SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT FOR EUROPE AND THE WORLD

HISTORY

• 1987• The World Commission on Environment and

Development (WCED) was appointed by the UN in 1983 to "improve well-being in the short-term without threatening the local and global environment in the long term". The Commission was chaired by Norwegian Prime-Minister Gro Harlem Brundland, and its "Brundland Report" was published in 1987.

• 1992• Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. United Nations

Conference on Environment and Development (also known as UNCED or the Earth Summit). They adopted Agenda 21, the Rio Declaration on Environment and Development, and the Statement of principles for the Sustainable Management of Forests.

• 1997

• New York, Special Session of the General Assembly to review and appraise the implementation of Agenda 21.

• 2001

• In June 2001, the European Council at Göteborg discussed "A Sustainable Europe for a better world: A European Strategy for Sustainable Development", proposed by the European Commission.

• 2002• Johannesburg Summit 2002 - the World Summit on

Sustainable Development -  brought together tens of thousands of participants, including heads of State and Government, national delegates and leaders from non-governmental organizations (NGOs), businesses and other major groups to focus the world's attention and direct action toward meeting difficult challenges, including improving people's lives and conserving our natural resources in a world that is growing in population, with ever-increasing demands for food, water, shelter, sanitation, energy, health services and economic security.

• 2005 - 2015

• New York, General Assembly, Adoption of the UN Millennium Goals. By the year 2015 all 191 United Nation Member States have pledged to meet these goals which range from halving extreme poverty to halting the spread of HIV/AIDS and providing universal primary education.