This week, the transition to a green economy and other critical environmental issues are taking centre stage at the inaugural session of the United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA). UNEA is forging new ground by emphasising that environmental concerns are at the core of governmental agendas.
What is UNEA?
Leading government officials are convening at the first meeting of UNEA in Nairobi, Kenya at the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) headquarters . UNEA is arguably the world’s most important platform for environmental policy-making, with over 1,200 participants, including environment ministers, government delegates and representatives of civil society in attendance.
UNEA aims to raise awareness of the role of environmental governance as an indispensable tool in sustainable development and the creation of a green economy.
Why is UNEA important?
UNEA is the result of recommendations by world leaders at the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development (Rio+20), held in Brazil in June 2012, to strengthen UNEP as the leading global environmental authority. UNEA replaces the UNEP Governing Council, which was a 58-member governing body of UNEP established in 1972.
In contrast to the Governing Council model, UNEA has universal membership, meaning that all 193 United Nations member states, observer states and other stakeholders are able to participate in discussions and decision-making. By including all 193 UN member states, UNEA is providing a more balanced and equal platform for discussion and policy-making on environment and global sustainability issues. As a subsidiary assembly to the UN General Assembly, UNEA will elevate environmental issues to the same status of other pressing global challenges such as peace, security, finance, health and trade.
As the new governing body of UNEP, UNEA has the mandate to make strategic decisions and provide political guidance in the work of UNEP, whilst promoting a strong science-policy interface. UNEA will meet biennially starting this week in Nairobi and concludes with a two-day high-level segment that replaces the Global Ministerial Environment Forum, previously convened alongside the Governing Council sessions. UNEA can also recommend draft resolutions for adoption at the United Nations General Assembly for UN system-wide implementation.
UNEA and the Green Economy
A key area of focus at UNEA will be the challenges and opportunities that arise from a green economy transition, with specific focus on financing. Currently there is a lack of clarity in how the financing to deliver a green economy will be generated and the role of financial institutions and financial governance in facilitating the flow of capital.
To address these issues, on June 25th, UNEA is holding a Symposium on Financing a Green Economy. The core aim of the Symposium is to inspire, raise awareness and offer guidance to UNEA participants on mobilising finance. Included in the discussions will be a segment on the use of current capital market instruments such as green bonds, infrastructure financing, responsible investment strategies and the role of the stock exchange in financing green economies.
The agenda of the symposium follows five key themes which highlight the practical requirements necessary to foster and finance a green economy. These themes are outlined in the below figure.
There are several expected outcomes from the symposium, including:
- To place the green economy in the context of the changing global situation, including in relation to issues such as unemployment and population growth, as well as developments within the financial sector.
- To introduce current efforts and innovations to mobilise finance for the green economy.
- To introduce a path to move forward on green economy practices, the regulatory and financial economy, as well as the real economy to accelerate the financing of the green economy.
The symposium commences at 10am East Africa Time (25 June) and can be live streamed via the UNEA website.
This symposium provides an excellent example of how governments can use a forum such as UNEA to highlight the important discussions and policy-making decisions necessary to ensure a greener future. In the years to come, the UNEA platform will provide opportunities to address and take action on a range of prevalent issues regarding the advancement and implementation of green growth.
More information on UNEA can be found at: http://www.unep.org/unea/