scientific and technical meeting on strengthening the scientific base of unep:

Intergovernmental Consultation on Strengthening the Scientific Base of the United Nations Environment Programme

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Scientific and Technical Meeting on Strengthening the Scientific Base of

UNEP: A Brief Summary Report

Thomas Rosswall

International Council for Science (ICSU)

Intergovernmental Consultation on Strengthening the Scientific Base of the United Nations Environment Programme

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The Context

• Important UNEP initiative

• Science is essential to identify environmental problems and develop solutions

• Policy development should be based on best available knowledge

• Scientific research – monitoring – assessment - policy

Intergovernmental Consultation on Strengthening the Scientific Base of the United Nations Environment Programme

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Central Issues

• Input necessary from natural, social, engineering and health sciences

• Partnerships are essential: - With the international science community (e.g ICSU and TWAS) - With other components of the UN system (e.g., UNESSCCO) - With ongoing and planned assessments - With Multilateral Environmental Agreements

Intergovernmental Consultation on Strengthening the Scientific Base of the United Nations Environment Programme

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The Survey

• Provides an excellent point of departure

• Results are important both for the scientific and policy communities

• Question 3 identifies needs and gaps to be linked with the 5 clusters of Box 1

• Rich discussion in the Scientific and Technical Meeting

• Broad participation in the consultation

Intergovernmental Consultation on Strengthening the Scientific Base of the United Nations Environment Programme

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Recommendations

Rich input to UNEP Secretariat but this report focuses on two issues

• Interlinkages of drivers of change and sectors

• Strengthening the scientific credibility of the GEO process

Intergovernmental Consultation on Strengthening the Scientific Base of the United Nations Environment Programme

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Interlinkages

A targeted report linked to the GEO process

• Mainstreaming environment into the development agenda – MDG and JPI

• Provide an overview of the assessment “landscape”

• Meet objectives of MEAs (partnerships)

• Build on assessment interlinkages reports (e.g., IPCC, CBD, MA, GEF-STAP)

Intergovernmental Consultation on Strengthening the Scientific Base of the United Nations Environment Programme

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Interlinkages (cont.)

• Address spatial (global, regional, national) and temporal scales

• Include capacity building as an essential component

• Adaptive management and social learning

• UNEP ED to set up an advisory committee to focus on scope, key questions (based on questionnaire), authors and time table

Intergovernmental Consultation on Strengthening the Scientific Base of the United Nations Environment Programme

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Interlinkages (cont.)

• Ensure linkages to the GEO process and products

• Build on the needs and gaps identified in the questionnaire survey

Intergovernmental Consultation on Strengthening the Scientific Base of the United Nations Environment Programme

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Science and GEO

It is essential to strengthen the scientific credibility of GEO

• Strengthen linkages with other assessments and the international scientific community (e.g., ICSU and its SCOPE)

• Ensure that a sufficient number of collaborative centres with high scientific credibility are involved

Intergovernmental Consultation on Strengthening the Scientific Base of the United Nations Environment Programme

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Science and GEO (cont.)

• Address multiple scales

• Improve the review process

• For capacity building, collaborate with the various institutions involved and link to, e.g., UN Decade on education for sustainable development

• As one example, for GEO4, look specifically climate change and biodiversity interlinkages

Intergovernmental Consultation on Strengthening the Scientific Base of the United Nations Environment Programme

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To strengthen the scientific base of UNEP is essential, but this consultation was just a

first step in a necessary process.

Much more is needed!

Science must become more policy relevant and the scientific community is ready to

contribute.