United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) works on environmental matters dates back to 1971, when the group of Senior Advisors to the UNECE Governments on environmental issues was created, which led to the establishment of the UNECE Committee on Environmental Policy (CEP) in 1994. As CEP meets annually, the Twenty-second Session of the Committee on Environmental Policy (CEP) will be held in Geneva. Organisations of the United Nations system as well as intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations active in the UNECE region are invited to participate in CEP meetings as observers.
CEP works to support countries to enhance their environmental governance and transboundary cooperation as well as strengthen implementation of the UNECE regional environmental commitments and advance sustainable development in the region. Its main aim is to assess countries' efforts to reduce their overall pollution burden and manage their natural resources, to integrate environmental and socioeconomic policies, to strengthen cooperation with the international community, to harmonize environmental conditions and policies throughout the region and to stimulate greater involvement of the public and environmental discussions and decision-making.
The final deadline for registration is Monday, 9 January 2017; however, it is highly recommended to register as early as possible, preferably before Friday, 23 December 2016.
The provisional agenda for the session can be found here.
Day 1 (Wednesday, 25 January)
- Opening of the meeting and adoption of the agenda
- Outcomes of the work of the Bureau
- Sustainable development in the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe region
- Multilateral envrionmental agreements
- Follow up to the Eighth Environment for Europe Ministerial Conference and preparation of the mid-term review of the Conference main outcomes
- Environmental monitoring, assessment and reporting
- European Environment and Health Process
Day 2 (Thursday, 26 January)
- Environmental Performance Reviews
- Education for sustainable development
- Transport, Health, and Environment Pan-European Programme
- Environment and security
- Green building
Day 3 (Friday, 27 January)
- Presentation and exchange of views on the second United Nations Environment Assembly
- Mainstreaming a gender perspective into envrionmental activities
- Overview of resources for environmental activities and criteria for financial support for participation in meetings and events
- Terms of reference
- Rules of procedure
- Election of officers
- Calender of meetings
- Other business
- Closure of the meeting (the approval of the list of decisions by CEP-22)
More detailed information can be found here.