Twenty years since and it seems such a short time! Twenty years until this ought to be long enough!!
http://www.un.org/apps/news/infocus/sgspeeches/statments_full.asp?statID=1542
"But youth have a special ability to demand change. That is why I am coming to you.
Here is a To-Do list of a dozen actions you can take.
One: Write to your country’s leader and tell them to go to
Rio+20.
Two: Get your friends to register a real
commitment for sustainable development on our Rio+20 website.
Three: Join the UN Environment Programme/UNESCO
YouthXChange.
Four: Build networks with young entrepreneurs using
business for development.
Five: Write letters to the editor to demand action on the
issues at Rio.
Six: Send your government the ideas you want to see in the Rio
outcome or national law.
Seven: Tell your governments to include youth in their delegations to Rio.
Eight: Get involved in the Major Group – that’s a caucus – negotiating on
Children and Youth at Rio.
Nine: Organize events on the Conference in your schools and communities.
Ten: Build relationships with government officials to demand action after Rio.
Eleven: Share your stories with us! We’ll put them in our
Youth Flash Newsletter.
Finally: Spread the message through Facebook, Twitter and all the other networks you have.
You take any of these actions – and you can come up with your own ideas. Just get involved."
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/05/24/opinion/the-future-we-want.html?_r=2
First, Rio+20 should inspire new thinking — and action. Clearly, the old economic model is breaking down. In too many places, growth has stalled. Jobs are lagging. Gaps are growing between rich and poor, and we see alarming scarcities of food, fuel and the natural resources on which civilization depends.
At Rio, negotiators will seek to build on the success of the Millennium Development Goals, which have helped lift millions out of poverty. A new emphasis on sustainability can offer what economists call a “triple bottom line” — job-rich economic growth coupled with environmental protection and social inclusion.
Second, Rio+20 should be about people — a people’s summit that offers concrete hope for real improvements in daily lives. Options before the negotiators include declaring a “zero hunger” future — zero stunting of children for lack of adequate nutrition, zero waste of food and agricultural inputs in societies where people do not get enough to eat.
Rio+20 should also give voice to those we hear from least often: women and young people. Women hold up half the sky; they deserve equal standing in society. We should empower them, as engines of economic dynamism and social development. And young people — the very face of our future: are we creating opportunities for them, nearly 80 million of whom will be entering the workforce every year?
Third, Rio+20 should issue a clarion call to action: waste not. Mother Earth has been kind to us. Let humanity reciprocate by respecting her natural boundaries. At Rio, governments should call for smarter use of resources. Our oceans must be protected. So must our water, air and forests. Our cities must be made more liveable — places we inhabit in greater harmony with nature.
Lets not wait for Rio plus 40 lets grab the opportunities!!
