically focused approach, strengthening international institutional arrangements for sustainable development, and means of implementation. This cluster also addressed practical steps/specific time-bound implementation measures, and partnerships for achieving sustainable development. In addition, participants were briefed on and discussed preparations for PrepCom II and on a possible framework for strengthening linkages between expected outcomes of the WSSD. The results from this session will inform but not prejudge PrepCom II, which is taking place from 28 January to 8 February 2002, in New York. The WSSD will take place in Johannesburg, South Africa, from 26 August to 4 September 2002. The Earth Negotiations Bulletin report outlining these discussions in detail can be found at: http://enb.iisd.org/2002/brainstorm/ ALLIANCE OF SMALL ISLAND STATES (AOSIS) INTER-REGIONAL PREPARATORY MEETING FOR THE WSSD: The Alliance of Small Island States Inter- Regional Preparatory Meeting for the World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD) convened from 7-11 January 2002 in Singapore. Hosted by the Government of Singapore, the meeting was organized by the office of the AOSIS Chair, and coordinated and assisted by the Small Island Developing States (SIDS) Unit of the Division for Sustainable Development at the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs. Approximately 120 participants from governments, UN agencies and intergovernmental organizations were in attendance. Participants heard presentations on: the outcomes of sub-regional and regional WSSD preparations from several SIDS regions; the UN Secretary-General's Report to the second session of the Preparatory Committee; the G-77/China's WSSD preparations; and an update on the preparatory process and Bureau consultations. Participants also heard presentations and engaged in discussions on capacity building and the role of civil society for sustainable development, and on issues surrounding climate change, adaptation and renewable energy, land degradation, oceans, SIDS' vulnerability, and the Financing for Development process. The meeting produced the Singapore Declaration, which contains detailed proposals for future steps and calls for future consideration and implementation of the Barbados Programme of Action on Sustainable Development of SIDS by the UN. The Declaration will be formally submitted to the WSSD preparatory process. More information on this meeting is available online at: http://www.sidsnet.org/workshop/singapore_meeting.html CHEMICAL MANAGEMENT BASEL CONVENTION WORKING GROUP MEETINGS: The Technical and Legal Working Groups of the Basel Convention on the Control of the Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and Their Disposal met from 14-18 January 2002 in Geneva, Switzerland. Experts from approximately 100 governments were in attendance. The 19th session of the Technical Working Group (TWG) convened from 14-15 January, while the first joint meeting of the Technical and Legal Working Groups took place from 16-17 January. These meetings were followed on 18 January by the fourth session of the Legal Working Group (LWG). During the 19th session of the TWG, technical guidelines for the identification and environmentally sound management of plastic wastes and for their disposal were adopted after lengthy discussions. A new version of the draft technical guidelines on recycling/reclamation of metal and metal compounds was introduced, while the draft technical guidelines for the environmentally sound management of waste lead-acid batteries were finalized and provisionally adopted. New draft technical guidelines for the environmentally sound management of the full and partial dismantling of ships were presented and will be ready for adoption by the next TWG meeting in May 2002. During the first joint meeting of the TWG and LWG, delegates considered the progress report on the implementation of the Basel Declaration and the development of a ten-year strategic plan for the Basel Convention, agreeing to establish an intersessional working group on the draft strategic plan. Delegates also discussed the financial limits of liability under the Protocol on Liability and Compensation. Small separate working groups were formed to draft guidance elements for bilateral, multilateral or regional agreements, and to promote the work on prevention and monitoring of illegal traffic in hazardous wastes. The fourth session of the LWG debated the issue of establishing a mechanism for monitoring the implementation of and compliance with the obligations set out by the Basel Convention. More information on these meetings is available online at: http://www.basel.int MEDIA REPORTS The latest news from the field of international environment and development negotiations, with links to relevant media coverage and press releases SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT ASEAN, UNEP STRENGTHEN LINKS The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) have agreed to strengthen links with the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MOU). The MOU, which was signed late January, fosters collaboration on issues such as transboundary haze, environmental education, state of environment assessment and reporting, and the development of environmental legislation. The MOU notes that ASEAN has established a committee of Senior Officials on the Environment, with Working Groups on nature conservation and biodiversity, coastal and marine environment, and multilateral environmental agreements, and a haze technical task force. Under each working group, the MOU highlights areas for greater collaboration, addressing issues such as risk assessment and management of genetically modified organisms, illegal logging, eco-tourism, public participation, river water quality, assessment of environmentally-sound technologies, and cleaner production for small- and medium-sized enterprises. Links to further information UNEP press release, 22 January 2002 http://www.roap.unep.org/html/nr/nr02-03.htm GLOBAL INCOME GAP GROWS World income inequality is on the rise, with a growing disparity between rich and poor households, according to a new study for the World Bank. According to the study, which was published in the Economic Journal, the combined income of the richest 1% is now more than that of the bottom 60%. Although world income per capita had increased by 5.7% over the five years of the study, all gains were shown to go to the top 20%, whose income increased by 12%, while the income of the bottom 5% decreased by 25%. Eastern Europe, the former Soviet Union, and sub-Saharan Africa were regions in which the poor became considerably poorer. The study, which draws on a series of surveys covering 84% of the world's population and 93% of world income, is the first to compare household income across countries. Links to further information BBC News Online, 17 January 2002 http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/business/newsid_1763000/1763410.stm Complete text of the World Income Distribution report, 2002 http://econ.worldbank.org/files/978_wps2244.pdf MILLENNIUM ASSESSMENT OPENS OFFICE IN MALAYSIA The Millennium Ecosystem Assessment has officially opened its Secretariat office in Penang, Malaysia. Based in the World Fish Center (ICLARM), the Millennium Assessment (MA) Secretariat is headed by Executive Director Walter Reid, who will be responsible for coordinating the work of 1500 scientists and research institutions worldwide. Through "multi-scale assessments" taken at the global, sub-global and national levels, the MA aims to improve the management of the world's ecosystems by providing decision- makers and the public with peer-reviewed, policy-relevant scientific information on the state of ecosystems, the consequences of change and options for response. The four-year assessment process, which began in April 2001, is recognized by governments as a mechanism to meet part of the assessment needs of the UN Convention on Biological Diversity, the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands, and the UN Convention to Combat Desertification. Links to further information Environmental News Network, 15 January 2002 http://www.enn.com/direct/display-release.asp?id=6001 Millennium Ecosystem Assessment website http://www.millenniumassessment.org/en/index.htm G-77/CHINA CHANGES CHAIR The G-77/China Chairmanship was officially handed over by Iran to Venezuela on 11 January 2002. The chairmanship of the Group of 77 rotates annually between the three continents of Africa, Asia, and Latin America and the Caribbean. Links to further information G-77 press release, 10 January 2002 http://www.g77.org/news/pr011002.htm PREPARATIONS FOR THE JOHANNESBURG SUMMIT 2002 EQUATOR INITIATIVE LAUNCHED IN LEAD-UP TO WSSD A new initiative has been launched to promote practices that help eradicate poverty through the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity in the Equatorial belt. The "Equator Initiative," which is headed by UNDP in partnership with the Government of Canada, the International Development Research Centre (IDRC), and the United Nations Foundation, will focus on capacity building, exchange grants and practical case studies to achieve its aims. It will also involve the presentation of "Equator Initiative Awards" at the WSSD. These awards will recognize five community-based sustainable development success stories that involve partnerships between communities and non-governmental and governmental entities. Nominations can be made until 15 May 2002. The Equator Initiative will continue beyond the WSSD. Drawing on the lessons and approaches identified through the awards process, a series of policy papers, case studies and capacity-building exchanges will be undertaken, focusing on the nexus between poverty eradication and the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity. Additional partner organizations to the Equator Initiative are welcomed. Links to further information Equator Initiative website http://www.equatorinitiative.org BIODIVERSITY BIODIVERSITY "CRISIS" FEARED FOR NORTH AMERICA A "widespread crisis" in biodiversity is taking place in North America, according to a report released by the North American Commission for Environmental Cooperation (CEC). Entitled The North American Mosaic: A State of the Environment Report, the report presents the first analysis of the overall state of the North American environment. One of the trends documented is the decline in habitat due to pressure from the expansion of transportation, settlement, energy and other human material needs. Half of North America's most biodiverse eco-regions are now severely degraded and the region has at least 235 threatened species of mammals, birds, reptiles and amphibians, including the Monarch butterfly and codfish. Commenting on the report, the CEC's Executive Director Janine Ferretti said it "shows that over the past few decades, the loss and alteration of habitat has become the main threat to biodiversity." Multiple factors threatening natural areas include the high visitor numbers, insufficient funds for natural area management, and adjacent developments that turn protected areas into "threatened islands." In related news, a study published in the journal Nature suggests that current loss of biodiversity could lead to the planet being biologically depleted for millions of years. According to James Kirchner of the University of California at Berkeley, the consequences could extend "not only beyond the lives of our children's children, but beyond the likely lifespan of the entire human species." Kirchner has analyzed fossil records for long-term trends in rates of extinctions and diversification of species, and found that biodiversity recovers slowly after an event of extinction, implying that there are biological mechanisms that limit diversification of new organisms. Kirchner suggests that this may be due to the fact that extinction eliminates not merely species or groups of species, but removes ecological niches. It takes a long time for species to develop specialized roles, or evolutionary niches, within an ecosystem. The ecosystem must first increase in complexity so there are niches for new organisms to fill, which is likely to be a very complicated process. Links to further information NACEC press statement 7 January 2002 http://www.cec.org/news/details/index.cfm?varlan=english&ID=2441 The State of Environment report onlinehttp://www.cec.org/soe Environment News Service, 3 January 2002 http://ens-news.com/ens/jan2002/2002L-01-03-07.html CLIMATE AND ATMOSPHERE TRANSPORT MINISTERS ADOPT DECLARATION ON ENVIRONMENT Transport ministers from 20 countries have adopted a declaration pledging to cooperate in tackling environmental problems caused by transportation. The declaration was adopted at the conclusion of a ministerial conference on transport held in Tokyo, which was attended by ministers from 14 European countries, Australia, Canada, Japan, Singapore, South Korea and the United States. The declaration recognized the contribution of the transport sector to air and marine pollution and climate change, and stated the need for implementation of applicable international standards. Ministers also "proclaimed (their) intention to take the initiative to work together to tackle the environmental problems arising in the transport sector in a more energetic and cooperative way." Links to further information Ministers' declaration on transport, environment, 16 January 2002 http://home.kyodo.co.jp/all/display.jsp?an=20020116084 REINSURER LINKS WEATHER EXTREMES WITH WARMING CLIMATE Significant financial losses from natural hazards in 2001 were caused by weather extremes, according to Munich Reinsurance, the world's largest reinsurer. Natural disasters caused the deaths of 25,000 people in 2001, and economic losses of USD 36 billion, with windstorms and floods taking the greatest economic toll. Heatwaves, droughts and forest fires also caused extensive damage in many regions. Munich Reinsurance stressed the connection between climate change and increasing weather-related catastrophes, noting that 2001 was the second-warmest year on record. The company expressed support for the ratification of the Kyoto Protocol. The reinsurer continues to expect significant increases in insured losses from natural catastrophes. Links to further information Munich Reinsurance press release, 28 December 2001 http://www.munichre.com/index.html HABITAT UN RAISES STATUS OF HABITAT WORK The UN Centre for Human Settlements has been elevated into a full UN Programme, and will now be known as the UN Settlements Programme or "UN-Habitat." The move, which was agreed late December by delegates attending the fifty-sixth session of the UN General Assembly, was in response to calls to strengthen the habitat mandate and status made during the Special Session on Human Settlements - "Istanbul + 5" - held in June 2001. Commenting on the change, Anna Tibaijuka, Executive Director of the new UN-Habitat, said "the year 2002 begins with a new Habitat for a new Millennium," and emphasized that "improving the state of human settlements, housing and urban infrastructure is critical if we are to help over one billion poor people who are deprived of the basic fundamental attributes of human dignity - a decent home and an acceptable living environment." The capabilities of the new UN-Habitat will be enhanced, as will cooperation with other UN agencies, and the existing operational centre in Nairobi will be maintained. Links to further information UN-Habitat website http://www.unhabitat.org/default.asp COMINGS AND GOINGS Information on key appointments, departures and vacancies at United Nations agencies, international organizations, government departments and non-governmental organizations active in the field of international environment and development negotiations APPOINTMENTS NEW UNFCCC EXECUTIVE SECRETARY APPOINTED Joke Waller-Hunter of the Netherlands has been appointed as the new Executive Secretary of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). Waller-Hunter replaces outgoing Executive Secretary Michael Zammit Cutajar (Malta), who retired at the end of January. Waller-Hunter was the Director of the Division for Sustainable Development within the Department of Economic and Social Affairs of the UN Secretariat before taking up her present post as the Environment Director at OECD in Paris. For more information visit: http://www.unfccc.int/wnew/index.html 2002 ECOSOC PRESIDENT ELECTED Ambassador Ivan Šimonovic, Permanent Representative of Croatia, has been elected President of the 2002 session of the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC). He served as Vice-President of ECOSOC from January 2001 until his recent election as President. For more information visit: http://www.un.org/News/Press/docs/2002/ecosoc5995.doc.htm VACANCIES DAW SEEKS PRINCIPAL OFFICER The Division for the Advancement of Women (DAW) is hiring a Principal Officer. This is a D-1 position based in New York. The deadline for application is 7 February 2002. More information is available online at: http://www.un.org/Depts/OHRM/eesa2217.htm TRAFFIC SEEKS DIRECTOR FOR SOUTHEAST ASIA REGION TRAFFIC, the wildlife trade monitoring network, is seeking a Director for its Southeast Asia regional office. The position is based in Petaling Jaya, Malaysia, and applications are due by 8 February 2002. More information is available online at: http://www.traffic.org/25/tseaadjan02.html IIED SEEKS DIRECTOR FOR DRYLANDS PROGRAMME The International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED) is looking to hire a Director to head IIED's Drylands Programme. The position is based in Edinburgh, UK and the closing date for applications is 11 February 2002. More information is available online at: http://www.iied.org/people_jobs/jobs/dry.html PRINCIPAL POLITICAL AFFAIRS OFFICER POSITION The Department of Political Affairs seeks a Principal Officer to advise the Under-Secretary–General. This D-1 position is based in New York and the deadline for application is 14 February 2002. More information is available online at: http://www.un.org/Depts/OHRM/edpa2245.htm UNFCCC SEEKS DEPUTY COORDINATOR The UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) is hiring a Deputy Coordinator for its Methods, Inventories and Science Programme. This D-1 position is based in Bonn, Germany and the deadline for application is 22 February 2002. More information is available online at: http://unfccc.int/secret/opp.html POSITIONS AVAILABLE AT FAO The UN Food and Agriculture Organization has a variety of professional positions available, mostly designated as P-3, P-4 and P-5 level UN positions. Many of these positions are based in Rome. More information is available online at: http://www.fao.org/VA/Employ.htm READINGS New and recent book titles, articles and other literature on environment and development JOURNALS /Sustainable Development "Energy for the new millennium." Ambio 30 (6, 2001), pp. 330-337. This article by Jose Goldemberg, Thomas Johansson, Amulya Reddy and Robert H. Williams outlines the evolution of thinking about energy and discusses technological options in the energy field that could help meet sustainable development goals. The authors stress the need to develop and employ innovative technological solutions. The authors further highlight the role foreign direct investment might play in bringing advanced technologies to developing countries and discuss both short- and long-term strategies for rural energy. Finally, they consider policy issues for evolving the energy system so that it will be consistent with and supportive of sustainable development. "Digitally empowered development." Cooperation South (1, 2001), pp. 5-15. In this article, Allen Hammond argues that a different development model is needed to make credit, communications, information, and energy sources directly available to communities in poor regions. He describes such a model, in which businesses would provide goods and services tailored to what poor communities require in order to improve their quality of life and productivity. Communities could take charge of their own development, aided by shared communications technologies that open up new ideas, opportunities and horizons. "Accelerating sustainability: from agenda to action." Local Environment 6 (4, 2001), pp. 483-489. In this article, Sean Southey argues that the future success and credibility of the international movement for sustainable development depends on the articulation and endorsement of a set of locally-focused strategies that can accelerate sustainability. The author stresses that the upcoming WSSD offers an excellent opportunity for local governments to share their successes and expertise with the international community in order to identify these strategies and ensure international support. /Biodiversity "Terrestrial ecoregions of the world: a new map of life on Earth." BioScience 51 (11, 2001), pp. 933-938. This article by David Olson addresses the disparity in resolution between maps currently available for global conservation planning and the reality of the Earth's intricate patterns of life. The authors present a detailed map they have developed of the world's terrestrial eco-regions, which they believe is better suited to identify areas of outstanding biodiversity and representative communities. /Climate Change "Climate change in China." Ambio 30 (6, 2001), pp. 381-383. In this article, Dajun Shen and Olli Varis discuss China's climate, noting that while the observed data from the latter half of the 20th century shows no change when averaged over the whole territory of China, conspicuous shifts and changes can be detected from the data when the averages are broken down to the regional and sub-regional levels. "Saving tropical forests as a global warming countermeasure: an issue that divides the environmental movement." Ecological Economics 39 (2, 2001), pp. 167-184. This article by Philip Fearnside outlines the different positions taken by negotiators and others involved in the climate change process on the issue of saving tropical forests as a means of mitigating climate change. The author argues that more carbon can be maintained in the forests than the amount of carbon credit granted. He suggests that proposals for tonne-year accounting and for temporary credits would deal with issues such as carbon permanence, thus making climatic benefits of avoided deforestation projects real, while also maintaining biodiversity and other relevant goals. He notes that the importance of tropical deforestation in global greenhouse gas emissions means that agreement will eventually have to be reached on how to account for the benefits of avoided deforestation and incorporate them into mitigation activities. /Forests "Missing the forest for the profits: the role of multinational corporations in the international forest regime." Journal of Environment & Development 10 (4, 2001), pp. 345-364. This article by Robin Sears, Liliana Davalos and Goncalo Ferraz identifies and discusses three types of intervention in the existing forest regime: avoidance, enforcement-driven compliance, and performance- driven compliance. The authors argue that the regime has not achieved performance-driven compliance from multinational corporations because the regime itself is weak and has little support from states internationally and domestically. The authors suggest that multinational corporations have been so effective at avoiding or conditioning compliance that there are simply no incentives for fully complying with the regime. /Trade and Environment "Contradictions between WTO and sustainable development? The case of environmental dumping." Sustainable Development 9 (4, 2001), pp. 197-203. This article by Solveig Lothe discusses how the WTO agreement deals with the environmental and competitiveness concerns linked to trade and environmental policies. The author notes that as the use of traditional export subsidies and other protectionist trade policies are now strongly restricted in the WTO, many countries will try to find other ways to increase competitiveness. One way of doing this is to use lax environmental taxation or regulation as indirect subsidies, often referred to as "environmental dumping." She notes that this could harm the environment, thus reducing the overall welfare gain from trade liberalization. She examines the WTO rules in order to analyze the feasibility of the uses of environmental countervailing tariffs in the current and future framework of WTO. She also examines the incentives and welfare consequences under different market scenarios. NEW PUBLICATIONS /Sustainable Development Strategic Intentions: Managing Knowledge Networks for Sustainable Development (IISD 2001). This book by Heather Creech and Terri Willard focuses on the International Institute for Sustainable Development's experiences in establishing and managing knowledge networks. It contains chapters on key messages, operating principles, interaction with decision-makers, management and governance of knowledge networks, "helping knowledge networks work" and "measuring while you manage." Containing observations, insights and lessons learned, the book seeks to demonstrate the value of the "network advantage" in the pursuit of sustainable development. To access the book in PDF format visit: http://www.iisd.org/pdf/2001/networks_strategic_intentions.pdf /The Johannesburg Summit 2002 State of the World 2002 (Worldwatch Institute). The 19th annual edition of the Worldwatch Institute's review of the health of the planet and its people is dedicated to matters that will be considered at the WSSD. The book notes that, ten years after the Rio Earth Summit, the divide between rich and poor is widening in many countries, undermining social and economic stability. It also finds that pressures on the world's natural systems - from global warming to the depletion and degradation of resources such as fisheries and fresh water - have further destabilized societies. Based on these findings, State of the World 2002 recommends "a global war on poverty and environmental degradation that is as aggressive and well funded as the war on terrorism." The book contains eight chapters that include priorities for the WSSD. The publication also features a foreword by UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan, who highlights the importance of using the WSSD to accelerate a transition to sustainable development. For more information visit: http://www.worldwatch.org/pubs/sow/2000 /Local Agenda 21 Sustainable Communities in Europe (Earthscan 2002). Edited by William Lafferty, this book presents research on participation and involvement of local communities in preparing, implementing and monitoring Local Agenda 21 (LA21) activities, as set out at the 1992 Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro. In this book, these strategic programmes, plans or policies for achieving sustainable development locally are assessed in 11 European countries. The book contains overviews of implementation in each country, which are accompanied by comparative analyses of positive and negative changes to date. The authors provide examples of best practice case studies and highlight crucial barriers to achieving sustainability. They also offer suggestions for the future, including for the preparations for the forthcoming WSSD. For more information visit: http://www.earthscan.co.uk/asp/bookdetails.asp?key=3522 /Climate Change Stormy Weather: 101 Solutions to Global Climate Change (New Society Publishers 2001). This book by Guy Dauncey with Patrick Mazza describes the basics of climate change, showcases the best solutions from around the world, and seeks to provide a variety of practical solutions for every sector and level of society, ranging from individual citizens to the private sector, civil society, local, regional and national governments, and also at the global level. The book also includes listings of web-based resources and other material. For more information visit: http://www.earthfuture.com /Ecosystems and Human Health Ecosystem Change and Public Health: A Global Perspective (Johns Hopkins University Press 2001). This textbook, edited by Joan Aron and Jonathan Patz, seeks to raise awareness of the effects on human health brought about by global ecosystem change and to expand the scope of the traditional curriculum in environmental health to include issues of relevance at a global scale. The book focuses on global climate change, stratospheric ozone depletion, water resources management, and links between ecological factors and infectious diseases. For more information visit: http://www.jhupbooks.com/aron WHAT'S NEW ONLINE /Financing for Sustainable Development Financing for Sustainable Development. This new RING/IIED report edited by Tariq Banuri and Tom Bigg focuses on the issue of financing, which was raised by developing countries at UNCED in 1992, and more recently during the Financing for Development (FfD) and WSSD preparatory processes. The report states that discussions surrounding both the WSSD and the FfD process indicate an absence of creative thinking on the issue of financing and on the challenges of globalization. It argues that there is a crisis of legitimacy confronting the agencies and actors involved in development processes, and presents ideas and approaches for consideration in preparation for the two Summits. To access the report online visit: http://www.iied.org/pdf/wssd_ffsd.pdf /Climate Change The January 2002 American Bar Association's Climate Change and Sustainable Development newsletter is available online. It includes articles on "The Marrakech Accords," "Power Plant Multi- pollutant Legislation: A Dialogue Examining the Proposals and Key Issues," and "Carbon Trading in the European Community," as well as an update on emissions trading and other climate change legislation, and global petroleum industry approaches for long- term carbon management based on a recent meeting. To access the newsletter visit: http://www.abanet.org/environ/committees/climatechange/newsletter/ /Mediterranean Region WWF Mediterranean Programme website. The World Wildlife Fund for Nature's (WWF) Mediterranean Programme Office has launched its website. Intended as a supporting tool for WWF's conservation initiatives in the Mediterranean region, the website aims to provide timely and comprehensive information about Mediterranean environmental issues. In addition to information on the Mediterranean region and WWF's activities, the website also contains an archive of conservation news from the region. To access the website visit: http://www.panda.org/mediterranean UPCOMING MEETINGS Information on upcoming conferences, workshops and symposia in the field of international environment and development negotiations SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT WORLD ECONOMIC FORUM ANNUAL MEETING 2002: For the first time in its 31-year history, the World Economic Forum will conduct its Annual Meeting outside of Davos, Switzerland. This year's annual meeting will take place from 31 January - 4 February 2002 in New York. Experts, business executives and political leaders will gather to address key economic, political and societal issues. For more information contact: Charles McLean, Communications and Public Affairs; e-mail: public.affairs@weforum.org; Internet: http://www.weforum.org/site/homepublic.nsf/Content/Annual+Meeting+ 2002 PUBLIC EYE ON THE WORLD ECONOMIC FORUM - INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON ALTERNATIVES TO CORPORATE-DRIVEN GLOBALIZATION: This conference – which is taking place at the same time as the World Economic Forum - will be held from 31 January – 3 February 2002 at the UN Church Center in New York. The conference is open to the public and representatives of the media. For more information contact: Information Line; tel: +1-212-539-747; Internet: http://www.publiceyeondavos.ch REGIONAL PREPARATORY CONFERENCES FOR ECOTOURISM: Regional preparatory conferences for the World Ecotourism Summit will be held from February to April this year. The Andean South American preparatory conference will take place from 5-7 February 2002 in Lima, Peru, while the Southeast Asia preparatory conference will be held from 4-7 March in Chiang Mai, Thailand. The East Africa conference will convene from 20-22 March in Nairobi, Kenya, while the Arctic Circle conference will be take place from 25-28 April in Hemavan, Sweden. For more information contact: Janine Tabasaran; UNEP Tourism Programme Officer; tel: +33-1-44-371441; fax: +33-1-44-371474; e-mail: janine.tabasaran@unep.fr; Internet: http://www.uneptie.org/tourism SECOND INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON WATER QUALITY: This conference will take place from 6-8 February 2002 in New Delhi, India. For more information contact: S.P. Kauhish; tel: +91-11-611-5984; e-mail: cbip@nda.vsnl.net.in; Internet: http://www.cbip.org ASIA-PACIFIC MINISTERIAL CONFERENCE ON SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT OF ECOTOURISM: This conference will be held from 11-13 February 2002 in the Maldives. For more information contact: Ahmed Amir; tel: +960-775-112; fax: +960-322-512; e-mail: info@visitmaldives.com or Xu Jing; tel: +34-91-567-8100; fax: +34-91-571-3733; e-mail: csa-cap@world-tourism.org; Internet: http://www.world- tourism.org/sustainable/IYE/Regional_Activites/Maldives/Cover.htm VIRTUAL CONFERENCE ON GLOBAL ETHICS AND SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT: This online conference will take place from 14-15 February 2002. For more information contact: Patricia Morales, Conference Coordinator; fax: +32-2-657-7717; e-mail: ahumaneworld@kub.nl; Internet: http://fsw.kub.nl/globus/conference/ CONFERENCE ON INTERNATIONAL HARMONIZATION AND EQUIVALENCE IN ORGANIC AGRICULTURE: This meeting will be held from 17-19 February 2002 in Nürnberg, Germany. It is being organized by the International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements in cooperation with the FAO and UNCTAD. For more information contact: IFOAM Head Office; tel: +49-6853-91989-0; e-mail: HeadOffice@ifoam.org; Internet: http://www.ifoam.org/conf/index.html EARTH DIALOGUES - GLOBALIZATION AND SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT - IS ETHICS THE MISSING LINK?: This event will take place from 21-23 February 2002 in Lyon, France. Organized by Green Cross International, Earth Dialogues will provide a forum for constructive debate on how to forge the necessary links between globalization, sustainable development and ethics. For more information contact: Earth Dialogues Secretariat; tel: +41-22-789- 1662; e-mail: secretariat@gci.ch; Internet: http://www.greencrossinternational.net/pdf/Earth_Dialogue.pdf INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON TOURISM DEVELOPMENT, COMMUNITY AND CONSERVATION: This conference will take place from 28 February - 2 March 2002 at the Bundelkhand University Jhansi in Uttar Pradesh, India. It will examine shaping ecotourism for the Third Millennium. For more information e-mail: tvsingh@sancharnet.in YOUTH CONFERENCE SD 2002 - SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT? WHY, HOW, WHERE, BY WHOM?: This event will take place from 28 February - 3 March 2002 in Turgu-Mures, Romania. For more information contact: Valentin Precup; tel/fax: +40-65-21-4468; e-mail: precup@yois-europe.org; Internet: http://www.yois-europe.org FIRST JOINT MEETING OF THE HEALTH AND ENVIRONMENT MINISTERS OF THE AMERICAS: This meeting will take place from 4-5 March 2002, in Ottawa, Canada, as a follow-up to the 2001 First Meeting of the Ministers of the Environment of the Americas. For more information contact: Environment Canada; tel: +1-819-956-5212; fax: +1-819- 956-5964; e-mail: enviroinfo@ec.gc.ca; Internet: http://www.ec.gc.ca/ INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON FLOOD ESTIMATION: This meeting will be held from 6-8 March 2002 in Bern, Switzerland. The conference is aimed at presenting and discussing the latest developments within the field of flood estimation for micro- and meso-scale catchments. For more information contact: tel: +41-31-324-2748; e-mail: floodestimation@bwg.admin.ch; Internet: http://hydrant.unibe.ch/veranstaltungen/flood/flood01.htm GLOBE 2002 CONFERENCE - ACCELERATING BUSINESS AND SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT STRATEGIES: This event will take place from 13-15 March 2002 in Vancouver, Canada. For more information contact: GLOBE Foundation; tel: +1-604-775-7300; fax: +1-604-666-8123; e-mail: info@globe.apfnet.org; Internet: http://www.globe2002.com/conference.htm INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON GLOBALIZATION, GROWTH AND (IN)EQUALITY: This conference will be held form 15-17 March 2002 at the University of Warwick, Coventry, UK. This international event will focus on how globalization impinges upon growth and equality. For more information contact: Denise Hewlett or Domenica Scinaldi; tel: +44-0-24-7657-2533; fax: +44-0-24-7657-2548; e-mail: Denise.Hewlett@warwick.ac.uk or D.Scinaldi@warwick.ac.uk; Internet: http://www.warwick.ac.uk/fac/soc/CSGR/5th_Annual_Conference BIOTECHNOLOGY AND SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT - VOICES OF THE SOUTH AND NORTH: This international conference will take place from 16- 20 March 2002, in Alexandria, Egypt. It is co-sponsored by the Government of Egypt, FAO, UNESCO, World Bank and OECD, among others. For more information contact: Ismail Serageldin; tel: +203-487-6024; fax: +203-487-6001; e-mail: egyptbiotech@bibalex.org; Internet: http://www.egyptbiotech.com/ INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON FINANCING FOR DEVELOPMENT: The UN International Conference on Financing for Development will be held from 18-22 March 2002 in Monterrey, Mexico. It will bring together high-level representatives from governments, the UN, and other leading international trade, finance and development-related organizations. For more information contact: Harris Gleckman, Coordinating Secretariat; tel: +1-212-963-4690; e-mail: gleckman@un.org or Federica Pietracci; tel: +1-212-963-8497; e-mail: pietracci@un.org; Internet: http://www.un.org/esa/ffd FOURTH INTERNATIONAL FRIEND CONFERENCE - BRIDGING THE GAP BETWEEN RESEARCH AND PRACTICE: This UNESCO FRIEND (Flow Regimes from International Experimental and Network Data) conference will be held from 18-22 March 2002 in Cape Town, South Africa. The objective of this event is to present the results of the FRIEND programme, which has stimulated international cooperation in the field of hydrology. The conference will focus on bridging the gap between knowledge, research and practical applications. For more information visit: http://www.ru.ac.za/institutes/iwr/friend/index.html WORLD DAY FOR WATER 2002: This event takes place on 22 March each year. Led by the International Atomic Energy Agency, the World Day for Water in 2002 carries the theme of Water for Development. For more information visit: http://waterday2002.iaea.org/ AFRICAN MINISTERIAL CONFERENCE ON WATER: This meeting will take place in March/April 2002 in Abuja, Nigeria. Resolving to institutionalize ministerial level policy dialogue on water issues, African ministers have convened this event to encourage systematic intergovernmental dialogue on the water and sanitation problems facing Africa. For more information contact: Muhammad Abubakar, Federal Ministry of Water Resources, Nigeria; tel: +234- 9-234-2205; e-mail: makabubakar@hotmail.com G-8 ENVIRONMENT MINISTERS MEETING: The G-8 Ministers of the Environment are scheduled to meet in April 2002 in Bamf, Canada, with the agenda of supporting the G-8 Summit to address the challenge of poverty alleviation, particularly in Africa. For more information contact: Environment Canada; tel: +1-819-956-5212; fax: +1-819-956-5964; e-mail: enviroinfo@ec.gc.ca; Internet: http://www.Canada2002earthsummit.gc.ca WORLD WATER CONGRESS 2002: This congress will take place from 7-12 April 2002 in Melbourne, Australia. It is being organized by the International Water Association, and will focus on issues such as water cycle management, particularly in South-East Asia. For more information contact: Secretariat, Quitz Event Management; tel: +61-02-9410-1302; fax: +61-02-9410-0036; e-mail: quitz@bigpond.net.au; Internet: http://www.enviroaust.net/ INTERNATIONAL SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT RESEARCH CONFERENCE: This conference will be held from 8-9 April in Manchester, UK. Organized by ERP Environment, the meeting will address issues such as corporate social responsibility, natural resource management, public participation, and globalization. For more information contact: Elaine White; tel: +44-1274-530-408; fax: 530-409; e-mail: elaine@erpenv.demon.co.uk; Internet: http://www.erpenvironment.org HIGH SUMMIT 2002 - INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE AROUND THE CONTINENTS' HIGHEST MOUNTAINS: This global event will take place from 6-10 May 2002. It consists of a simultaneous video conference broadcast with continuous live internet feeds from places close to the five highest peaks in North America, South America, Europe, Asia, and Africa. Experts, policy makers and stakeholders from the mountainous areas of the different continents will meet from different sites to discuss most significant topics regarding today's mountain realities: water, culture, economy, risk, and policy. For more information contact: e-mail: evk2cnr.2002@montagna.org; Internet: http://www.montagna.org/ WORLD ECOTOURISM SUMMIT: This summit will take place from 19–22 May 2002 in Québec, Canada. The World Ecotourism Summit is expected to be the largest ever gathering of stakeholders involved in or affected by ecotourism. For more information contact: Ecotourism 2002 Secretariat; tel: +1-418-692-1699; fax: +1-418- 692-5587; e-mail: ecotourism2002@jpdl.com; Internet: http://www.bonjourquebec.com/ecotourisme/ INTERNATIONAL CHILDREN'S CONFERENCE ON THE ENVIRONMENT: The fourth UNEP International Children's Conference on the Environment will take place in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada from 22-24 May 2002. The conference is expected to bring together 800 children from 10 to 12 years of age from over 115 countries, who will learn about and discuss the state of the environment and showcase environmental initiatives by schools. The conference will also produce a statement from children to the world leaders who will meet for the World Summit on Sustainable Development. The town of Ledyard, Connecticut, USA, is expected to host the event in 2003. For more information contact: Theodore Oben, Children, Youth and Sport Programmes, UNEP, Nairobi; tel: +254-2-623262; e-mail: theodore.oben@unep.org; Internet: http://www.unep.org/children_youth/ INTERNATIONAL MEETING ON MOUNTAIN ECOSYSTEMS: This meeting will be held from 5-7 June 2002 in Huaraz, Peru. It is entitled "The Tropical Mountains toward 2020: Water, Life, and Production." For more information contact: Maria Cecilia Rozas; e-mail: mrozas@rree.gob.pe; Internet: http://www.mtnforum.org/calendar/events/0206imma.htm G-8 SUMMIT: The 2002 G-8 Summit is scheduled to take place from 22-26 June in Kananaskis, Canada. For more information contact: John Klassen, Summit Management Team; tel: +1-613-957-5555; fax: +1-613-941-6900; e-mail: pm@pm.gc.ca THIRD INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON WATER RESOURCES AND ENVIRONMENT RESEARCH: This meeting will take place from 22-25 July 2002 in Dresden, Germany, and will be the third international conference in the series on water resources and environment research. The aim of the conference is to encourage and facilitate interdisciplinary communication among scientists, engineers and professionals working in the fields of ecological systems, sustainable management, development of water resources and conservation of natural systems. For more information contact: Cathleen Schimmek, Conference Secretariat; tel: +49-351-463-33931; e-mail: icwrer2002@mailbox.tu-dresden.de; Internet: http://www.tu-dresden.de/fghhihm/hydrologie.html SESSION ON MOUNTAINS IN URBAN DEVELOPMENT: This meeting will take place from 22-26 July 2002 in Buenos Aires, Argentina, and will form part of the XIII World Congress of the International Economic History Association. The session will look at the relationship between mountains and urban development and focus on urban growth and political power structures. For more information contact: Jean-François Bergier; tel: +41-91-912-4705; e-mail: admin@isalp.unisi.ch; Internet: http://www.isalp.unisi.ch/gen/mountains_urban.htm STOCKHOLM WATER SYMPOSIUM: This event will take place from 12-15 August 2002 in Stockholm, Sweden. For more information contact: tel: +46-8-522-139-61; fax: +08-56-31-10-16; e-mail: siwi@siwi.org; Internet: http://www.siwi.org/sws2002 2002 WORLD ORGANIC CONGRESS - CULTIVATING COMMUNITIES: This event will be held from 21-28 August 2002 in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada. Organized by the International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements (IFOAM), the event is expected to be attended by farmers, researchers, advisors, food processors, traders, certifiers, policy makers and consumers and others interested in organic agriculture and sustainable development. For more information contact: tel: +1-250-655-5652; e-mail: ifoam2002@cog.ca; Internet: http://www.cog.ca/ifoam2002/ FOURTH INTERNATIONAL SYMPOSIUM ON ARTIFICIAL RECHARGE - MANAGEMENT OF AQUIFER RECHARGE FOR SUSTAINABILITY: This symposium will be held from 22-26 September 2002 in Adelaide, Australia. For more information contact: Hartley Management Group; e-mail: isar4@hartleymgt.com.au; Internet: http://www.hartleymgt.com.au/isar4/ INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON URBAN HYDROLOGY: This conference will take place from 14-18 October 2002 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The theme for this meeting is "Induced Problems in Urban Environment Requiring Holistic Solutions for the New Millennium." For more information contact: Hj. Mohd. Nor Bin Hj. Mohd; tel: +603-4255- 2507; e-mail: htckl@pop.moa.my; Internet: http://htc.moa.my/htc/icuh2002/icuh2002.html INTERNATIONAL ECOTOURISM CONFERENCE: This conference will take place from 21-25 October 2002 in Cairns, Australia. It is expected that it will be the final formal event of the International Year of Ecotourism 2002, and will bring together the work carried out throughout the International Year. For more information contact: Tony Charters, Conference Convenor; tel: +61-7-3535-5493; fax: +61-7-3535-5445; e-mail: tony.charters@tq.com.au; Internet: http://www.ecotourism-australia.info/conf2002/index.htm GLOBAL MOUNTAIN SUMMIT: This Summit will take place from 29 October – 1 November 2002 in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan. The Bishkek Global Mountain Summit will be the feature event of the International Year of Mountains, drawing together the ideas and recommendations generated by previous events, from all levels and sectors of society, into proposals for concrete action. For more information contact: Andrew Fesenko; e-mail: andrewf@mail.ru and Andrei Iatsenia, UNEP Mountains Programme Coordinator; tel: +41- 22-917-8273; fax: +41-22-917-8036; e-mail: iatsenia@unep.ch; Internet: http://www.globalmountainsummit.org/Home_Page.html INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON PREVENTING AND FIGHTING HYDROLOGICAL DISASTERS: This conference will take place from 21-22 November 2002 in Timisoara, Romania. The event will examine natural and accidental floods, hydrological drought, water quality and the impact on environment, as well as policies and strategies in water resources management. For more information contact: Gheorghe Cretu, Conference Secretariat; tel/fax: +40-56-221481; e-mail: gcr@mail.dnttm.ro; Internet: http://www.utt.ro/pfhd/ THIRD MEETING OF THE GLOBAL FORUM ON SUSTAINABLE ENERGY: GFSE-3 will be held in Graz, Austria, from 27-29 November 2002. The meeting will focus on public-private partnerships for rural development. For more information contact: Irene Freudenschuss- Reichl, UNIDO; tel: +1-212-963-6890; fax: +1-212-963-7904; e-mail: freudenschuss-reichl@un.org THIRD WORLD WATER FORUM: This meeting will take place from 16-23 March 2003 in Kyoto, Japan. A Ministerial Conference will be held during the Forum, where Ministers will work towards framing and adopting a political declaration concerning global water problems. For more information contact: Secretariat, Tokyo; tel: +81-3-5212- 1645; e-mail: office@water-forum3.com; Internet: http://www.worldwaterforum.org PREPARATIONS FOR THE JOHANNESBURG SUMMIT 2002 SECOND SESSION OF THE PREPARATORY COMMITTEE FOR THE 2002 WORLD SUMMIT ON SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT: This meeting is taking place from 28 January - 8 February 2002 at UN Headquarters in New York. Participants will review the results of national and regional preparatory processes, examine the main policy report of the UN Secretary-General, and convene a Multi-stakeholder Dialogue. For more information contact: Andrey Vasilyev; tel: +1-212-963-5949; fax: +1-212-963-4260; e-mail: vasilyev@un.org; Major groups contact: Zehra Aydin-Sipos, DESA; tel: +1-212-963-8811; fax: +1- 212-963-1267; e-mail: aydin@un.org; Internet: http://www.johannesburgsummit.org/ DELHI SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT SUMMIT 2002: This meeting will be held from 9-11 February 2002 in New Delhi, India. The theme will be "Ensuring sustainable livelihoods: challenges for governments, corporates, and civil society at Rio+10." For more information visit: http://www.teriin.org/dsds/index.htm LOCAL AGENDA TO ACTION - BUILDING A SUSTAINABLE FUTURE: This international local government preparatory meeting will take place from 22 February - 1 March 2002 in North Vancouver, Canada. For more information contact: Elena Lonero; e-mail: elonero@iclei.org; Internet: http://www.iclei.org/rioplusten/ EUROPE IN THE WORLD WORKSHOP: This workshop will be held on 25 February 2002 at the European Parliament in Brussels, Belgium. It is being organized by the European Rio+10 Coalition. For more information contact: European Partners for the Environment; fax: +32-2-539-4815; e-mail: info@epe.be; Internet: http://www.epe.be SUSTAINING OUR COMMUNITIES - INTERNATIONAL LOCAL AGENDA 21 CONFERENCE: This conference will take place from 3-6 March 2002 in Adelaide, Australia. It will provide a forum to discuss approaches to sustainable development and advise Australia's input to the WSSD. For more information contact: Malcolm Prowse, Conference Organizer; tel: +617-320-0675; e-mail: malcolmpro@msn.com.au; Internet: http://www.adelaide.sa.gov.au/soc/ UNEP FINANCE INITIATIVES ANNUAL GLOBAL ROUNDTABLE ON FINANCE AND SUSTAINABILITY: This event will take place from 14-15 March 2002 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Entitled "Financing a Sustainable Future - Strategies, Partnerships, and Opportunities on the way to Johannesburg 2002," the event will seek to build new partnerships for sustainability within the finance and insurance industries. For more information contact: Trevor Bowden; e-mail: trevor.bowden@unep.ch; Internet: http://unepfi.net/rio UNEP GLOBAL YOUTH FORUM - GYF2002: This event will be held from 22-31 March 2002 in Copenhagen, Denmark. Organized by UNEP and hosted by Danish organization Nature and Youth, the forum will be a youth event leading up to the WSSD. It will build on the Youth Conference on Environment and Sustainable Development that was held in Borgholm, Sweden in May 2001. For more information contact: e-mail: theodore.oben@unep.org or landskontoret@natur-og-ungdom.dk THIRD SESSION OF THE PREPARATORY COMMITTEE FOR THE 2002 WSSD: This meeting will take place at UN Headquarters in New York from 25 March - 5 April 2002. It will aim to produce the first draft of a "review" document and elements of the CSD's future work programme. For more information contact: Andrey Vasilyev; tel: +1-212-963- 5949; fax: +1-212-963-4260; e-mail: vasilyev@un.org; Major groups contact: Zehra Aydin-Sipos; tel: +1-212-963-8811; fax: +1-212-963- 1267; e-mail: aydin@un.org; Internet: http://www.johannesburgsummit.org/ FOURTH SESSION OF THE PREPARATORY COMMITTEE FOR THE 2002 WSSD: This meeting will take place from 27 May - 7 June 2002 in Indonesia. It will include Ministerial and Multi-stakeholder Dialogue Segments, and is expected to result in elements for a concise political document to be submitted to the 2002 Summit. For more information contact: Andrey Vasilyev, DESA, New York; tel: +1-212-963-5949; e-mail: vasilyev@un.org; Major groups contact: Zehra Aydin-Sipos; tel: +1-212-963-8811; e-mail: aydin@un.org; Internet: http://www.johannesburgsummit.org/ IMPLEMENTATION CONFERENCE - STAKEHOLDER ACTION FOR OUR COMMON FUTURE: This meeting will be held from 20-23 August 2002 in Johannesburg, South Africa. It will be facilitated by Stakeholder Forum For Our Common Future (formerly UNED Forum), and will bring together representatives of the Agenda 21 Major Groups and other stakeholders to develop concrete action plans. For more information contact: Minu Hemmati, UNED Forum; tel: +44-207- 8397171; e-mail: minush@aol.com; Internet: http://www.earthsummit2002.org/ic ENVIROLAW CONFERENCE 2002: This conference is scheduled to take place from 22-25 August 2002 in Durban, South Africa. It will provide a platform for the international legal community to provide solutions and suggest mechanisms that will interlink international and regional treaties and conventions in order to improve their implementation and enforcement. It will also interact with the WSSD preparatory process. For more information contact: EnviroLaw Solutions; tel: +27-11-269-7944; fax: +27-11- 269-7899; e-mail: info@envirolawsolutions.com; Internet: http://www.envirolawsolutions.com WORLD SUMMIT ON SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT: The World Summit on Sustainable Development will take place in Johannesburg, South Africa, from 26 August - 4 September 2002. For more information contact: Andrey Vasilyev, DESA; tel: +1-212-963-5949; e-mail: vasilyev@un.org; Major groups contact: Zehra Aydin-Sipos; tel: +1- 212-963-8811; e-mail: aydin@un.org; Internet: http://www.johannesburgsummit.org/ BIODIVERSITY INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON THE IMPACTS OF AGRICULTURAL RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT: This conference is scheduled to take place from 4-7 February 2002 in San José, Costa Rica. Sponsored by the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR) and the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center, the conference will bring together researchers and other professionals interested in documenting and measuring the impact of international agricultural research. For more information contact: e-mail: impacts@cgiar.org; Internet: http://www.cimmyt.org/Research/Economics/impacts/index.htm MEETING OF THE AD HOC INTERSESSIONAL WORKING GROUP ON ARTICLE 8(J) OF THE CONVENTION ON BIODIVERSITY: This meeting is scheduled to take place from 4-8 February 2002 in Montreal, Canada. For more information contact: CBD Secretariat, Montreal, Canada: tel: +1- 514-288-2220; e-mail: secretariat@biodiv.org; Internet: http://www.biodiv.org REGIONAL WORKSHOP ON SUSTAINABLE USE OF BIOLOGICAL DIVERSITY: This workshop will be held from 18–21 February 2002 in Quito, Ecuador. Issues of sustainable use of biodiversity, with a focus on marine and freshwater capture fisheries, will be discussed. For more information contact: CBD Secretariat, Montreal, Canada; tel: +1- 514-288-2220; e-mail: secretariat@biodiv.org; Internet: http://www.biodiv.org/doc/notifications/2001/ntf-2001-12-14-suse- en.pdf CODEX THIRD SESSION OF THE AD HOC INTERGOVERNMENTAL TASK FORCE ON BIOTECHNOLOGY: This CODEX session is scheduled to take place from 4-8 March 2002 in Yokohama, Japan. For more information e-mail: codex@fao.org SIXTH CONFERENCE OF THE PARTIES TO THE CBD: CBD COP-6 will take place in The Hague, the Netherlands, from 7-19 April 2002. At its sixth meeting, the COP is expected to receive reports from its subsidiary bodies, the Executive Secretary and the GEF, review the implementation of the programme of work, and focus on the following issues: forest biological diversity; invasive alien species that threaten ecosystems, habitats or species; access and benefit-sharing as related to genetic resources; strategic plan, national reporting and operations of the Convention. For more information contact: CBD Secretariat, Montreal, Canada: tel: +1- 514-288-2220; e-mail: secretariat@biodiv.org; Internet: http://www.biodiv.org/meetings/cop-06.asp ICCP-3: The third meeting of the Intergovernmental Committee for the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety to the CBD (ICCP-3) will take place from 22-26 April 2002 in The Hague, the Netherlands. For more information contact: CBD Secretariat, Montreal, Canada; tel: +1-514-288-2220; e-mail: secretariat@biodiv.org; Internet: http://www.biodiv.org/meetings/cop-06.asp WORKSHOP ON ADVANCED ISSUES ON BIOSAFETY - RISK MONITORING AND PUBLIC PERCEPTION OF BIOTECHNOLOGY: This meeting will be held from 13-17 May 2002 in Maracay, Venezuela. For more information contact: Efrain G. Salazar Yamarte, Centro Nacional de Investigaciones Agropecuarias (CENIAP); tel: +58-243-2471066; e-mail: efra63@icnet.com.ve SESSIONS OF THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE OF THE CODEX ALIMENTARIUS COMMISSION: The Executive Committee of the Commission will meet for its 49th Session from 26-28 June 2002, and will convene its 50th session from 26-27 June 2003. Both meetings will take place in Rome, Italy. For more information contact: Secretariat of the Joint FAO/WHO Food Standards Programme; tel: +39-06-57051; fax: +39-06-5705-4593; e-mail: codex@fao.org NINTH SESSION OF THE COMMISSION ON GENETIC RESOURCES FOR FOOD AND AGRICULTURE: CGRFA-9 will meet in October 2002 in Rome at a date yet to be determined. For more information contact: FAO; tel: +39- 06-5705-2287; Internet: http://www.fao.org/WAICENT/FAOINFO/AGRICULT/cgrfa/meetings.htM 25TH SESSION OF THE CODEX ALIMENTARIUS COMMISSION: The Commission will meet from 30 June - 5 July 2003 in Rome, Italy. For more information contact: Secretariat of the Joint FAO/WHO Food Standards Programme; tel: +39-06-57051; fax: +39-06-5705-4593; e-mail: codex@fao.org CHEMICAL MANAGEMENT BASEL CONVENTION WORKING GROUPS: The Basel Convention's various working groups will meet a number of times during 2002. The 20th session of the Technical Working Group will take place from 20-21 May, and the second joint meeting of the Legal and Technical Working Groups will be held from 20-23 May. The fifth session of the Legal Working Group will meet from 24-25 May, while the Working Group for Implementation is expected to convene from 27-31 May. For more information contact: Basel Secretariat; tel: +41-22- 917-8218; e-mail: sbc@unep.ch; Internet: http://www.basel.int THIRD MEETING OF THE INTERIM CHEMICAL REVIEW COMMITTEE (ICRC-3): ICRC-3 is expected to meet from 17-21 February 2002, in the Varembé Conference Centre in Geneva, Switzerland. For more information contact: Erik Larsson; tel: +41-22-917-8177; fax: +41- 22-797-3460; e-mail: pic@unep.ch; Internet: http://www.pic.int/ SUBREGIONAL WORKSHOPS TO SUPPORT THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE STOCKHOLM CONVENTION ON PERSISTENT ORGANIC POLLUTANTS: Two workshops will be held to assist the implementation of the Stockholm Convention on POPs. The first will take place from 25 February - 1 March 2002 in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso, and the second will take place from 18-22 March 2002 in Montevideo, Uruguay. For more information contact: tel: +41-22-917-8193; fax: +41-22-797-3460; e-mail: pops@unep.ch SIXTH SESSION OF THE POPS INTERGOVERNMENTAL NEGOTIATING COMMITTEE: The sixth session of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee for an International Legally Binding Instrument for Implementing International Action on Certain Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPS INC-6) will be held from 17-22 June 2002 in Geneva, Switzerland. For more information contact: tel: +41-22-917-8193; fax: +41-22-797-3460; e-mail: pops@unep.ch JOINT FAO-WHO MEETING ON PESTICIDE RESIDUES: The 27th Session of the Joint Meeting of the FAO Panel of Experts on Pesticide Residues in Food and the Environment and the WHO Expert Group on Pesticide Residues (JMPR) is scheduled for 20-29 September 2002 in Rome. For more information contact: Amelia Tejada, FAO; tel: +39- 6-5705-4010; Internet: http://www.fao.org/waicent/FaoInfo/Agricult/AGP/AGPP/Pesticid/Even ts/c.htm FAO PANEL OF EXPERTS ON PESTICIDE SPECIFICATIONS, REGISTRATION REQUIREMENTS, APPLICATION STANDARDS AND PRIOR INFORMED CONSENT: The 19th session of the Panel is scheduled for 27-29 October 2002, in Rome, Italy. For more information contact: Gero Vaagt, FAO; tel: +39-6-5705-5757; e-mail: Gero.Vaagt@fao.org; Internet: http://www.fao.org/waicent/FaoInfo/Agricult/AGP/AGPP/Pesticid/Even ts/c.htm PIC INC-9: The ninth session of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee for an International Legally Binding Instrument for the Application of the Prior Informed Consent Procedure for Certain Hazardous Chemicals and Pesticides in International Trade is tentatively scheduled for 30 September - 4 October 2002, in Bonn, Germany. For more information contact the interim Secretariat: Niek van der Graaff, FAO; tel: +39-6-5705-3441; fax: +39-6-5705- 6347; e-mail: Niek.VanderGraaff@fao.org; or Jim Willis, UNEP Chemicals; tel: +41-22-917-8111; e-mail: chemicals@unep.ch; Internet: http://www.pic.int/ BASEL CONVENTION COP-6: The Sixth Conference of the Parties (COP- 6) to the Basel Convention is scheduled to be held from 9-13 December 2002 in Geneva, Switzerland. For more information contact: Secretariat of the Basel Convention; tel: +41-22-979 8218; fax: +41-22-797 3454; e-mail: sbc@unep.ch; Internet: http://www.basel.int FOURTH SESSION OF THE INTERGOVERNMENTAL FORUM ON CHEMICAL SAFETY (IFCS): FORUM IV is scheduled to be held from 1-7 November 2003 in Bangkok, Thailand, with FORUM V taking place in Hungary in late 2005 or 2006. For more information contact: the IFCS Executive Secretary; tel: +41-22-791-3650; e-mail: ifcs@who.ch; Internet: http://www.ifcs.ch CLIMATE AND ATMOSPHERE Conference on continental energy markets and greenhouse gas emissions: This meeting will be held from 20-21 February 2002 in Ottawa, Canada. Co-hosted by the International Institute for Sustainable Development and the Canadian Energy Research Institute, the conference will explore options related to the development of continental energy markets, giving particular attention to the implications on North America's ability to address climate change concerns and meet international commitments. For more information visit: http://www.ceri.ca/confer_env.htm#envi EARTH TECHNOLOGIES FORUM: This conference and exhibition on global climate change and ozone protection technologies and policies will be held from 25-27 March 2002 in Washington, DC. Participants will discuss current technologies and efforts to bring them into the marketplace. For more information contact: tel: +1-703-807-4052; e-mail: earthforum@alcalde-fay.com; Internet: http://www.earthforum.com SECOND MEETING OF THE BUREAU OF THE FIFTH MEETING OF THE CONFERENCE OF THE PARTIES TO THE VIENNA CONVENTION: This bureau meeting will take place on 28 March 2002 in Geneva, Switzerland. For more information contact: Ozone Secretariat; tel: +254-2-62- 1234 or 62-3850; Internet: http://www.unep.org/ozone INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON CLIMATE CHANGE AND THE BUILT ENVIRONMENT: This conference will take place from 8-9 April 2002 in Manchester, UK. The conference will consider the challenge of climate change and its effects on buildings, their occupants and sustainability. Topics to be addressed include Kyoto Protocol implications for the built environment, and how various countries are dealing with climate change relating to the built environment. For more information contact: H. McCaffery; tel: +44-161-200-4252; Internet: http://www.umist.ac.uk PROGRAMME ON CLIMATE CHANGE - SCIENCE, IMPACTS AND POLICY RESPONSES: This event will take place from 15-19 April 2002 at Imperial College, London, UK. The five-day modular programme aims to bring a diversity of professionals together to help them understand the underlying science and the business impact of climate change and responses. For more information contact: Ulrika Wernmark; tel: +44-20-7594-6886; fax: +44-20-7594-6883; e-mail: u.wernmark@ic.ac.uk; Internet: http://www.ad.ic.ac.uk/cpd/climate.htm CONFERENCE AND WORKSHOP ON CLIMATE VARIABILITY AND CHANGE AND THEIR HEALTH EFFECTS IN THE CARIBBEAN: This conference will take place from 20-24 May 2002 in Bridgetown, Barbados. The conference is sponsored by the Pan-American Health Organization and the WHO under the auspices of the Interagency Network on Climate and Human Health. The conference will consider: climate variability and climate change; health status in the Caribbean region; linkages between climate and human health; and public health policies and strategies for adaptation to climate variability and change. For more information visit: http://www.cpc.paho.org 16TH SESSION OF THE UNFCCC SUBSIDIARY BODIES: SB-16 will take place in Bonn, Germany, from 3-14 June 2002. For more information contact: UNFCCC Secretariat; tel: +49-228-815-1000; fax: +49-228- 815-1999; e-mail: secretariat@unfccc.de; Internet: http://www.unfccc.de FIRST MEETING OF THE BUREAU OF THE 13TH MEETING OF THE PARTIES TO THE MONTREAL PROTOCOL: This bureau meeting will be held on 1 July 2002 in Geneva, Switzerland. For more information contact: Ozone Secretariat; tel: +254-2-62-1234; Internet: http://www.unep.org/ozone 22ND OPEN-ENDED WORKING GROUP MEETING OF THE PARTIES TO THE MONTREAL PROTOCOL: This meeting will take place from 22-26 July 2002 in Geneva, Switzerland. For more information contact: Ozone Secretariat; tel: +254-2-62-1234 or 62-3850; Internet: http://www.unep.org/ozone EIGHTH CONFERENCE OF THE PARTIES TO THE UNFCCC: COP-8 is provisionally planned to take place from 23 October - 1 November 2002 in New Delhi, India. For more information contact: UNFCCC Secretariat; tel: +49-228-815-1000; fax: +49-228-815-1999; e-mail: secretariat@unfccc.int; Internet: http://www.unfccc.int/ 14TH MEETING OF THE PARTIES TO THE MONTREAL PROTOCOL: The 14th Meeting of the Parties to the Montreal Protocol and Sixth Conference of the Parties to the Vienna Convention will be held from 25-29 November 2002 in Nairobi, Kenya. For more information contact: Ozone Secretariat; tel: +254-2-62-1234 or 62-3850; Internet: http://www.unep.org/ozone/meet2002.shtml DESERTIFICATION SECOND MEETING OF THE UNCCD PANEL OF EMINENT PERSONALITIES IN PREPARATION FOR THE WSSD: The second meeting of members of the Panel of Eminent Personalities to consider the Poverty-Environment Nexus in the context of timely and effective implementation of the UNCCD is scheduled to take place from 25-28 February 2002 in Agadez, Niger. For more information contact: Satu Ravola, UNCCD; tel: +49-228-815-2805; e-mail: sravola@unccd.int; Internet: http://www.unccd.int/secretariat/workplan2002.pdf SYMPOSIUM ON ALTERNATIVE WAYS TO COMBAT DESERTIFICATION: This traveling event will be held 8-20 April 2002, in Cape Town, South Africa, various rural communities, and Gobabeb, Namibia. The aim of this combined international symposium, rural community interaction and workshop is to connect community action with science and common sense. For more information contact: Odette de Heer Kloots; tel: +27-21-762-8600; e-mail: desertification@globalconf.co.za; Internet: http://des2002.az.blm.gov/homepage.htm INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON DROUGHT MITIGATION AND PREVENTION OF LAND DESERTIFICATION: This conference will take place from 21-25 April 2002 in Bled, Slovenia. Co-organized by the European Regional Working Group of the International Commission on Irrigation and Drainage, this event will discuss: the impact of climate change on the Central and East European and Mediterranean countries; national strategies and action programmes to mitigate drought; and international cooperation for solving related common drought problems. For more information contact: e-mail: SDNO- SINCID@guest.arnes.si; Internet: http://www2.arnes.si/~ljsdno2/eng7.htm 18TH INTERNATIONAL CONGRESS ON IRRIGATION AND DRAINAGE: This congress will take place from 21-28 July 2002 in Montreal, Canada. The theme of this conference is "Food Production under Conditions of Water Scarcity, Increasing Population and Environmental Pressures." For more information contact: Jean-Marcel Laferriere; tel: +1-819-953-4327; fax: +1-819-994-0251; e-mail: jeanmarc_laferriere@acdi-cida.gc.ca; Internet: http://www.cancid.org 17TH WORLD CONGRESS OF SOIL SCIENCE: This meeting will take place from 14-21 August 2002, in Bangkok, Thailand, and will address the topic "Soil Science: Confronting New Realities in the 21st Century." For more information contact: Secretariat, 17th WCSS; tel: +662-940-5787, 9405-7078; fax: +662-940-5788; e-mail: o.sfst@nontri.ku.ac.th; Internet: http://www.17wcss.ku.ac.th INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURE FOR DRY AREAS FOR THE SECOND MILLENNIUM: This conference will be held from 15-19 September 2002 in Shijiazhuang, China. For more information contact: Catherine Vachon, Lethbridge Research Center, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada; tel: +1-403-317-2257; fax: +1-403-382-3156; Internet: http://res2.agr.ca/lethbridge/hebei/confindex.htm INTERNATIONAL COLLOQUIUM ON LAND USE MANAGEMENT, EROSION AND CARBON SEQUESTRATION: This colloquium will be held from 24-28 September 2002 in Montpellier, France. Separate sessions on a biological approach to soil and water conservation and soil erosion and carbon sequestration will be held. For more information contact: Eric Roose; tel: +33-0-467-41-62-65; fax: +33-0-467-41-62-94; e-mail: roose@mpl.ird.fr; Internet: http://www.ird.fr FIRST MEETING OF THE COMMITTEE FOR THE REVIEW OF THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE CONVENTION (CRIC): This meeting will take place from 18-29 November 2002 in Geneva. For more information contact: CCD Secretariat; tel: +49-228-815-2802; fax: +49-228-815- 2898/99; e-mail: secretariat@unccd.int; Internet: http://www.unccd.int/cop/cric1/menu.php CCD COP-6: This meeting is scheduled to take place from 19-31 October 2003 in Bonn, Germany, unless another country offers to host the meeting. For more information contact: CCD Secretariat; tel: +49-228-815-2800; fax: +49-228-815-2898/99; e-mail: secretariat@unccd.int; Internet: http://www.unccd.int FOURTH INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON LAND DEGRADATION AND DESERTIFICATION: This meeting will be held in 2004 in Murcia, Spain. For more information contact: Ángel Faz Cano; e-mail: angel.fazcano@upct.es 19TH INTERNATIONAL CONGRESS ON IRRIGATION AND DRAINAGE (ICID): This congress will be held in Beijing, China from 10-18 September 2005. For more information contact: Chinese National Committee on Irrigation and Drainage, No. 20 West Chegongzhuang Road, Beijing 100044, China; tel: +86-10-6841-5522/6841-6506; e-mail: cncid@iwhr.com FORESTS INTERNATIONAL EXPERT MEETING OF FOREST LANDSCAPES RESTORATION: This meeting will take place from 27 February - 2 March 2002 in San José, Costa Rica. Sponsored by IUCN, WWF and ITTO, the theme of this meeting is "Building Assets for People and Nature." For more information contact: Dagmar Timmer, IUCN; e-mail: forests@iucn.org or Stephanie Mansourian, WWF-International; e-mail: smansourian@wwfint.org SECOND SESSION OF THE UN FORUM ON FORESTS: UNFF-2 is scheduled to take place from 4-15 March 2002 at UN Headquarters in New York. This meeting will include a high-level ministerial segment. For more information contact: Mia Soderlund, UNFF Secretariat; tel: +1-212-963-3262; fax: +1-212-963 4260; e-mail: unff@un.org; Internet: http://www.un.org/esa/sustdev/forests.htm HIGH-LEVEL FORESTRY ROUNDTABLE AT THE SECOND SESSION OF THE UNFF: This meeting will be held at UN Headquarters in New York on 11 March 2002, during the UNFF-2. For more information contact Kanta Kumari; tel: +1-202-473-4260; fax: +1-202-522-3240; e-mail: kkumari@worldbank.org BRITISH COLUMBIA COMMUNITY FORESTRY FORUM - EXPLORING POLICY AND PRACTICE: This meeting will take place from 14-16 March 2002 in Victoria, Canada. The Forum is designed to facilitate discussion and information-sharing about community forestry. For more information contact: Brian Egan; tel: +1-250-472-5106; e-mail: info@cf-forum.org; Internet: http://www.cf-forum.org MCPFE PREPARATORY GROUP ON NATIONAL FOREST PROGRAMMES: This meeting will be held from 24-26 April 2002 in Riga, Latvia. It is convened by the Ministerial Conference on the Protection of Forests in Europe (MCPFE) and is open to participants and observers of the MCPFE. For more information contact: Peter Mayer, Liaison Unit Vienna; tel: +43-1-710-77-02; fax: +43-1-710-77-02- 13; e-mail: liaison.unit@lu-vienna.at; Internet: http://www.mcpfe.org MCPFE EXPERT LEVEL MEETINGS: The meetings will be held from 10-11 June and 7-8 October 2002 in Vienna, Austria. They are being convened by MCPFE and are open to participants and observers of the MCPFE. For more information contact: Peter Mayer, Liaison Unit Vienna; tel: +43-1-710-77-02; fax: +43-1-710-77-02-13; e-mail: liaison.unit@lu-vienna.at; Internet: http://www.mcpfe.org SESSIONS OF THE INTERNATIONAL TROPICAL TIMBER COUNCIL AND ASSOCIATE SESSIONS OF ITS COMMITTEES: The 32nd session of the International Tropical Timber Council will take place from 13-18 May 2002 in Bali, Indonesia, while the 33rd session will be held from 4-9 November 2002 in Yokohama, Japan. For more information contact: tel: +81-45-223-1110; e-mail: itto@itto.or.jp; Internet: http://www.itto.or.jp INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON PROTECTING NATURE ON PRIVATE LAND - FROM CONFLICTS TO AGREEMENTS: This conference will take place from 12-15 June 2002 in Lahti, Finland. The conference will discuss issues related to the collision of interests between nature conservation and land ownership. For more information contact: Päivi Tikka; tel: +358-9-191-58807; e-mail: paivi.tikka@helsinki.fi; Internet: http://www.efi.fi/events/2002/Protecting_Nature/ WILDLIFE SHRUB SYMPOSIUM XII: This meeting will take place from 12-16 August 2002 in Laramie, Wyoming, USA. Organized by the University of Wyoming, the symposium topic is "Seed and Soil Dynamics in Shrubland Ecosystems." For more information contact: Ann Hild, Symposium Chair; tel: +1-307-766-5471; e-mail: AnnHils@uwyo.edu; Internet: http://uwadmnweb.uwyo.edu/renewableresources/shrub_conf.htm FOURTH MINISTERIAL CONFERENCE ON THE PROTECTION OF FORESTS IN EUROPE: The fourth Ministerial Conference on the Protection of Forests in Europe will be held from 28-30 April 2003 in Vienna, Austria. The European ministers responsible for forests will take further decisions to promote the progress towards the protection and sustainable management of forests in Europe. The Conference will be held under the joint chairmanship of Austria and Poland and is open to participants and observers of the MCPFE. For more information contact: Peter Mayer, Liaison Unit Vienna; tel: +43-1- 710-77-02; fax: +43-1-710-77-02-13; e-mail: liaison.unit@lu-vienna.at; Internet: http://www.mcpfe.org 12TH WORLD FORESTRY CONGRESS: This meeting will take place from 21-28 September 2003 in Québec City, Québec, Canada. For more information visit: http://www.wfc2003.org/ HABITAT CONFERENCE ON PARTNERSHIP FOR URBAN DEVELOPMENT - NEW APPROACHES, NEW ACTORS FOR CHANGING URBAN POLICY: This international conference on urban development will be held in March 2002 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. For more information contact: Internet: http://www.inta-aivn.org/20-activities/Ethiopia.htm THE URBAN FORUM: This forum will take place from 29 April - 3 May 2002 in Nairobi, Kenya. It will focus on international cooperation in shelter and urban development and will serve as an advisory body to the UN-Habitat on these issues. For more information contact: Joseph Mungai; tel: +254-2-623133; e-mail: UrbanForum@unhabitat.org; Internet: http://www.unhabitat.org/uf STOCKHOLM PARTNERSHIPS FOR SUSTAINABLE CITIES EVENT: This event, which will include a conference and an exhibit along with a competition and award session, is scheduled for 5-8 June 2002 in Stockholm, Sweden. The event will showcase methods to achieve urban sustainability worldwide, and commemorate the 1972 UN Conference on the Human Environment. For more information contact: Adam Holmstrom; tel: +46-8-508-28017; e-mail: adam.holmstrom@partnerships.stockholm.se; Internet: http://www.partnerships.stockholm.se INTERGOVERNMENTAL ORGANIZATIONS SEVENTH SPECIAL SESSION OF THE UNEP GOVERNING COUNCIL/GLOBAL MINISTERIAL ENVIRONMENT FORUM: This meeting will take place from 13-15 February 2002 in Cartagena, Colombia. For more information contact: Secretary for Governing Council; tel: +254-2-623431; fax: +254-2-623929; e-mail: beverly.miller@unep.org; Internet: http://www.unep.org/governingbodies/gc/specialsessions/gcss_vii/ GEF REPLENISHMENT MEETING: A GEF replenishment meeting will take place from 27-28 February 2002 in Paris, France. For more information visit: http://www.gefweb.org/Replenishment/Schedule_of_Meetings/schedule_ of_meetings.html 14TH ANNUAL BANK CONFERENCE ON DEVELOPMENT ECONOMICS: This conference will be held from 29-30 April 2002 in Washington, DC. The Annual Bank Conference on Development Economics (ABCDE) presents and discusses new knowledge about development. For more information contact: Boris Pleskovic, conference organizer; fax: +1-202-522-0304; e-mail: abcde@worldbank.org; Internet: http://econ.worldbank.org/abcde/index.php OECD FORUM 2002: This Forum will take place from 13-15 May 2002 in Paris. The OECD Forum is an international public conference offering business, labor and civil society the opportunity to discuss key issues with government ministers and leaders of international organizations. With the overarching theme of "Taking Care of the Fundamentals: Security, Equity, Education and Growth," the Forum will allow participants to shape the outcome of the OECD annual ministerial summit meeting to be held on 15-16 May 2002. For more information contact: OECD Forum; fax: +33-0-1-44-30-63- 46; e-mail: oecd.forum@oecd.org; Internet: http://www1.oecd.org/forum2002/ 164TH SESSION OF THE UNESCO EXECUTIVE BOARD: This session will take place from 13-31 May 2002 at UNESCO Headquarters in Paris. For more information contact: UNESCO Secretariat; fax: +33-1-45- 685702; e-mail: secretariat-exb@unesco.org; Internet: http://www.unesco.org/exboard/dates.html GEF NGO CONSULTATIONS, COUNCIL MEETINGS AND GEF ASSEMBLY: The Global Environment Facility will be holding NGO consultations on 14 May 2002 prior to its next Council Meeting, which will take place from 15-17 May 2002 in Washington, DC. The GEF will also hold NGO consultations on 13 October 2002 before the Council meets from 14-15 October in Beijing, China. The GEF Assembly will convene from 16-18 October 2002 in Beijing. For more information contact: GEF Secretariat; tel: 1-202-473-0508; fax: +1-202-522- 3240/3245; e-mail: secretariatofgef@worldbank.org; Internet: http://www.gefweb.org UNDP/UNFPA EXECUTIVE BOARD MEETING: The Annual Session of the UNDP/UNFPA Executive Board will take place from 17-28 June 2002 in Geneva. For more information contact: UNDP; fax: +1-212-906-5634; Internet: http://www.undp.org/execbrd/dates2002.htm or UNFPA; fax: +1-212- 557-6416; Internet: http://www.unfpa.org/exbrd ANNUAL MEETINGS OF THE IMF/WORLD BANK GROUP: The annual meetings of the IMF/World Bank will take place from 1-2 October 2002 in Washington, DC, and from 23-24 September 2003 in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. For more information visit: http://www.imf.org/external/am/index.htm UNEP GOVERNING COUNCIL: The 22nd regular session of the UNEP Governing Council is scheduled for 3-7 February 2003 in Nairobi, Kenya. For more information contact: UNEP; tel: +254-2-621234; fax: +254-2-624489/90; e-mail: cpiinfo@unep.org; Internet: http://www.unep.org OCEANS AND COASTS SOLUTIONS TO COASTAL DISASTERS CONFERENCE 2002: This conference will be held 24-27 February 2002 in San Diego, California. The goals of the conference are to project future trends in coastal disaster occurrence and management options by examining past events, to identify gaps in information exchange between researchers and managers, and to offer potential solutions to close the gaps. For more information contact: Lesley Ewing; tel: +1-415-904-5291; e-mail: lewing@coastal.ca.gov; Internet: http://www.asce.org/conferences/cd2002/home.html INTERNATIONAL TECHNICAL WORKSHOP ON FISHERIES SUBSIDIES: This workshop will take place on 20 March 2002 in Geneva. Organized by UNEP, this event will occur prior to the next WTO Committee on Trade and the Environment meeting. For more information contact: Hussein Abaza, Economics and Trade Unit, UNEP; tel: +41-22-917- 8179; fax: +41-22-917-8076; e-mail: hussein.abaza@unep.ch 12TH MEETING OF THE STATES PARTIES TO THE UN CONVENTION ON THE LAW OF THE SEA: This meeting will be held from 16-26 April 2002 in New York. For more information contact: UN Division for Ocean Affairs and the Law of the Sea; tel: +1-212-963-3972; e-mail: doalos@un.org; Internet: http://www.un.org/Depts/los/index.htm 54TH ANNUAL MEETING OF THE INTERNATIONAL WHALING COMMISSION (IWC): This meeting will take place during the week starting Monday, 20 May 2002 in Shimonoseki, Japan. The Scientific Committee and Commission Committees and Working Groups will be meeting at the same venue. For more information contact: IWC Secretariat; tel: +44-12-2323-3971; e-mail: iwc@iwcoffice.org; Internet: http://www.iwcoffice.org MEETING ON MANAGING SHARED WATERS - TOWARDS SUSTAINABLE TRANSBOUNDARY COASTAL ECOSYSTEMS: This meeting will convene from 24-28 June 2002 in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. For more information contact: Managing Shared Waters; tel: +1-416-926-1907; fax: +1- 416-926-1601; e-mail: managing.shared.waters@pollutionprobe.org; Internet: http://www.pollutionprobe.org/managing.shared.waters/ CONFERENCE ON FISHERIES IN THE GLOBAL ECONOMY: This event will take place from 19-22 August 2002 in Wellington, New Zealand. Organized by the International Institute of Fisheries Economics and Trade (IIFET), this event will provide a forum for participants to consider the future management of fisheries. For more information contact: IIFET 2002 Organizer; tel: +64-4-389- 3487; fax: +64-4-389-3457: e-mail: bruce.shallard@xtra.co.nz; Internet: http://www.iifet2002.co FOURTH INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON ENVIRONMENTAL PROBLEMS IN COASTAL REGIONS - COASTAL ENVIRONMENT 2002: This conference will take place from 16-18 September 2002 in Rhodes, Greece. The fourth in this series, the conference will focus on topics that need to be recognized in order to prevent, alleviate, or minimize environmental problems, allowing for a balanced use of the coastal regions as a common resource around the world. For more information contact: Gabriella Cossutta, Conference Secretariat; tel: +44-238-029-3223; fax: +44-238-029-2853; e-mail: gcossutta@wessex.ac.uk; Internet: http://www.wessex.ac.uk/conferences/2002/coastal02/ SECOND INTERGOVERNMENTAL REVIEW MEETING ON THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE GPA: The second IGR meeting will be held in 2006. For more information contact: Veerle Vanderweerd, GPA Coordination Office; tel: +31-70-311-4460; fax:+31-70-345-6648; e-mail: gpa@unep.nl; Internet: http://www.gpa.unep.org POPULATION 35TH SESSION OF THE COMMISSION ON POPULATION AND DEVELOPMENT: This meeting will be held from 1-4 April 2002 at UN Headquarters in New York. It will address the issue of "Reproductive rights and reproductive health, with special reference to HIV/AIDS." The 36th Session in 2003 will focus on "Population, education and development." For more information contact: Population Division; tel: +1-212-963-3179; fax: +1-212-963-2147; Internet: http://www.un.org/esa/population/cpd/comm2002.htm 28TH SESSION OF THE COMMITTEE ON WORLD FOOD SECURITY: CFS-28 is tentatively scheduled to take place from 6-8 June 2002 in Rome, Italy, prior to the World Food Summit. For more information contact: Barbara Huddleston, FAO: e-mail: Barbara.Huddleston@fao.org; Internet: http://www.fao.org/unfao/bodies/cfs/default.htm WORLD FOOD SUMMIT: This meeting will be held from 10-13 June 2002 in Rome, Italy. Participants will review progress made towards the 1996 World Food Summit goal of reducing the number of hungry people by half by 2015, and consider ways to accelerate the process. For more information contact: fax: +39-06-570-55249; e-mail: food-summit@fao.org; Internet: http://www.fao.org/worldfoodsummit/ SECOND WORLD MEETING OF MOUNTAIN POPULATIONS: This meeting will take place from 17-21 September 2002 in Quito, Ecuador. Representatives of 115 countries will discuss the challenges facing mountain communities worldwide. For more information contact: e-mail: cedime@ecuanex.net.ec; Internet: http://www.mtnforum.org/calendar/events/0209wmma.htm SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT YOUTH EMPLOYMENT SUMMIT (YES) YOUTH FORUM: The YES Youth Forum is scheduled to coincide with the Annual Meeting of the World Economic Forum and will take place from 30 January – 2 February 2002 in New York. For more information contact: Christina Dimitrova, YES Secretariat; tel: +1-617-618-2741; fax: +1-617-969- 4902; e-mail: info@youthemploymentsummit.org; Internet: http://www.youthemploymentsummit.org/html/mainpage_h.htm WORLD SOCIAL FORUM: The second World Social Forum will take place from 31 January - 5 February 2002 in Porto Alegre, Brazil. The Forum will seek to help build a world based on solidarity, social justice and participatory political democracy, respecting cultural diversity and the environment. For more information visit: http://www.forumsocialmundial.org.br/eng/index.asp UN COMMISSION FOR SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT: The 40th Session of the UN Commission for Social Development will be held from 12-21 February 2002 in New York. The theme of the session will be integration of social and economic policy. For more information visit: http://www.un.org/esa/socdev/csd/2002.htm SECOND WORLD ASSEMBLY ON AGEING: This UN conference will be held in Madrid, Spain from 8-12 April 2002, 20 years after the Vienna World Assembly on Ageing. The meeting will review the outcome of the first Assembly, and will adopt a revised plan of action and long-term strategy on ageing. For more information contact: Alexandre Sidorenko, UN Programme on Ageing; e-mail: sidorenko@un.org; Internet: http://www.un.org/esa/socdev/ageing UN GENERAL ASSEMBLY SPECIAL SESSION ON CHILDREN: The UN General Assembly's Special Session on Children is planned for 8-10 May 2002 in New York. The meeting, previously scheduled for 19-21 September 2001, is a follow-up to the 1990 conference that set the guidelines for governments, interest groups and U.N. agencies to improve child education, healthcare and living conditions, with a focus on young girls and the poorest nations. For more information visit: http://www.unicef.org/specialsession/ INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE OF MOUNTAIN CHILDREN 2002: This conference will take place from 15-23 May 2002 in Uttaranchal, India. For more information contact: e-mail: catalyst@bol.net.in or rachnadd@nde.vsnl.com YOUTH EMPLOYMENT SUMMIT: This Summit will be held from 11-16 September 2002 in Alexandria, Egypt. Hosted by the Government of Egypt, the goal of the Youth Employment Summit (YES) is to launch a "Decade Campaign of Action so that an additional 500 million young adults, especially youth facing poverty, will have productive and sustainable livelihoods by the year 2012." For more information contact: Christina Dimitrova, YES Secretariat; tel: +1-617-618-2741; fax: +1-617-969-4902; e-mail: info@youthemploymentsummit.org; Internet: http://www.youthemploymentsummit.org/html/mainpage_h.htm TRADE AND ENVIRONMENT CONFERENCE ON FOREIGN DIRECT INVESTMENT AND ENVIRONMENT: This conference will be held from 7-8 February 2002 in Paris, France. Organized by the OECD, the conference aims to shed light on the broader linkages between FDI and the environment in the mining sector, an important sector for the economy in many developing countries, and where environmental concerns have frequently been raised. For more information visit: http://www.oecd.org/oecd/pages/home/displaygeneral/0,3380,EN- document-0-nodirectorate-no-20-21276-0,FF.html CONFERENCE ON SUSTAINABLE INVESTMENTS, GLOBAL NETWORK FOR ASIA (SIGN3 ASIA): This event will be held on 18 February 2002 in Seville, Spain. For more information contact: fax: +32-2-539-4815; e-mail: info@epe.be; Internet: http://www.epe.be/sign3/index.html WORKSHOP ON CAPACITY BUILDING ON ENVIRONMENT, TRADE AND DEVELOPMENT: This workshop will take place on 19 March 2002 in Geneva, Switzerland. The workshop aims to provide a forum for identifying capacity building activities needed to assist countries effectively engage in trade and environment negotiations, assess the environmental as well as the developmental implications of the WTO agreements, and develop and implement mutually supportive trade and environment policies. For more information contact: Division of Technology, Industry, and Economics; tel: +41-22-917-8243; fax: +41-22-917-8076; e-mail: etb@unep.ch; Internet: http://www.unep.ch/etu INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT IN THE NEW ROUND - TRADE, INVESTMENT AND ENVIRONMENT AFTER DOHA: This conference will take place from 13-14 May in London, UK. Organized by the Royal Institute of International Affairs, this conference will discuss the major issues arising from the Doha Declaration and look at what the new round will bring to the debate regarding multilateral environmental agreements, dispute settlement, institutional changes, investment and services, agriculture and fisheries, and the role and position of developing countries. For more information contact: Chatham House, London; tel: +44-20-7957- 5700; fax: 7957-5710; Internet: http://www.riia.org WETLANDS REGIONAL AND SUB-REGIONAL MEETINGS UNDER THE RAMSAR CONVENTION: Prior to the Eighth Conference of the Parties (COP-8) to the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands in 2002, a number of preparatory regional and sub-regional meetings are taking place. The West and Central Asia meeting is being held from 3-5 February in Tehran, Iran, the West Africa meeting from 19-21 March in Algiers, Algeria, and the Central/North Africa meeting is provisionally scheduled for 14-18 May in Nigeria. The Middle East meeting will be held in May in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, and the Neotropics and North America meeting will be held in Ecuador in July, exact dates to be set later. For more information visit: http://www.ramsar.org/cop8_regionalmeetings_schedule.htm WORLD WETLANDS DAY 2002: This event is held on 2 February each year. Government agencies, citizen groups and other stakeholders undertake actions aimed at raising public awareness of the values and benefits of wetlands and the Ramsar Convention. For more information visit: http://www.ramsar.org/wwd2002_index.htm RAMSAR CONVENTION STANDING COMMITTEE MEETINGS: The Ramsar Standing Committee subgroup on COP-8 will meet from 6-8 May 2002 in Gland, Switzerland. The 27th meeting will take place on 17 November 2002, prior to COP-8. For more information contact: Ramsar Secretariat, Gland, Switzerland; tel: +41-22-999-0170; e-mail: ramsar@ramsar.org; Internet: http://www.ramsar.org/meetings.htm RAMSAR CONVENTION ON WETLANDS COP-8: COP-8 is scheduled to convene in Valencia, Spain from 18-26 November 2002. The theme of this COP is "Wetlands: Water, Life, and Culture." For more information contact: Ramsar Secretariat, Gland, Switzerland; tel: +41-22-999- 0170; e-mail: ramsar@ramsar.org; Internet: http://www.ramsar.org/index_cop8.htm WILDLIFE 46TH MEETING OF THE STANDING COMMITTEE OF THE CONVENTION ON INTERNATIONAL TRADE IN ENDANGERED SPECIES (CITES): This meeting of the Standing Committee of CITES will be held from 12-15 March 2002 in Geneva, Switzerland. For more information contact: CITES Secretariat; tel: +41-22-917-8139; fax: +41-22-797-3417; e-mail: cites@unep.ch; Internet: http://www.cites.org/eng/cttee/standing/index.shtml SEVENTH INTERNATIONAL WILDLIFE LAW CONFERENCE: This conference will take place on 30 March 2002 in Washington, DC. The theme for the conference will be "The Convention on Biological Diversity: A Ten Year Report Card." For more information contact: William Burns; tel: +1-650-281-9126; fax: +1-801-838-4710; e-mail: asilwildlife@pacbell.net; Internet: http://eelink.net/~asilwildlife/programs2.shtml 18TH MEETING OF THE CITES ANIMALS COMMITTEE: This meeting will be held from 8-12 April 2002 in San José, Costa Rica. For more information contact: CITES Secretariat; tel: +41-22-917-8139; e-mail: cites@unep.ch; Internet: http://www.cites.org/eng/cttee/animals/index.shtml 12TH MEETING OF THE CITES PLANTS COMMITTEE: This meeting will take place from 13-17 May 2002 in Leiden, the Netherlands. For more information contact: CITES Secretariat; tel: +41-22-917-8139; e-mail: cites@unep.ch; Internet: http://www.cites.org/eng/cttee/plants/index.shtml 11TH MEETING OF THE CONVENTION ON MIGRATORY SPECIES (CMS) SCIENTIFIC COUNCIL: This meeting will take place from 14-17 September 2002 in Bonn, Germany. For more information contact: CMS Secretariat; tel: +49-228-815-2401/2; e-mail: cms@unep.de; Internet: http://www.wcmc.org.uk/cms/events.htm CMS COP-7: The seventh Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Migratory Species is scheduled to take place from 15-28 September 2002 in Bonn, Germany. The Second Meeting of the Parties to the African-Eurasian Waterbird Agreement (AEWA MOP-2) will also be held at this time. For more information on this meeting and others relating to the Convention on Migratory Species contact: CMS Secretariat, Bonn, Germany; tel: +49-228-815-2401/2; e-mail: cms@unep.de; Internet: http://www.wcmc.org.uk/cms/events.htm CITES COP-12: This meeting will take place from 3-15 November 2002 in Santiago, Chile. For more information contact: CITES Secretariat; tel: +41-22-917-8139; e-mail: cites@unep.ch; Internet: http://www.cites.org/eng/news/calendar.shtml FIFTH WORLD PARKS CONGRESS - BENEFITS BEYOND BOUNDARIES: This event will take place from 8-17 September 2003 in Durban, South Africa. The congress occurs once each decade and is sponsored by the IUCN. For more information visit: http://wcpa.iucn.org/wpc/wpc.html WOMEN INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON WOMEN, SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY FOR POVERTY ALLEVIATION: This conference will be held in Kathmandu, Nepal, from 4-6 March 2002, and will address issues such as environment and natural resources management, women and information technology, and rural/indigenous technology conservation and utilization. For more information contact: Conference Organizers; tel: +977-1-262741; fax: +977-1-547713; e-mail: kayodevi@hotmail.com; Internet: http://www.panasia.org.sg/nepalnet/ronastup.htm 46TH SESSION OF THE COMMISSION ON THE STATUS OF WOMEN: This meeting will convene from 4-15 March 2002 at the UN Headquarters in New York. For more information contact: Division for the Advancement of Women; fax: +1-212-963-3463; e-mail: daw@un.org; Internet: http://www.un.org/womenwatch/daw/csw/46sess.htm GLOBAL CONFERENCE ON CELEBRATING MOUNTAIN WOMEN: This conference will be held from 28-31 May 2002 in Kathmandu, Nepal. This event will give mountain women a forum through which to articulate their concerns and share experiences and ideas about the future of mountain livelihoods and cultures. For more information contact: Ojaswi Josse; tel: +977-1-525313x418; fax: 524509; e-mail: ojaswi@icimod.org.np; Internet: http://www.mtnforum.org/calendar/events/0205mwaa.htm 27TH CEDAW SESSION: This CEDAW session will be held from 3-21 June 2002 at the UN Headquarters in New York. For more information contact: Women's Rights Unit; fax: +1-212-963-3463; e-mail: connorsj@un.org; Internet: http://www.un.org/womenwatch/daw/cedaw/ WOMEN'S WORLD 2002 - EIGHTH INTERNATIONAL INTERDISCIPLINARY CONGRESS ON WOMEN: This meeting will be held from 21-26 July 2002 in Kampala, Uganda. The congress theme is "Gendered Worlds: Gains and Challenges" and the sub-themes have been selected to ensure special focus on African Perspectives, Young Voices, Celebrating Multiculturalism and Diversity, and North-South Perspectives. For more information visit: http://www.makerere.ac.ug/womenstudies/congress2/index.htm STAFF Editor: Malena Sell malena@iisd.org Assistant Editor: Prisna Nuengsigkapian prisna@iisd.org Managing Editor: Langston James ''Kimo'' Goree VI kimo@iisd.org Proofreader/advisor: Chris Spence chris@iisd.org Submissions, corrections, requests for subscription information and correspondence should be sent to the editors at malena@iisd.org. The opinions expressed in /linkages/journal/ are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of IISD and our funders. Excerpts from /linkages/journal/ may be used in other publications with appropriate academic citation. /linkages/journal/ may not be reproduced, reprinted or posted to any system or service without specific permission from the International Institute for Sustainable Development info@iisd.ca. This limitation includes distribution via Usenet News, bulletin board systems, mailing lists, print media and broadcast. For more information, send a message to malena@iisd.org The Sustaining Donors of IISD Reporting Services publications, including Earth Negotiations Bulletin and /linkages/journal/, are the Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Government of Canada (through CIDA), the United States (through USAID), the Swiss Agency for Environment, Forests and Landscape (SAEFL), the United Kingdom (through the Department for International Development -DfID, and the Foreign & Commonwealth Office), the European Commission (DG-ENV), the Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and the Government of Germany (through the German Federal Ministry of Environment - BMU, and the German Federal Ministry of Development Cooperation - BMZ). General Support for the Bulletin during 2002 is provided by the Ministries of Foreign Affairs and Environment of Finland, the Government of Australia, the Ministry of Environment and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Sweden, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade of New Zealand, the Ministries of Foreign Affairs and Environment of Norway, Swan International, and the Japan Environment Agency (through the Institute for Global Environmental Strategies – IGES).