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FHSMUN 41: WE THE PEOPLES OF THE TWENTY-FIRST CENTURY UNITED

NATIONS

UNITED NATIONS SUSTAINABLE INNOVATION FORUM 2020

POST PARIS 2015 DEVELOPMENTS: INVESTMENT, SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

FOR INCLUSIVE AND SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT; CLIMATE CHANGE

MITIGATION AND STAKEHOLDER PARTICIPATION IN CLIMATE FINANCE

INITIATIVES1

Authors: Casey Morell, Brian D. Sutliff & Lara Herzog with research contributed by Nathan

Bohn

Sustainable Development Goals 7, 9, 11, 12 & 13:

“7) Ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all.

9) Build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialization and

foster innovation.

11) Make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable.

12) Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns.

13) Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts.”

Procedural Note:

Sustainable Innovation Forum 2020 (SIF 20) will operate in a more informal, collegial

atmosphere, and may feature a number of guest speakers and/or academic and innovator panels

highlighting specific aspects of investment, science and technology for inclusive and sustainable

human development. Delegates to SIF 20 will formulate a series of recommendations and

working ideas that will be shared with the delegates to the Conference of the Parties (COP 26).

In the afternoon and evening sessions on Sunday March 1, 2020, delegates from both committees

will work collaboratively in a special joint session. During the final morning session of Monday

March 2, 2020, delegates in each committee will issue their findings. Whenever possible,

national delegates to the two committees will wish to collaborate with their fellow national

representatives to ensure a smooth process of deliberation and cooperation. In keeping with the

theme for FHSMUN 41, delegates to SIF 20 need to seek ways to improve stakeholder

1 Date of Publication: January 7, 2020.

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participation throughout the processes of climate change mitigation, including financing for

sustainable development.

Introduction

When examining sustainable consumption and production, economics plays a crucial

role: nation-states and the corporations that call them home often see little incentive to spend

capital and resources in order to improve their environmental standing unless there is some kind

of net positive benefit. For example, although the amount of carbon emissions related to energy

production by nuclear energy is far lower than that of a coal- or gas-fired power plant,2,3 the cost

per kilowatt-hour for such electricity is higher than that of a fossil fuel powered plant given

certain economic conditions.4 Though this is but one example, it is an exemplar of how high-

cost, high-reward situations in environmental policy are not as readily accepted as ones with

lower costs and dubious, if any reward.

Developing sustainable energy sources and "green" technologies and jobs are frequently

cited as critical environmental policy priorities for governments around the world. As the 2008

oil price shocks and turmoil in international energy markets demonstrated, global energy needs

continue to dramatically impact national and international development initiatives. When the

price for a barrel of Brent crude oil topped $145 in July 2008, world leaders, business executives,

community activists, and ordinary citizens were forced to confront the need for sustainable

energy in very stark terms. Even though oil prices are now approximately 50% below their all-

time high5, the need for sustainable energy remains critical throughout the entire world.

To realize truly sustainable development worldwide, the international community and all

of its relevant stakeholders must commit themselves to successfully integrating sustainable

energy initiatives. In the aftermath of the Copenhagen Accord of December 2009, and its follow-

up conferences (including COP19, held in November 2013, and COP20, held in December

2014), the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), the United Nations Development

Programme (UNDP) and other relevant stakeholders must exhibit considerable creativity and

leadership to provide clearer guidelines for effective sustainable energy production and

consumption. The issue of sustainable development is especially important as we further

implement the Paris Agreement at the Conference of the Parties (COP26) in Glasgow in

November 2020. Recent data estimate that climate mitigation costs could reach four percent of

the world's total gross domestic product by 2030 if nothing is currently done.6

Delegates to the Sustainable Innovation Forum 2020 (SIF 20) are tasked with assessing

the following priority areas: climate finance; energy transition; and sustainable consumption,

production, and transportation. Binding these priority areas are the need to improve public-

2 National Renewable Energy Laboratory (U.S.), "Life cycle assessment harmonization results and

findings," 21 July 2014, http://www.nrel.gov/analysis/sustain_lca_results.html. 3 U.S. Energy Information Administration, "How much carbon dioxide is produced per kilowatt-hour when

generating electricity with fossil fuels?" 29 February 2016, https://www.eia.gov/tools/faqs/ faq.cfm?id=74&t=11. 4 International Energy Agency and Nuclear Energy Agency, "Projected costs of generating electricity,"

2015, https://www.iea.org/Textbase/npsum/ElecCost2015SUM.pdf. 5 New York Times, “Commodities”, January 7, 2020. 6 Alex Morales, “Climate Protection May Cost 4% of World GDP by 2030: UN” BloombergBusiness 16 January

2014

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private partnerships, to harmonize innovations to ensure inclusive, sustainable human

development, and to mitigate the most harmful effects stemming from climate change.

Climate Finance:

Conventional wisdom frequently posits that climate finance initiatives will remain

unattractive to private investors, suggesting that governments must frequently take the lead.

Governments are critical investors, and often provide the initial capital and/or regulatory and

taxation arrangements needed to underpin innovative initiatives and technologies. In the context

of a prospective global economic slowdown in 20207, and potential recession on the horizon,

governments may become wary of investing in riskier technologies. Private capital generally,

and venture capitalists more specifically, may be willing to tolerate higher risk if prospective

returns of investment (ROI) are greater than more conventional investments. Matt Dittrich notes

that “since 2012, the total amount of uninvested private equity and venture capital dollars (‘dry

powder’) globally has set a record each year. In 2017, the figure climbed to $1.7 trillion

[USD]”.8

Within the arena of climate financing, 3 prominent classes of assets and/or investment

mechanisms include: climate-aligned bonds, such as the Climate Bond Initiative (CBI);

municipal bonds; and real estate investment trusts (REITs). Climate-aligned bonds focus capital

investments towards projects that are certified as “low-carbon and climate-resilient”, particularly

in the fields transport and energy; as of 2015, nearly 85% of the outstanding $694 billion of

climate-aligned bonds were allocated to transportation (66%) and energy (18%).9

Municipal bonds are issued by cities and other public entities; they do not have to be

certified in the same manner as climate-aligned bonds in terms of their environmental impacts,

but many national, regional, and local governments increasingly require environmental impact

studies and/or assessments of municipally funded projects. Real estate investment trusts (REITs)

“have the potential to unlock capital in small-scale infrastructure” and “can also be bundled to

promote holistic, sustainable infrastructure projects that develop different aspects of specific

communities”10, including integrated mass-transit systems, such as the MUNI bus system in San

Francisco.11

While economics plays a major role in this field, actual, actionable policy is just as

important. Countries need to enact legislation to address environmental issues in order for

businesses and citizens alike to act. Consider the case of emissions management. Some countries

and supranational organizations like the European Union (EU) have created vibrant emissions

trading schemes. These schemes cap the amount of greenhouse gases that can be emitted from

within the country’s borders and requires polluters to hold permits to allow them to emit a set

amount of gases; if the polluter emits more than its permits allow, it must purchase permits from

those firms that are emitting below their caps. This is sometimes referred to as cap-and-trade.

7 Larry Elliott, “Global recession a serious danger in 2020, says UN”, Guardian, September 25, 2019. 8 Matt Dittrich, “Sustainable Private Equity and Venture Capital”, p. 107, from Cary Krosinky & Todd Cort,

Sustainable Innovation and Impact, Routledge, New York, 2018. 9 Ella Warshauer, “Financing Mechanisms for Sustainable Infrastructure”, p. 78, from Krosinky & Cort, Sustainable

Innovation and Impact, 2018. 10 Warshauer, pp. 81-82. 11 San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency, “Sustainability and Climate Action: Planning for a healthy,

resilient and equitable city”, 2020. Found at: https:www.sfmta.com/sustainability-and-climate-action-0.

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Another means of dealing with emissions (CO2 especially) is by implementing a

Pigouvian-type of tax12 on emitters. By taxing emissions at a flat rate per ton, it incentivizes

producers to find new, more environmentally-friendly ways to produce their goods because the

subsequent emissions reduction acts as a tax cut. In some instances, such as a carbon tax that was

approved in Australia, this type of scheme is used as an intermediary before shifting to a full cap-

and-trade mechanism. Australia’s carbon tax, which was introduced during the summer of 2012,

put a price of $23 AUD on every ton of carbon emitted; by 2015, the scheme was due to evolve

into a full emissions trading scheme.13 However, following a general election, the tax was

repealed in 2014 before fully coming online,14 illustrating how changes in domestic governments

can have unexpected impacts on environmental policies.

Effectively pricing carbon requires sufficient coverage of carbon emissions by the pricing

and/or taxation mechanisms, appropriate oversight and/or enforcement of the carbon

pricing/taxing regime, and transparency in how the revenue raised will be used. Currently,

approximately 15% of total carbon emissions are covered by carbon price mechanisms, and even

with China’s anticipated participation, the percentages are expected to reach at most 25% of

global carbon emissions15, a significant but perhaps insufficient total to successfully mitigate

climate impacts. In the wake of the recent devastating wildfires in Australia, Prime Minister

Scott Morrison announced that Australia would commit at least $2 billion AUD to recovery

efforts16; many in Australia and the international community are now questioning if Australia

would be willing to contemplate a new carbon tax, particularly in light of the International

Monetary Fund’s (IMF) estimate that the tax would need to be at least $111 AUD ($75 USD) per

ton.17

Energy Transition:

Learning from the past

The Montréal Protocol, first ratified in 1987,18 has been hailed as a success in the effort to

reduce the emission of chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) and to reduce the size of the hole in the

ozone layer.19 In contrast, the Kyoto Protocol, which came into force in 2005 and was designed

12 A Pigouvian tax taxes negative externalities, or deleterious side effects of doing something positive, such

as manufacturing products; in this instance, the emission of greenhouses gases such as CO2 is

considered a negative externality of production. 13 “Carbon tax gets green light in Senate,” Sydney Morning Herald, 8 November 2011, http://www.smh.com.au/business/carbon-tax-gets-green-light-in-senate-20111108-1n4rp.html. 14 Department of the Environment and Energy (Australia), "Repealing the carbon tax," https://www.environment.gov.au/climate-change/repealing-carbon-tax. 15 Jeffrey Ball, “Why Carbon Pricing Isn’t Working”, Foreign Affairs, July/August 2018. 16 Associated Press, “Australia to Pay ‘Whatever It Takes’ to Fight Wildfires”, January 5, 2020. 17 Jack Derwin, “The IMF Reckons Australia needs a carbon tax if it’s going to hit its Paris targets – and says we

likely can’t hike it quickly enough”, Business Insider Australia, October 11, 2019. Found at:

https://www.businessinsider.com.au/carbon-tax-australia-imf-price-2019-10. 18 Chasek, Pamela S., David L. Downie, and Janet Welsh Brown, Global Environmental Politics, 4 ed.,

Cambridge, Mass., Westview Press, 2006: p. 110. 19 Fahey, D.W., "Twenty Questions and Answers about the Ozone Layer: 2006 Update," appendix to

Scientific Assessment of Ozone Depletion: 2006, Global Ozone Research and Monitoring Project — Report No. 50, World Meteorological Organization, Geneva, Switzerland: 2007, p.

Q34.

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to reduce carbon emissions, was not as successful in achieving its goals20; the hope today is that

the 2015 Paris Agreement will be implemented far more successfully and thoroughly.

Montréal Protocol

CFCs were developed in the early 20th century and had become ubiquitous due to their

versatility and their practical applications. However, during the 1970s, scientists discovered that

CFCs were potentially very damaging to the environment and specifically affected the ozone

layer. Publicity surrounding the negative effects of CFCs — especially including the possibility

of an increase in skin cancer rates due to a depleted ozone layer — increased in the United States

as a result, and consumers showed their distaste for environmentally harmful products by

refusing to buy goods that contained CFCs.21,22

The subsequent discovery of a serious threat in the form of ozone depletion (commonly

referred to as the "hole in the ozone layer") over Antarctica roughly the size of the United

States.23,24 As a result, the countries that previously blocked any type of ban on CFCs from

coming into effect became suddenly amenable to taking action, and the Montréal Protocol was

signed in 1987, "[reducing the] production and use of the five most widely used CFCs by 50

percent." The Protocol was strengthened in 1990, being amended to ban the production of CFCs

by the year 2000.25 Additionally, a financial incentive was given to India, China, and other

developing nations in the form of the Montréal Fund, which gives money for countries to invest

in CFC-free industries and productions.26

The Montréal Protocol has thus far proved to be effective because there was a great

financial incentive for the United States, and ultimately other countries, to comply with its

provisions simply because it had already accepted most of them into domestic policy; as a result,

the cost to retrofit industry to conform to international law was minimal at best. In addition,

because the United States had acted as the spearhead for the prohibition of the production of

CFCs, it was the first to develop alternatives to the chemicals, and licensing them to other

countries would provide a financial windfall if no one was able to use CFCs any longer. The

latest developments from the Montréal Protocol are the planned phaseouts of hydrofluorocarbons

(HFCs), through the Kigali Amendment, and hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs), found in many

refrigerants and cooling systems, through the Montreal Amendment, with more highly developed

countries phasing out HCFCs by 2020 and developing countries eliminating their production

and/or usage by 2030.27

Currently, the United States is the second-largest emitter of carbon in the world.28 Given

these statistics and the fact that the country is a developed country built upon industries that are

heavily reliant upon carbon, the cost for the United States alone to cut its carbon emissions

20 Chasek, et. al., pp. 122 — 126. 21 Ibid., p. 10. 22 Chasek, et. al., p. 108. 23 Sunstein, p. 11. 24 Fahey, p. Q22. 25 Chasek, et. al, p. 110. 26 Faure, Michael and Jürgen Lefevere, "Compliance with Global Environmental Policy," The Global

Environment, 2 ed., Regina S. Axelrod, David Leonard Downie, Norman J. Vig, Washington, DC:

CQ Press, 2005: pp. 170—171. 27 United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), “About Montreal Protocol”, 2019. Found at:

http://web.unep.org/ozonaction/who-we-are/about-montreal-protocol 28 World Bank, "CO2 emissions (kt)," 2016, http://data.worldbank.org/indicator/EN.ATM.CO2E.KT.

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would be astronomically high, whereas another major polluter like China may not see as great of

a cost given their current development. The Department of Energy estimated in 2002 that

adopting the then Kyoto Protocol would mean that the gross domestic product of the United

States would shrink by $14 billion in 2010 and that the economy would have lost anywhere

between $32 billion to $62 billion by 2010 and a figure between $46 billion to a whopping $102

billion by 2020.29 While these or similar figures may have been slightly palatable during the

Clinton administration, as the economy was growing, they certainly do not have a luster now

given the recovery from the economic crisis of the late 2000s and the prospects for future

economic challenges.

The stated goal of the previous Kyoto Protocol was for countries to reduce their overall

emissions targets based on 1990 levels. While some countries have been able to achieve this

goal, carbon emissions globally are rising faster than ever. The Organisation for Economic

Cooperation and Development's International Energy Agency reports that

"the 2005 concentration of CO2 (379 [parts per million by volume]) was about 35%

higher than a century and a half ago, with the fastest growth occurring in the last ten

years (1.9 ppmv/year in the period 1995 — 2005).30"

Such figures do not bode well if the successes of the Kyoto Protocol were trying to be measured;

in fact, they would point to a protocol that, while good intentioned, did not live up to its promise

of reducing carbon emissions on a global scale.

To realize truly sustainable development worldwide, the international community and all

of its relevant stakeholders must commit themselves to successfully integrating sustainable

energy initiatives. In the aftermath of the Copenhagen Accord of December 2009, and its follow-

up conferences (including COP25, held in December 2019), UNEP, the UNDP and other

relevant stakeholders must exhibit considerable creativity and leadership to provide clearer

guidelines for effective sustainable energy production and consumption. The issue of sustainable

development is especially important as we move forward with implementation of 2015 Paris

Agreement in Glasgow, Scotland in November 2020. Recent data estimate that climate

mitigation costs could reach four percent of the world's total gross domestic product by 2030 if

nothing is currently done.31

Current status

The world's current production and use models of energy are clearly not sustainable. The

most widely used fuel sources of coal, natural gas, and oil are not only being rapidly depleted,

but the damage being done to the environment is creating serious long-term impediments to

human development. Expanding the productive capacities and usage of more sustainable and/or

renewable energy sources, including solar, wind, and biomass, will require critical investments

on the parts of both governments and private sector firms and a previously unrealized

commitment to distributing the benefits of these technologies as broadly as possible.

Concurrently, this development must take place in such a way that it does not impede the

economic development of lesser-developed countries (LDCs) lest it pique their ire. For example,

29 United States Department of Energy, "Kyoto—Comparing Cost Estimates for the Kyoto Protocol," 16

July 2002, http://www.eia.doe.gov/oiaf/kyoto/cost.html/. 30 Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development/International Energy Agency, p. 7. 31 Alex Morales, “Climate Protection May Cost 4% of World GDP by 2030: UN” BloombergBusiness 16 January

2014

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a large part of China's rapid economic and industrial development can be tied directly to the use

of coal, which is cheap and abundantly available in the country. Trying to wean a country like

China off coal while also maintaining its high economic growth could prove troublesome and

would require immense cooperation and discussion.

Importantly, energy markets are vital hubs of economic activity and remain integral to

any successful development initiatives. But the fuel price shocks of the late 2000s demonstrated

how poorly-regulated markets combined with price speculation can imperil development

initiatives worldwide, not to mention the overall volatility of these markets. To avoid a repeat of

the most recent fuel price shock, all relevant stakeholders must coordinate their efforts to provide

safe, reliable, and affordable energy that is ultimately renewable and sustainable. As major

energy consumers including national governments and major corporations seek to diversify their

available energy options, there will be increasing demand, over time, for energy sources that are

ecologically friendly and that do not require the intensive drilling and mining operations that

dominate coal, natural gas, and oil extraction. Currently, however, coal, natural gas, oil, and

nuclear power comprise the dominant forms of energy that are produced and consumed around

the world; switching from this toxic mix will require critical investments, political will, and an

increased awareness of the importance of sustainable development.

For the sake of the climate, developing countries like China and India simply cannot

follow the same fossil fuel-based industrialization paths the United States and Europe followed.

Carbon lock-in, a concept introduced by climate scientist Gregory C. Unruh referring to market

and policy failures that encourage the use of development options, causes continued use of non-

renewable fossil fuels despite their apparent toll on the environment. Sustainable development

options must therefore be affordable, or the use of fossil fuel-based energy systems will continue

because of their low pecuniary cost.32 Herein lies the importance of discussion of how to finance

climate-friendly development though the Green Climate Fund (GCF) and other avenues as well

as measures to ensure the efficacy of these investments. While deliberating on the topic, both

sides of the financial coin are of vital importance to the UN System’s, including the Sustainable

Innovation Forum (SIF 20), commitment to sustainable development.

Sustainable energy options

As the international community explores the best mix of energy options to meet the

growing demand for energy, it is imperative that countries, companies, and individuals seek to

reduce their overall energy consumption. Soaring energy demands are rapidly proving

unsustainable, but the trend in energy consumption continues to move upward each year.

Renewable sources are providing greater amounts of energy every year, but they still comprise a

very small percentage of total global energy use. Persistent threats to oil supplies in particular,

however, will provide an enduring impetus to switch from fossil fuels to renewable sources.

From the mid-1990s through the middle part of the 2000s, the use of wind power grew by an

average of 29% annually while oil averaged a 1.7% annual growth rate, natural gas 2.5%, and

coal 2.3%.33

32 Gregory Unruh, “Understanding carbon lock-in” Energy Policy 28, no. 12 (2000): 817-30. Accessed 26

September 2015 33 Lester R. Brown, Plan B 2.0: Rescuing a Planet Under Stress and a Civilization in Trouble, Earth Policy

Institute, New York: 2006 p. 187.

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Highly developed countries including Germany, the Netherlands, Spain, the United

Kingdom, and the United States have developed the greatest markets thus far for wind power, in

part because the giant steel turbines used to generate wind power represent expensive initial

investments that are not always easily affordable for developing countries. Nevertheless, China

and India rank among the 10 leading producers of wind power in the world.34 In fact, according

to the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and its Renewable Energy Policy

Network for the 21st Century (REN 21), "China surpassed the US in 2009 as the country with the

greatest investment in clean energy"35; today, the Chinese renewable energy sector generates 125

gigawatts of solar power, significantly more than the US and Germany combined (87

gigawatts).36 Moreover, the UK set a target of 10% of all power coming from renewable sources

by 2010; recent revisions to British law and policy added targets of 15% of energy from

renewable sources by 2015 and 20% by 2020. Unfortunately, there remain contentious debates

between the advocates of wind power and a number of opponents, including local people who

believe that the giant steel turbines destroy "picturesque" landscapes.37

Nevertheless, wind power generates reliable income for farmers in many communities

around the world, particularly in regions such as the American Midwest. Lester Brown notes that

"farmers, with no investment on their part, typically receive $3,000-$5,000 a year in royalties

from the local utility for siting a single, large, advanced-design wind turbine, which occupies a

quarter-acre of land. This land would produce 40 bushels of corn worth $120 or, in ranch

country, beef worth perhaps $15."38 While global food prices have risen in recent years, these

residual incomes from allowing a utility outfit to install and maintain a single turbine on a very

small parcel of land still vastly outweigh the potential agricultural income that might be realized

only after considerable effort on the farmer's part. Furthermore, wind power can be converted to

electricity that can be stored in new batteries and/or fuel cells, particularly in the case of plug-in

gas-electric hybrid cars that are currently under development. National governments may find it

in their direct interest to dramatically scale up their existing investments in wind power as well

as to develop appropriate tax incentives and even subsidies to encourage greater private sector

development in wind power. Some technology firms, such as Google have driven this private

sector development; in January 2014, the Internet firm announced it was spending US$75 million

to invest in a wind farm in Texas, its fifteenth such renewable energy project.39

Additionally, solar power is quite frequently cited as a keystone to long-term efforts to

generate truly renewable and sustainable energy supplies. Governments have typically taken the

lead by either building solar power generating plants or by providing loans, subsidies, and tax

credits to businesses and consumers that use the money to install solar panels. Japan and

Germany both initiated highly successful solar roof programs in the 1990s, providing critical

boosts to national manufacturers of solar panels and establishing both countries as world leaders

in solar power generation.40 Several North African governments, including Algeria, Egypt,

Libya, and Morocco, are all investing heavily in new solar power generating plants with an eye

toward not only providing cheap, renewable energy for their domestic populations but to

34 BBC News, “UK wind power reaches milestone” 9 February 2007. 35 UNEP Renewable Energy Policy Network for the 21st Century (REN 21), “Global Trends in Green Energy 2009:

New Power Capacity from Renewable Sources Tops Fossil Fuels Again in US, Europe” 15 July 2010 p. 2. 36 Amy Myers Jaffe, “Green Giant”, Foreign Affairs, March/April 2018. 37 BBC News, “Where the wind farm war is raged.” 13 March 2009. 38 Lester R. Brown, Plan B 2.0 2006 p. 191. 39 Climate Change News, “Google to invest $75m in second Texas wind farm” ClimateHome 15 January 2014 40 Lester R. Brown, Plan B 2.0 2006 p. 195.

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eventually selling the energy to countries such as the United Kingdom.41 Critics still point to the

difficulty of storing the power generated during daylight hours to provide energy during the

winter or at night, but solar cells are becoming more affordable and capable of storing more

energy each year. Providing more solar cells throughout the developing world must be a long-

term priority for governments and the international community; as Lester Brown reminds us, the

"principal obstacle to the spread of solar cell installations in villages is not the cost per se, but the

lack of small-scale credit programs to finance them. If this credit shortfall is quickly overcome,

village purchases of solar cells will soar."42

Some opposition to these types of plans comes – perhaps not surprisingly – from private

industry, such as power utilities with heavy investment in already extant power generation and

distribution supplies. In many areas, utility providers have near or total monopolies over supply

and generation. For example, a utility that has spent millions of dollars on natural gas generation

will not want to allow consumers to place solar cells on their roofs to generate their own

electricity because it takes customers away from their electric grid – and their profit margins. An

example of this is currently playing out in the US state of Nevada, which has some of the highest

amounts of consistent sunshine annually. Large industries, like casino-resorts along the Las

Vegas Strip, have lobbied the state's power monopoly to exit the power grid so they can generate

their own electricity through solar power. The utility refuses and demands compensation in

return for lost revenue. Similarly, a power plant/source monopoly sometimes refuses to expand a

program in which private households can place solar panels on their property and sell excess

electricity back to the power grid, arguing it will raise rates per kilowatt-hour for other

customers.43 Until widespread cooperation between consumers wishing to use alternative sources

of energy and the utilities that previously had them as customers exists – either through law or

other incentive – such obstacles must be overcome.

Unsurprisingly, national governments will need to take the lead in providing sustainable

energy credits, but international financial institutions (IFIs), such as the World Bank, and non-

governmental organizations (NGOs) may also play critical roles in providing this needed

financing. One such IFI is the Danish pension fund, which is investing money into alternative

energy projects in developing markets alongside the Danish Investment Fund for Developing

Countries.44 Not only can these state-backed initiatives provide a solid return on investment, but

they can also represent an extension of so-called "soft power," a form of power that involves a

country’s ability to persuade,45 which may lead to the country's image improving amongst the

population of the countries being helped.

Likewise, geothermal and biomass energy sources represent two more critical links in the

web of sustainable energy production and consumption. Geothermal energy represents a very

promising source of energy as it "is inexhaustible and will last as long as the earth itself."46 The

leading countries in geothermal energy production currently include the United States,

Philippines, Japan, and Iceland, but the even better news is that many countries that border the

Ring of Fire in the Pacific, as well as countries in both East Africa and the eastern

41 Maggie Ayre, “The pros and cons of solar power” BBC News 7 February 2008. 42 Lester R. Brown, Plan B 2.0, 2006, p. 196. 43 Joe Schoenmann, “Extra power: the fight over solar in Nevada” Nevada Public Radio 21 April 2015 44 Sally Bakewell and Mathew Carr, “Danish investors back climate fund for emerging economies”

BloombergBusiness 13 January 2014 45Joseph S. Nye, Soft Power: The Means to Success in World Politics. New York: Public Affairs, 2004. 46 Lester R. Brown, Plan B 2.0, 2006, p. 198.

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Mediterranean, exhibit significant geothermal production capacities. Geothermal energy can be

used for heating, greenhouse agriculture, and even aquaculture, or fish farming. Iceland heats

over 90% of all homes using geothermal energy, "saving over $100 million per year in avoided

oil imports,"47 and the Icelandic government has recently stated that geothermal energy

generation will be vital to its recovery from the devastation caused by the global financial

crisis.48 Moreover, Indonesia may well become a major producer of geothermal energy in the

near future, if the critical financing for the planned 11 geothermal plants can be sustained. The

Asian financial crisis of 1997 derailed the originally planned construction of these plants and the

fallout from the most-recent financial crisis created daunting fiscal constraints for sustainable

energy projects. Creatively financing these necessary and highly beneficial measures must be a

top priority for not only the countries that stand to realize the most immediate benefits but for the

entire international community as reduced carbon dioxide (CO2) and other greenhouse gas

(GHG) emissions as well as preservation of vital habitats and irreplaceable biodiversity in

Indonesia and elsewhere benefits the entire world.

Significantly, biomass energy generation, also known as biofuels, became a subject of

intense speculation and debate during the twin plagues of the global food price crisis and the

global fuel price shocks of 2008. The plant-based fuel ethanol has become a serious source of

income for millions of farmers worldwide, but subsidies for ethanol production as well as

disputes over its effectiveness, especially corn-based ethanol, present serious challenges to rapid

expansion of this potentially alternative fuel source. Biofuels have become increasingly

controversial as global corn prices have risen and more corn is diverted from human and

livestock consumption to conversion to ethanol. According to the UN High-Level Task Force on

the Global Food Crisis, in 2008 "developed countries spent about $11 billion USD to support

biofuel production, mostly on food crop feedstocks."49 Countries that enjoyed greater economic

prosperity before the most recent financial panics struck global stock markets did so because of

greater returns for biofuels, which have consistently resisted any imposition of limits on biofuels

productions. Moreover, these countries vehemently dispute the idea that biofuels are responsible

for any significant percentage of the recent food price increases. Brazil particularly disputes the

idea that biofuels are responsible for rising global food prices; Brazilians consistently note that

"Brazil's sugarcane-based ethanol can yield 10.2 units of renewable energy per unit of fossil fuel

input, whereas US-backed corn ethanol yields a mere 1.4."50 Biofuels may also be added to this

expanding coterie of sustainable fuel sources, but it must be done in such a manner that it does

not imperil global food production, the affordability of staple foodstuffs, especially for

vulnerable populations, or increase environmental degradation, as this would ultimately create

the exact opposite of the intended effects of biofuels use as sustainable energy sources.

Finally, nuclear power remains an alternative energy option, though one that has received

increased scrutiny in light of the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami that devastated eastern

Japan. The Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power station was heavily damaged in the tsunami and

melted down, causing a release of radioactive materials into the Pacific Ocean and into the

47 Lester R. Brown, Plan B 2.0, 2006, p. 199.

48 Jim Boulden, “Can Iceland's geo-thermal power re-heat its economy?” CNN 24 November 2008. 49 High-Level Task Force on the Global Food Crisis, “Comprehensive Framework for Action” United Nations July

2008 p. 32.

The complete report can be found here: http://www.un.org/ga/president/62/letters/cfa160708.pdf 50 Marcelo Leite, “Demon Biofuel? Brazil Disputes Attacks” The InterDependent Vol. 6 No. 2 Summer 2008 p. 15

11

atmosphere. As a result of the accident, Japan decided to transition to a nuclear-free energy grid

by the 2030s and began importing more fossil fuels then they previously had in order to make up

for the energy deficit in energy produced by the country's nuclear reactors, which were largely

taken offline.51 While this increased spending on fossil fuels import to Japan was necessary in

many ways to meet the gap in energy created by the shutdown of the country’s nuclear reactors,

long-term solutions must be identified and followed-through to ensure the Japan does not

become a fossil-fuel reliant nation in the wake of the Fukashima nuclear disaster. A potential

guide for Japan on this front is Germany, a country with a power grid that featured a strong

portion of power generated from nuclear energy. Recently, Germany has begun a nuclear energy

phase-out program (die Energiewende, or "energy turn") to be completed by 2022 where the

power generated from nuclear energy would be replaced by solar power, gas, wind and other

renewables.52

UN System actions

The UNEP's vital contributions to promoting sustainable energy generation are

strengthened through its vital collaborations with national governments, related UN agencies,

and NGOs, including the Basel Agency for Sustainable Development (BASE). UNEP's Risoe

Centre on Energy, Environment, and Sustainable Development (URC) "supports research by

local institutions, coordinates projects, disseminates information, and implements a full in-house

research programme in close collaboration with an international and multidisciplinary

community of sustainable energy and development practitioners."53 The panoply of sustainable

energy initiatives and programs administered by UNEP and its development partners also

includes the Sustainable Energy Financing Initiative (SEFI), which is designed to "foster

investment in sustainable energy projects by providing up-to-date investor information,

facilitating deal origination, developing partnerships, and creating the momentum needed to shift

sustainable energy from the margins of energy supply to the mainstream."54 Furthermore, UNEP

is also "coordinating the implementation of a Global Network on Energy for Sustainable

Development (GNESD) to promote sustainable energythrough coordinated programmes of

policy analysis, practical advice, targeted research and promoting investment."55 Delegates to

UNDP would be well advised to examine the full list of organizations that collaborate directly on

sustainable energy initiatives.56 These vital initiatives and programs are being critically

augmented throughout the UN System, particularly by the UNDP.

The UNDP is working with many developing world countries to increase their capacity to

generate renewable energy and fuel crucial sustainable development initiatives. In Sri Lanka, the

UNDP has worked with local NGOs, village leadership councils, and the Intermediate

Technology Development Group – South Asia (ITDG – South Asia) to install 12-meter tall wind

turbines that generate approximately 250 watts of electricity and can provide renewable energy

for the over 40% of Sri Lanka's population that has little to no access to reliable electricity; the

51 Tsuyoshi Inajima, “Japan’s Fuel Costs May Rise to 7.5 Trillion Yen, Meti Estimates” BloombergBusiness 9

October 2013 52 The Heinrich Boll Foundation, “Energy Transition: The German Energiewende” http://energytransition.de/ 53 UNEP Division of Technology, Industry, and Economics, “The UNEP Sustainable Energy Programme” United

Nations 2010. 54 UNEP Sustainable Energy Finance Initiative (SEFI), 2010. http://www.sefi.unep.org/ 55 UNEP Division of Technology, Industry, and Economics, “The UNEP Sustainable Energy Programme” United

Nations 2010. 56 http://www.unep.fr/energy/about/collaborating/

12

projected annual cost of these household wind turbines is only $550 per year, making them

affordable even in some of the Least Developed Countries (LDCs).57 The UNDP is likewise

working closely with the government of Pakistan, including the Ministry of Water and Power, to

create a viable wind power production capacity in Pakistan, with approximately $3 million USD

of the necessary funding being provided by the Global Environment Facility (GEF).58 In Uganda,

the UNDP is partnering with the Bufumira Islands Development Association (BIDA) and the

East African Energy Technology Development Network (EAETDN) to create a hybrid solar and

wind power generating station to lessen the reliance on firewood, kerosene, and paraffin, thus

reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and creating affordable sustainable energy supplies.59

These multi-stakeholder partnerships are being coordinated and partially funded by the UNDP,

but they rely fundamentally upon the critical knowledge base and participation of the

communities that they ultimately serve, providing an excellent model for sustainable energy

generation and community development.

Much like its vital work in generating more wind power, the UNDP continues to fill a

fundamental niche for generating more solar power throughout the developing world. UNDP

projects in Bolivia, Costa Rica, Cote d'Ivoire, the Dominican Republic, Egypt, India, Jordan, the

Occupied Palestinian Territories, Pakistan, and Uganda are providing much needed power for

cooking and heating homes and businesses and are reducing the need to burn fossil fuels or

destroy local forests. The World Bank is also involved in financing solar power projects through

its Development Marketplace (DM) wing. In rural Laos, a 2005 DM grant of $150,000 USD

helped Sunlabob Rural Energy Systems expand their village-oriented solar power generating

projects to 8 of Laos' 17 provinces, thus helping tens of thousands of impoverished rural

Laotians.60 Establishing more solar power generating facilities and roofs throughout the world

will ultimately prove fundamental to reducing greenhouse gas emissions and to promoting

sustainable development.

Sustainable energy generation is a clear prerequisite for all sustainable development

initiatives. Energy is the lifeblood of human development and is intricately connected to all

efforts to achieve the SDGs. Using renewable energy sources, including biomass, geothermal,

solar, and wind, must be at the forefront of national energy plans. The international community,

with considerable leadership from the UNEP, must foster these initiatives through investment,

technical assistance, and effective policy guidance. In their deliberations, delegates to the UNEP

may also choose to consider the impact and reliability of nuclear power, but any discussion of

nuclear power generation must include serious and critical analyses of the overall safety of

nuclear power and the still unresolved issue of nuclear waste disposal.

Unfortunately, despite raising awareness for the need to achieve greater sustainability for

the environment, not a lot of actual progress was made as a result. At the time of the frequently

cited Agenda 21's adoption in 1992, many countries at the time either lacked the resources or the

political willpower needed to institute policies that would be reflective of its goals, or the

capability to advance programs that, while following the guidelines set forth in Agenda 21 in

57 United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), “Household-size Wind Turbines, Sri Lanka” 2004 p. 1.

The entire report can be found here: http://sgp.undp.org/download/SGP_SriLanka1.pdf 58 UNDP-Pakistan, “Sustainable Development of Utility-Scale Wind Power Production Project (Phase I)” 2008. 59 UNDP, “Demonstrating Wind and Solar Energy on Lake Victoria, Uganda” 2004 p. 2.

60 World Bank Development Marketplace, “Rental Model Brings Solar Power to Rural Laos” 2006.

13

form, fell short in actual substance.61 A further related conference in Johannesburg in 2002 did

little to capture the imagination — especially since the United States decided to skip the affair

entirely, unlike its predecessor a decade before.62 Twenty years after Agenda 21 — and just

before the UN's Millennium Development Goals were set to expire — a further conference on

sustainable development was held in Rio (nicknamed Rio+20), where, much like in

Johannesburg, commitments in the spirit of Agenda 21 were reaffirmed, though actionable plans

were scant.

Sustainable Consumption, Production and Transportation

The United Nations Conference on Environment & Development (herein UNCED) held

in Rio de Janeiro in 1992 was one of the first watershed moments in attempting a global effort to

address the issue. Its lasting achievement — the Agenda 21 platform for fostering a more

sustainable environment — addressed many of the issues relating to production and

consumption; in particular, chapter 7 of the platform looked at the sustainability of human

development in relation to the environment, and the effects of rising consumption by cities and

their inhabitants, as well as concentrated human activity on the environment, saying "[t]he major

cause of the continued deterioration of the global environment are the unsustainable patterns of

consumption and production."63 Much of what Agenda 21 proposed was multidisciplinary, and

sought interagency cooperation between UN System organs and other inter- and

intragovernmental organizations. For example, Agenda 21 suggested management and

collaboration between groups like the World Bank, the World Health Organization, UNEP and

others, to work on ways to improve public health vis-à-vis environmental improvements by way

of improving access to water, among other goals.

One positive initiative that came out of the Rio+20 conference, though, was the

development of the UN's 10-Year Framework of Programmes on Sustainable Consumption and

Production (herein 10YFP). A decade-long plan for collaboration between developed and

developing countries, including LDCs, it calls for all parties involved to share resources,

technologies and funding for projects and proposals that address more sustainable methods of

consumption and production.64 The 10YFP proposal included a series of programs on ways

member-states and collaborators could work to improve production and consumption

sustainability, including

• information for consumers,

• sustainable construction methods and making existing buildings more ecofriendly,

• sustainable tourism opportunities,

• increasing sustainability in food systems,

61 Kibel, P.S., "UNCED's uncertain legacy: an introduction to the issue," Golden Gate University Law

Review, vol. 32, issue 4, Jan. 2002, http://digitalcommons.law.ggu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?

article=1840&context=ggulrev. 62 Associated Press, "Conservatives praise Bush for opting out of U.N. Earth Summit," 15 August 2002, as

cited in Tom Hale, "Managing the disaggregation of development: how the Johannesburg 'Type II'

partnerships can be made effective," 2 May 2003, https://www.princeton.edu/~mauzeral/ wws402f_s03/JP.Thomas.Hale.pdf. 63 United Nations, Agenda 21, 1992, https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/content/documents/

Agenda21.pdf. 64 UNEP, "10YFP background information: from Rio to Rio," http://www.unep.org/10yfp/About/

Background/FromRiotoRio/tabid/106248/Default.aspx.

14

• encouraging sustainable education and lifestyles, and

• ensuring publicly procured services come from sustainable groups.65

As of this writing, all but the food systems scheme have been fully developed and

implementation has begun across a variety of countries and other collaborators, but more work

needs to be done in order to raise awareness of the schemes' existences, as well as to provide

further support to encourage greater and more widespread implementation thereof.

After the MDGs expired in 2015, they were supplanted by the Sustainable Development

Goals (SDGs), a series of 17 areas where the UN System and member-states look to improve the

lives of all on Earth. One of the 17 areas, Goal 12, specifically relates to the responsible

consumption and production of a variety of goods.66 The UN notes three main areas of concern

— water, food and energy — as sectors needing immediate addressing. Citing water shortages,

food waste and increased energy consumption from inefficient means of production, the SDG for

sustainable production and consumption strives to use natural resources more effectively, cut

down on food waste through better supply chain management and other techniques, and to

improve energy efficiency, among other goals.67 The UN System and its member states have also

devised specific initiatives for different regions and countries, including, but not limited to, small

island developing States (SIDS), Latin America and the Caribbean, Eastern Europe, and

Southeast Asia. Furthermore, the UN System maintains its own internal network to improve its

own sustainability, often referred to as “greening the blue.”68 Through the 10YFP and other

initiatives, UNEP's goals of fulfilling this SDG are coming along well; that said, until the

benchmarks of the goal themselves are met, further progress is required.

Improving the fuel efficiency and lessening the climate impact of transportation sectors

becomes increasingly clear. In 2018, even with the closing of a significant number of coal-fired

power plants, US emissions rose by over 3%, much of which was driven by lower fuel costs and

increased manufacturing.69 In oil-dependent Iran, over 5,000 people died between March 2014

and March 2015 because of air pollution, primarily caused by vehicle exhaust.70

UN System actions

The United Nations Environmental Programme's vital contributions to promoting

sustainable energy generation are strengthened through its vital collaborations with national

governments, related UN agencies, and NGOs, including the Basel Agency for Sustainable

Development (BASE). UNEP's Risoe Centre on Energy, Environment, and Sustainable

Development (URC) "supports research by local institutions, coordinates projects, disseminates

information, and implements a full in-house research programme in close collaboration with an

international and multidisciplinary community of sustainable energy and development

65 —, "What is a 10YFP programme?" http://www.unep.org/10yfp/Programmes/

Whatarethe10YFPProgrammes/tabid/106264/Default.aspx. 66 United Nations, "Goal 12: ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns," http://www.un.org/

sustainabledevelopment/sustainable-consumption-production/. 67 Ibid. 68 United Nations, “Greening the blue.” Found at: http://www.greeningtheblue.org/about-greening-blue 69 Brad Plumer, “US Carbon Emissions Surged in 2019 Even as Coal Plants Closed”, New York Times, January 8,

2019. 70 Emily Burlinghaus, “The Other Green Movement”, Foreign Affairs, April 27, 2017.

15

practitioners."71 The panoply of sustainable energy initiatives and programs administered by

UNEP and its development partners also includes the Sustainable Energy Financing Initiative

(SEFI), which is designed to "foster investment in sustainable energy projects by providing up-

to-date investor information, facilitating deal origination, developing partnerships, and creating

the momentum needed to shift sustainable energy from the margins of energy supply to the

mainstream."72 Furthermore, UNEP is also "coordinating the implementation of a Global

Network on Energy for Sustainable Development (GNESD) to promote sustainable

energythrough coordinated programmes of policy analysis, practical advice, targeted research

and promoting investment."73 Delegates to SIF 20 would be well advised to examine the full list

of organizations that collaborate directly on sustainable energy initiatives.74 These vital

initiatives and programs are being critically augmented throughout the UN System, particularly

by the UNDP.

The UNDP is working with many developing world countries to increase their capacity to

generate renewable energy and fuel crucial sustainable development initiatives. In Sri Lanka, the

UNDP has worked with local NGOs, village leadership councils, and the Intermediate

Technology Development Group – South Asia (ITDG – South Asia) to install 12-meter tall wind

turbines that generate approximately 250 watts of electricity and can provide renewable energy

for the over 40% of Sri Lanka's population that has little to no access to reliable electricity; the

projected annual cost of these household wind turbines is only $550 per year, making them

affordable even in some of the Least Developed Countries (LDCs).75 The UNDP is likewise

working closely with the government of Pakistan, including the Ministry of Water and Power, to

create a viable wind power production capacity in Pakistan, with approximately $3 million USD

of the necessary funding being provided by the Global Environment Facility (GEF).76 In Uganda,

the UNDP is partnering with the Bufumira Islands Development Association (BIDA) and the

East African Energy Technology Development Network (EAETDN) to create a hybrid solar and

wind power generating station to lessen the reliance on firewood, kerosene, and paraffin, thus

reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and creating affordable sustainable energy supplies.77

These multi-stakeholder partnerships are being coordinated and partially funded by the UNDP,

but they rely fundamentally upon the critical knowledge base and participation of the

communities that they ultimately serve, providing an excellent model for sustainable energy

generation and community development.

Much like its vital work in generating more wind power, UNDP continues to fill a

fundamental niche for generating more solar power throughout the developing world. UNDP

projects in Bolivia, Costa Rica, Cote d'Ivoire, the Dominican Republic, Egypt, India, Jordan, the

Occupied Palestinian Territories, Pakistan, and Uganda are providing much needed power for

cooking and heating homes and businesses and are reducing the need to burn fossil fuels or

71 UNEP Division of Technology, Industry, and Economics, “The UNEP Sustainable Energy Programme” United

Nations 2010. 72 UNEP Sustainable Energy Finance Initiative (SEFI), 2010. http://www.sefi.unep.org/ 73 UNEP Division of Technology, Industry, and Economics, “The UNEP Sustainable Energy Programme” United

Nations 2010. 74 http://www.unep.fr/energy/about/collaborating/ 75 United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), “Household-size Wind Turbines, Sri Lanka” 2004 p. 1.

The entire report can be found here: http://sgp.undp.org/download/SGP_SriLanka1.pdf 76 UNDP-Pakistan, “Sustainable Development of Utility-Scale Wind Power Production Project (Phase I)” 2008. 77 UNDP, “Demonstrating Wind and Solar Energy on Lake Victoria, Uganda” 2004 p. 2.

16

destroy local forests. The World Bank is also involved in financing solar power projects through

its Development Marketplace (DM) wing. In rural Laos, a 2005 DM grant of $150,000 USD

helped Sunlabob Rural Energy Systems expand their village-oriented solar power generating

projects to 8 of Laos' 17 provinces, thus helping tens of thousands of impoverished rural

Laotians.78 Establishing more solar power generating facilities and roofs throughout the world

will ultimately prove fundamental to reducing greenhouse gas emissions and to promoting

sustainable development.

Conclusion

Achieving the goals of more sustainable production and consumption require

stakeholders to look at many different facets of development. Economic interests may, on the

surface, preclude actors from wanting to get involved, and steps would need to be taken in order

to incentivize or otherwise encourage them to get involved. Broad-based proposals from

international groups like UN System organs need to have the support of both the developed and

the developing world in order to gain traction, with much needed in the way of institutional,

financial and logistic support from the former to the latter to help allay any fears of widening

economic inequality. The UN needs resources and support in order to continue to implement the

proposals it has set forward in the 10YFP scheme and in the SDGs related to this topic for it to

have any chance of succeeding, along with a true sense of commitment from non-state

stakeholders as well. Delegates to the Sustainable Innovation Forum (SIF 20) are uniquely

poised to articulate and foster simultaneously a sense of urgency and opportunity as they parallel

the efforts of the Conference of the Parties (COP 26).

Guiding questions

1. How does your country generate its power? Is your country self-sufficient in power

generation or does your country import significant amounts of oil, natural gas, and coal

from energy-exporting countries? How does your country deal with the CO2 and other

GHG emissions from fossil fuels?

2. Has your government invested in renewable energy sources such as biomass, geothermal,

solar, and wind? If so, what forms of investment and/or subsidies and incentives has your

country provided? What have been the results of these investments and/or subsidies and

incentives?

3. How has the private sector in your country responded to these government investments

and/or incentives?

4. How might the work of the UNDP and its partners be made more effective in terms of

generating affordable, renewable, and sustainable energy for the developing world?

5. How can national governments, international organizations, including international

financial institutions (IFIs), and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) scale up

existing investments for sustainable energy sources in the context of the aftermath of the

global financial crisis?

6. What steps does your country take to encourage recycling on both residential and wider

levels? To what extent are food waste and water waste issues in your country? How

effectively is agricultural waste and byproduct handled in your country? How effective

has your country been at reducing carbon emissions? At reducing waste overall?

78 World Bank Development Marketplace, “Rental Model Brings Solar Power to Rural Laos” 2006.

17

7. Has your country committed itself to sustainable public procurement? If so, how are

policies of sustainable public procurement being implemented at various levels of

government?

8. What forms of assistance would your country need in order to fulfill the Sustainable

Development Goal associated with sustainable consumption and production? Would that

assistance be primarily monetary or technical in nature?

9. How might the UN System most effectively improve its own procurement systems and

sustainability?

10. How might the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) and related bodies promote more

effective eco-tourism and related activities and employment?

11. How might schools and universities improve through sustainable consumption and

production processes? How might private and public sector building and infrastructure

projects be made more sustainable? How can companies and individuals improve their

sourcing of materials to promote greater sustainability?

12. How might the UN System, its member governments, and relevant civil society partners

increase stakeholder participation in climate finance and climate change mitigation

initiatives?

Resolutions & Reports:

Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), “Special Report: Global Warming of 1.5°

C”, 2018.

United Nations General Assembly resolution 74/229 (A/RES/74/229), “Science, technology and

innovation for sustainable development”, December 19, 2019.

United Nations General Assembly resolution 74/225 (A/RES/74/225), “Ensuring access to

affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all”, December 19, 2019.

United Nations General Assembly resolution 74/219 (A/RES/74/219), “Protection of global

climate for future generations of humankind”, December 19, 2019.

United Nations General Assembly resolution 74/218 (A/RES/74/218), “Disaster risk reduction”,

December 19, 2019.

United Nations General Assembly resolution 74/199 (A/RES/74/199), “Promoting investment

for sustainable development”, December 19, 2019.

United Nations General Assembly resolution 74/198 (A/RES/74/198), “International Year of

Creative Economy for Sustainable Development, 2021”, December 19, 2019.

United Nations General Assembly resolution 74/197 (A/RES/197), “Information and

communications technology for sustainable development”, December 19, 2019.

UN General Assembly resolution 73/227 (A/RES/73/227), “Implementation of Agenda 21, the

Programme for the Further Implementation of Agenda 21 and the outcomes of the World

Summit on Sustainable Development and of the United Nations Conference on Sustainable

Development”, December 20, 2018.

UN General Assembly resolution 73/225 (A/RES/73/225), “Entrepreneurship for sustainable

development”, December 20, 2018.

18

UN General Assembly, (A/70/472/Add. 1), “Sustainable Development: implementation of

Agenda 21, for the Further Implementation of Agenda 21 and the outcomes of the World Summit

on Social Development and of the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development”

December 14, 2015.

United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), (E/2015/56), “Progress Report on

the 10-year framework of programmes on sustainable consumption and production patterns”

March 31, 2015.

UN General Assembly resolution 66/288 (A/RES/66/288), “The future we want” July 27, 2012.

19