Business & Human Rights: World Summit on Sustainable Development

Workshop: Private Sector Activities and the Environmental Basis for Peace - This will be a panel discussion on how companies create or augment environment-related conflict and what are the options for addressing the problem - 3 Sep. 2002 - Johannesburg (IUCN - World Conservation Union)

Programme: Business & Biodiversity Day - 31 Aug. 2002 - Johannesburg (IUCN - World Conservation Union)

Programme: Digital Opportunities: Global Strategies & Local Initiatives to Level the e-Playing Field for Sustainable Development - 30 Aug. 2002 - Johannesburg (IUCN - World Conservation Union)

Dialogue: Information and Communications Technologies for Sustainable Development - 30 Aug. 2002 - Johannesburg (IUCN - World Conservation Union)

Workshop: Places and Spaces for Indigenous Peoples in Sustainable Development - 26 Aug. 2002 - Johannesburg (IUCN - World Conservation Union)

Workshop: Private Greed vs. Public Need? Ethical Issues in Globalization - 26 Aug. 2002 - Johannesburg (IUCN - World Conservation Union)

Second South-South Biopiracy Summit - "Biopiracy - Ten Years Post-Rio" - Hosted by Biowatch South Africa - 22-23 August 2002 - Johannesburg, South Africa - ...Aim: To share information and raise awareness on access & benefit sharing, bioprospecting, biopiracy, intellectual property rights, traditional knowledge. This day is primarily focused on civil society sharing experiences on legislation implementation & community experiences through case studies. (Biowatch South Africa)

Indigenous Peoples' International Summit on Sustainable Development, Kimberly, South Africa, 20 - 23 August 2002

Draft agenda - Indigenous Peoples' International Summit on Sustainable Development [includes agenda items on: "Large-Scale Development Projects and Corporations Mines/Dams/Plantations,etc."; "Genetic Resources, Intellectual Property Rights and Traditional Knowledge"]

Other materials:

2003:

Balancing Trade Rules, the Environment and Sustainable Development -...AllAfrica's Akwe Amosu probed these issues with Tewolde Berhan Gebre Egziabher, the General Manager of the Environmental Protection Authority of Ethiopia. (AllAfrica.com, 1 Feb. 2003)

2002:

Earth on the market: Beyond the limits of sustainable growth - Despite all the hype, the UN-sponsored world summit on sustainable development in South Africa in August could not introduce any real constraints because they would have meant re-examining globalisation. So could sustainable development just be a pretext for maintaining a growth that must be, by nature, destructive to the environment? - ...Sustainable development has been diverted by business, which has equated it with sustainable growth (Sadruddin Aga Khan, Bellerive Foundation, Dec. 2002)

Greenpeace shuts down Esso Luxembourg petrol pumps -...Greenpeace alleges that intense lobbying by Esso's parent company ExxonMobil contributed to the U.S. pulling out of the U.N. Kyoto Protocol on climate change, as well as to watered down commitments to renewable energies at last month's Earth Summit in Johannesburg. (Neil Chatterjee, Reuters, 28 Oct. 2002)

Analysis: Is there a business agenda after Johannesburg? Valentina Bottarelli and Julie Garman assess the long term impact of the WSSD in Johannesburg -...if these partnerships do not yield appropriate outcomes in a few short years, the stick approach will replace the carrot. And the stick may include international codes of conduct, standardisation, certification on required reporting and so on. (Valentina Bottarelli and Julie Garman, in Ethical Corporation Magazine, 24 Sep. 2002)

U.S. Company Receives World Summit Award for Sustainable Development Partnerships - ForesTrade, which markets organic spices and fair trade coffee, was the sole U.S. company to win a Sustainable Development Partnerships Award at the Johannesburg Summit. (William Baue, SocialFunds.com, 6 Sep. 2002)

Earth Summit winners and losers -...Campaigners hoping to rein in global capitalism were given something to celebrate in the action plan - a call by the summit to "actively promote" corporate responsibility even if it did not create a global policeman to catch corporate polluters and human-rights abusers. A reference to "intergovernmental agreements" and "international initiative" could open the way to some kind of global convention on corporate behaviour, according to the more optimistic activists. (Robin Pomeroy, Reuters, 6 Sep. 2002)

Insurer calls for tough rules on pollution - A senior insurance figure said the industry had been frozen out of the Earth Summit in Johannesburg and called for tougher measures against climate changes which risk costing insurers billions of dollars. (Simon Challis, Reuters, 6 Sep. 2002)

Johannesburg Summit promotes partnerships for development -...The summit emphasized the role of the private sector and civil society as key partners to achieving sustainable development and the creation of public-private partnerships to help improve the living standards of the world's poor. UNDP Associate Administrator Zéphirin Diabré said the summit's recognition of the private sector as a genuine development partner is significant, especially regarding the issues of capacity building, technology transfer and development financing. (U.N. Development Programme, 5 Sep. 2002)

The business conclusion - Business welcomes the agreement reached at this Summit [World Summit on Sustainable Development], and particularly the Implementation Plan. (Business Action for Sustainable Development, 4 Sep. 2002)

Sustainable Development: R.I.P.: The Earth Summit's Deathblow to Sustainable Development -...With the world's most powerful governments fully behind the corporate globalization agenda, it was agreed even before the Summit that there would no new mandatory agreements. Rather the focus was to be on implementation of old agreements, mainly through partnerships with the private sector. In other words, those aspects of sustainability that are convenient for private sector would be implemented...At issue is the fact that the UN is unabashedly -- anxiously -- partnering with corporations that define sustainability to suit themselves...the phrase "corporate accountability," is included elsewhere in the Action Plan, though it's located in an ambiguous paragraph that will require several more years of campaigning by Friends of the Earth and allies to see any legal instrument on corporate accountability born at the UN. [refers to Shell's conduct in Nigeria; refers to Shell, Caltex and BP's conduct in South Africa] (Kenny Bruno, CorpWatch, 4 Sep. 2002)

Earth Summit agrees on energy, angers greens - The Earth Summit gave a muted push to "green" energy this week as part of a plan to curb poverty and protect the planet, angering environmentalists who branded it a weak-minded sell-out to the U.S. oil industry. (Alister Doyle & Jodie Ginsberg, Reuters, 4 Sep. 2002)

Trouble in the pipeline [Azerbaijan, Georgia, Turkey]: The corporate promises being made at the earth summit are likely to prove hollow - The world's biggest corporations, with the UN's blessing, have negotiated a series of "partnership agreements" - voluntary commitments obliging those companies to respect the environment and defend human rights...These, they claim, will show that international law is not required to force corporations to respect human rights and the environment...But just as the chief executives congratulate each other, a new report suggests that the partnership agreements are worthless. The company most clearly associated with "corporate social responsibility" [BP], which has launched one of the new partnerships and sponsored some of the key events at the summit, appears to be saying one thing and doing just the opposite [in the Baku-Tblisi-Ceyhan oil pipeline project] (George Monbiot, Guardian, 3 Sep. 2002)

company website: BP (BP)

Business Leader Says Governments Must Set Framework for Action on Environment, Development -...at the World Summit on Sustainable Development, he [Mark Moody-Stuart] has been highly visible as founder of the corporate group Business Action for Sustainable Development. Despite a deep commitment to reducing poverty and improving the environment, he has drawn fire from activist groups critical of his preference for national and local regulations over broad international agreements. In an interview with Akwe Amosu in Johannesburg, he explains his position and argues that it does not let multinational corporations off the hook. (Akwe Amosu, allAfrica.com, 3 Sep. 2002)

Sir Corporate Responsibility and the World Summit -...Christian Aid applauds the personal commitment of Sir Mark Moody-Stuart to the cause of more socially responsible business, but it is our belief that only with international, legally-binding regulation will his commitment be matched by a fundamental change in business culture. [refers to conduct by Shell, HSBC, Talisman, Petronas] (Christian Aid, 2 Sep. 2002)

Speech by Mary Robinson, High Commissioner for Human Rights - Civil Society Workshop on Human Rights, Sustainable Development and Environmental Protection - World Summit on Sustainable Development -...The interdependence of human rights, environment protection and sustainable development has been described using the metaphor of a triangle. (Mary Robinson, U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights, 1 Sep. 2002)

Business chiefs on defensive at summit - Business leaders have been defending themselves at the World Summit in Johannesburg against charges that they ignore development issues and poverty. Green groups have accused multi-national corporations of being enemies of the environment, but the business executives say they are looking for co-operative partnerships. (BBC News, 1 Sep. 2002)

Sustainable development: the contribution by the automotive industry (International Organization of Motor Vehicle Manufacturers / Organisation Internationale des Constructeurs d’Automobiles, 1 Sep. 2002)

Ecology opens for business [World Summit on Sustainable Development] -...Sir Mark [Sir Mark Moody-Stuart, former chairman of Shell who now heads Business Action for Sustainable Development] is lobbying for global leaders to disregard calls by NGOs to introduce multilateral rules governing business conduct. "The summit is taking place just as massive corporate scandals are undermining economic growth and confidence throughout the world. There is widespread recognition that self-regulation has failed," says Daniel Graymore, a campaigner for Christian Aid, the UK charity. Sir Mark concedes that greater corporate accountability is needed. But he argues that standards for business should be enforced at a national rather than global level...while some NGOs remain openly hostile to business, others are keen to work with it. BASD is promoting 230 partnerships between business and NGOs at the summit. They include the secondment of staff from HSBC, the banking group, to Earthwatch environmental projects, carmaker Fiat's development of gas-powered cars and the treatment of sleeping sickness in Africa by Aventis, the pharmaceuticals group. (James Lamont & John Mason, Financial Times, 31 Aug. 2002)

Earth Summit feuds fester over rules for business - Rows on rules raged at the Earth Summit in Johannesburg this week as rights groups and corporate leaders wrestled over the sticky question of whether, where and how to introduce binding regulations for business. (Jodie Ginsberg, Reuters, 30 Aug. 2002)

Earth Summit launches controversial partnerships - The United States and other nations will showcase public-private partnerships at the Earth Summit yesterday meant to fight poverty amid criticisms that they will help businesses more than the poor. (Alister Doyle, Reuters, 30 Aug. 2002)

Developments on corporate accountability 'agreement' at Joburg - This is what has happened to the agreement (ie the text) on corporate accountability this morning in the WSSD [World Summit on Sustainable Development] Plan of Implementation. (based on an e-mail from Matt Phillips, Friends of the Earth, 30 Aug. 2002)

World Summit offers vital role to business: It is hoped that big business can help eradicate world poverty...But activists accused Western governments of trying to shift responsibility for helping the world's poor and corporations of trying to "hijack" the summit's outcome to water down environmental rules and increase profits. (Paul Geitner, AP, 30 Aug. 2002)

US defies critics with business deals to aid environment - The United States, which has been accused of derailing progress at the United Nations earth summit, launched a diplomatic counter-offensive yesterday, rolling out public-private sector partnerships which the Bush administration claims are the best means of fighting global poverty and protecting the environment. But environmentalists have dismissed the so-called "Type 2" partnerships, which are backed by Britain, saying they help big businesses increase profits rather than help the poor. (Basildon Peta, Independent [UK], 30 Aug. 2002)

Business Partnerships in Johannesburg - Business has come to Johannesburg with a range of partnerships for sustainable development. Some of these partnerships are listed below. (Business Action for Sustainable Development, 30 Aug. 2002)

Business and UN team up to recognise sustainable partnerships at Earth Summit - The United Nations and ICC: the world business organization today named ten business partnership programmes from around the world which are making an outstanding contribution to sustainable development [refers to Alcan Inc; Shell; Axel Springer Verlag; Kesko; E7 Network; ForesTrade; BioRe and Coop; Migros; Business Trust South Africa] (International Chamber of Commerce, 30 Aug. 2002)

Chemical industry committed to implement action plan on safe chemicals management in developing countries -...As part of its preparation for the Summit and as a basis of the action plan, the ICCA has undertaken national case studies in South Africa and Brazil in partnership with government and other groups. (ICCA - International Council of Chemical Associations, 30 Aug. 2002)

Big business gets into bed with Earth Summit (Carl O’Brien, Irish Examiner, 30 Aug. 2002)

Address by Mary Robinson, United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights - World Summit on Sustainable Development Plenary Session -...Let me ask and try to answer the question-- how does a human rights approach help in achieving sustainable development? (Mary Robinson, U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights, 29 Aug. 2002)

US blocks move to give powers to those threatened by multinationals: Poor countries seek redress over firms' damage - The United States is blocking human, environmental and freedom of information rights from being enshrined in the earth summit's plan of action in order to protect multinational companies from litigation and protests by the poor. The EU and developing countries such as Thailand, Uganda and Indonesia believe that giving communities the right to take on companies that pollute their environment and damage their health is fundamental to the aims of the summit. (Paul Brown, Guardian [UK], 29 Aug. 2002)

Business needs rules to cooperate - In a speech from the plenary floor at the UN World Summit on Sustainable Development in Johannesburg, BASD [Business Action for Sustainable Development] Chairman Sir Mark Moody-Stuart said that in order to maximize its contribution to sustainable development business needs regulation of markets and strong local governance...This will include sound governance of business – with the rules and frameworks necessary for markets to operate fairly and openly in each and every country and with, for example, appropriate environmental regulation applied impartially to all. But it will also include such elements as the rule of law, security, human rights, intellectual property etc...I hope that through these remarks I have dispelled the myth put out by others that business is against all regulation – it is just not true...Much is made by our NGO colleagues for the need for supranational standards or regulation. The essential international agreements on climate and trade are addressed in other fora, and we in business strongly support access to developing country products to developed markets. We believe however that any attempt at one size fits all international regulation is inappropriate. (Business Action for Sustainable Development, 29 Aug. 2002)

Industry joins Greenpeace to demand climate action - A group representing 160 multinationals made a joint statement [at World Summit on Sustainable Development] with the environmental group Greenpeace calling on world leaders for an international system for halting global warming. The statement by the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) — which counts Caterpillar, Ford Motor Co, Dow Chemical, ICI, and Sony among its members — stopped just short of fully endorsing the Kyoto pact on cutting greenhouse gas emissions. (Reuters, 29 Aug. 2002)

Business plea for greater investment in poor nations - Global business leaders yesterday launched a programme to promote greater investment by multinationals in the world's 50 poorest countries. Business Action for Sustainable Development (BASD), a grouping of international chambers of commerce, unveiled the initiative at the United Nations World Summit on Sustainable Development. (James Lamont, Financial Times, 29 Aug. 2002)

UN to focus on corporate help to fight Aids - The United Nations has abandoned its policy of relying on governments to tackle the HIV/Aids crisis in the developing world, saying it would now help fund corporate initiatives to provide anti-retroviral drugs to sufferers...Richard Holbrooke, president of the Global Business Coalition on Aids, a grouping of 75 international companies, and former US ambassador to the UN, said the policy change was "an important step in the right direction". He said: "If Anglo American and De Beers take leadership, it will pressure other companies to take similar steps. It will finally get corporations to take up their role in the process [to fight HIV/Aids]. Up to now, business has been doing less than 10 per cent of what they should have done." (James Lamont, Financial Times, 29 Aug. 2002)

Summit looks at Public-Private Cooperation to Protect the Planet - Western countries are promoting “public-private partnerships” at the Earth Summit in Johannesburg as a path to sustainable development. Environmentalists are skeptical, saying it puts big business before people. (Deutsche Welle, 29 Aug. 2002)

Business Embraces Call for Sustainable Development -...Businesses, or at least some business leaders, have decided to embrace the call for sustainable development...The criticism, however, has continued, and some groups believe the United Nations has become too cozy with big business. "What we're worried about is that many businesses are draping themselves in the blue of the United Nations in order to get themselves some brownie points to look good to governments, to look like they're doing the right thing around the world, when in fact their actual practices on the ground may be very different to those they profess on paper," said Matt Phillips of Friends of the Earth in an interview with the BBC. (Jim Cason, allAfrica.com, 29 Aug. 2002)

Bush abdicates America's global leadership role -...at this very moment the most powerful country in the world stands to forfeit much political capital, moral authority and international goodwill by dragging its feet on the next great global issue: the environment. (Norbert Walter, chief economist at Deutsche Bank Group, in New York Times / International Herald Tribune, 29 Aug. 2002)

Business key to successful development, Canada says - Minister stresses private-sector investment - Business is critical to the success of plans being discussed at the World Summit on Sustainable Development in South Africa, Canada's Environment Minister David Anderson said yesterday...Governments and non-governmental organizations (NGO) can't bring sustainable development to the Third World without private investment, he said. (Graham Fraser, The Star [Canada], 29 Aug. 2002)

Big business and labour sign deal at the World Summit for Sustainable Development [South Africa] - The union-inspired South African declaration for achieving sustainable environmental conservation targets within realistic economic and production strategies is now set to go international. South African signatories include Sasol (synfuels and chemicals), Iscor (steel production), Columbus Stainless, Eskom (power generation), Telkom (telecommunications) mineral resources companies Assmang Chrome, De Beers, Goldfields, Impala Platinum (Implats) and Ingwe Coal and industrial groups, Barloworld, Dorbyl Engineering and Rotek Engineering, and unions MWU-Solidarity and the National Union of Mine Workers. Among the companies locally who have firmly said they will not sign for the present are Highveld Steel, the country second largest producer, and multinational operators Dow Chemicals and Sappi (pulp and paper). (Lawrence Bedford, EyeforChem, in Ethical Corporation Magazine, 28 Aug. 2002)

Bali Principles of Climate Justice - An international coalition of groups gathered in Johannesburg for the Earth Summit has released a set of principles aimed at "putting a human face" on climate change. The Bali Principles of Climate Justice redefine climate change from a human rights and environmental justice perspective. (International Climate Justice Network, 28 Aug. 2002)

Business: Sir Mark Moody-Stuart [former Chairman of the Royal Dutch/Shell Group & head of the main industry lobby group at the World Summit for Sustainable Development] Helps Corporations With High Visibility at Johannesburg Summit - "There is a great deal of mutual distrust, which we have to get over," said Moody-Stuart in an exclusive interview with The Earth Times. "We believe in good international governance for issues like climate change and trade. It is a myth that we are not in favour of regulation."...Moody-Stuart has come to this summit with proposals of over one hundred such partnerships between corporations, non-governmental organizations and governments. One such partnership is a project between Merck & Co., GlaxoSmithKline, UNICEF, World Bank to improve access to AIDS care in the hardest-hit regions of the world. (Preeti Dawra, Earth Times, 28 Aug. 2002)

How green is my business? -...the idea that public-private partnerships [being promoted at World Summit on Sustainable Development] are themselves the answer to these problems [poverty, environmental damage, human rights abuse & social exclusion] is as foolish as the idea that the private sector caused them in the first place. If anything, corporations hyping up this hubristic circus without making a full commitment to sustainability simply undermine the serious work that leaders such as BP are doing to change their mainstream business behaviour for good. That's the real agenda that should be promoted at Johannesburg...It involves corporations integrating social and environmental values within their core activities, rather than setting up projects that hover outside in a box marked "corporate responsibility". (Steve Hilton, Guardian [UK], 28 Aug. 2002)

Senior Judges Adopt Ground-Breaking Action Plan to Strengthen World's Environment-Related Laws: World Summit on Sustainable Development Given Pioneering Principles for Fighting Poverty and Delivering Environmental Justice - An action plan to strengthen the development, use and enforcement of environment-related laws has been drawn up by over 100 of the world's most senior judges...Experts are convinced that the worldwide effort to crack down on pollution, challenge environmentally damaging developments and comply with agreements covering issues such as hazardous wastes and the trade in endangered species have been undermined partly as a result of weaknesses in many countries legal systems [includes text of The Johannesburg Principles on the Role of Law and Sustainable Development adopted at the Global Judges Symposium held in Johannesburg, South Africa, on 18-20 August 2002] (U.N. Environment Programme, 27 Aug. 2002)

Judges pledge to champion environment - Lawyers from around the world promise a crackdown on developers who pollute - A panel of 127 senior judges from 62 countries admitted yesterday that many of the international laws designed to protect the environment and save species from destruction were "paper tigers" which had not been properly enforced. The panel which convened at the Johannesburg earth summit pledged to improve environmental law across the world and champion the poor in a battle for a better environment as part of their duty to defend human rights. (Paul Brown, Guardian [UK], 28 Aug. 2002)

Businesses clash with green groups - The World Summit on Sustainable Development has rekindled the war of words between big business and advocates of environmental and social change...Business leaders argue that the first responsibility of a publicly listed company is to make money for its shareholders. To rationalise that goal with good intentions on environmental issues, companies have to be convinced that it makes sense in terms of share price and dividends. (CNN, 27 Aug. 2002)

Big Business Accused of Derailing Earth Summit - Activists accused big business on Tuesday of hijacking the Earth Summit from a goal of halving poverty without poisoning the planet...The World Development Movement, a British-based anti-poverty group, accused rich nations of "kowtowing to the powerful corporate lobbies." (Alister Doyle, Reuters, 27 Aug. 2002)

The North-South Institute calls on governments and corporations to respect Indigenous Peoples’ rights vis-à-vis mining developments - Canada can lead on ‘governance’ issues - In conjunction with the opening of the United Nations World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD) in Johannesburg, South Africa, The North-South Institute is releasing a policy brief outlining clear directions for governments and corporations proposing to undertake mining activities on or near Indigenous territories. (North-South Institute, 26 Aug. 2002)

{···français} L’Institut Nord-Sud incite les gouvernements et les entreprises à respecter les droits des peuples autochtones dans le contexte de l’exploitation minière - Le Canada peut donner le pas à la saine gouvernance (L’Institut Nord-Sud, 26 août 2002)

Forest and Paper Associations of the World Assess Industry Sustainability 10 Years After Rio (ICFPA - International Council of Forest and Paper Associations, 26 Aug. 2002)

NGOs Accuse Big Business of Trying to Hijack World Summit - The International Forum on Globalisation (IFG) yesterday accused big business and transnational corporations of attempting to hijack the World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD) and use the forum to drive their own agenda...Big Business, through BASD [Business Action on Sustainable Development], is rallying for voluntary, non-binding outcomes that do not entail commitments which puts it at odds with NGOs such as IFG, Friends of the Earth International (FoEI) and Third World Network (TWN) who want legally binding and enforceable outcomes and corporate accountability. (Momelezi Kula, The Post [Zambia], 26 Aug. 2002)

Tourism, NGOs divided on poverty - The historic clash between the tourism industry and non-governmental organisations is set to come to the fore at the World Summit for Sustainable Development...UK-based NGO Tourism Concern...wants the tourism industry to start focusing more on the amount of natural resources it consumes, whether the recent inclusion of services (which include tourism) as part of the World Trade Organisation agenda will truly provide for free and fair trade. Critically, it wants to raise the issue of foreign exchange leakage from developing countries. (Chatrudee Theparat, Bangkok Post, 26 Aug. 2002)

Amazon foresters make green profits [Brazil] - A project in the mangrove swamps near the mouth of the Amazon [sustainable harvesting of hearts of palm trees] is being showcased at the Johannesburg world development summit as a model of sustainable harvesting...The project on the remote island of Marajo is run by a company called Muana Alimentos - its chief executive Georges Schnyder says the crop depends on a healthy forest to make it productive. (Tim Hirsch, BBC News, 25 Aug. 2002)

The world's business [regarding business community and the World Summit on Sustainable Development] -...All of which is to say that pressing corporations to contribute more toward their host societies increasingly makes sense. Many executives understand that managing a global company requires a plan for global solutions: AIDS will devastate workers; income inequality will suppress the customer base; global warming, deforestation, and poor infrastructure threaten devastation - financial and human alike. A group called Business Action for Social Development, headed by the former chairman of Royal Dutch/Shell, will have a large presence at the summit. (editorial, Boston Globe, 25 Aug. 2002)

UN says earth summit will focus on Aids -...The focus on HIV/Aids is likely to open the debate on the affordability of anti-retroviral drugs...The debate on HIV/Aids is likely to involve the corporate sector, which is represented at the summit by 50 chief executives of multinational companies. (James Lamont, Financial Times, 25 Aug. 2002)

Business flourishes at Johannesburg summit - If the "People's Village" at the Earth Summit is any measure, big business has successfully muscled in on a convention to help the world's poor...Visitors to the vast exhibition tent...are assailed by glossy corporate brochures and snappy video clips vaunting the environmental and social awareness of some the world's biggest energy and utilities corporations...Oil giant BP Plc, which green groups branded on Friday as the best firm at using environmental veneer to disguise continued poor practice, had a smart stand promoting its green power projects. "Generally I think society is genuinely keen to support those efforts," said Craig Bennett of Friends of the Earth International. "What we don't condone is when they use those genuine projects...to suggest the whole company has changed." (Reuters, 24 Aug. 2002)

South Africa: Business Role is Greeted with Some Suspicion - There is widespread scepticism about the role played by business at the summit on the part of non-governmental organisations (Vanessa Houlder, Financial Times, 23 Aug. 2002)

Green Groups urge Johannesburg leaders to regulate Corporate Social Responsibility - Green groups across Europe are calling for a legally binding international framework on corporate accountability and liability, and plan to make the World Summit on Sustainable Development their stage for this demand. (Sorcha Clifford, Edie News, 23 Aug. 2002)

Big oil groups top league for 'greenwash' - The big oil companies were some of the first multinationals to find themselves in the environmental "hall of shame" on Friday in the run up to next week's World Summit on Sustainable Development...Friends of the Earth singled out Shell, British Petroleum (BP) and ExxonMobil for accusations that they had played up green credentials but fell short of their much-publicised environmentally friendly ideals...The "Green Oscars" were awarded by FoE to companies that had produced the most "greenwash" since the Rio Earth summit in 1992. It ranked among the best theatrical performances those by oil companies and the biotech companies Monsanto, Novartis and Aventis. Sasol, the South African fuels company, and Eskom, the local state-owned power group, also received "honourable" mentions. (James Lamont, Financial Times, 23 Aug. 2002)

Innovative measures required to protect indigenous knowledge -...As controversies surrounding indigenous intellectual property rights simmer, UNESCO will hold a major event at the World Summit on Sustainable Development (August 26 to September 4) to highlight innovative approaches to protecting and sharing traditional knowledge. (UNESCO, 22 Aug. 2002)

{···español} Aprovechar y compartir el saber indígena: Un debate -...En un momento en que los derechos de propiedad intelectual de los indígenas continúan siendo motivo de polémica, la UNESCO celebrará un importante acto en la Cumbre Mundial sobre Desarrollo Sostenible para poner de manifiesto la existencia de otras formas de proteger y compartir los saberes tradicionales. (UNESCO, 22 agosto 2002)

{···français} L'exploitation et le partage des savoirs autochtones en débat -...Alors que les questions liées aux droits de propriété intellectuelle autochtones continuent à alimenter les controverses, l'UNESCO organise un événement majeur lors du Sommet mondial sur le développement durable, destiné à mieux faire connaître d'autres approches de la protection et du partage des savoirs traditionnels. (UNESCO, 22 août 2002)

Asbestos: jobs, profits and sustainable development - A hideous blue spectre hovers behind the cleaner, greener image being promoted on the eve of the World Summit for Sustainable Development (WSSD). It is the spectre of asbestos, a legacy of a greed-driven and uncaring past. (Terry Bell, Labour News Network, 22 Aug. 2002)

Marching to Johannesburg -...As part of our special coverage of the Johannesburg Earth Summit, CorpWatch is running three excerpts from the new book, Earthsummit.biz: The Corporate Takeover of Sustainable Development (Kenny Bruno & Joshua Karliner CorpWatch, 21 Aug. 2002)

Industrialists Challenge Global Business to “Walk the Talk” -...In Walking the Talk:The Business Case for Sustainable Development...authors Charles O.Holliday Jr, Chairman and CEO of DuPont; Stephan Schmidheiny, Chairman of Anova Holding AG; and Philip Watts, Chairman of Shell; argue that business can, and indeed must, be an agent of positive change for the environment and the world’s poor. (World Business Council for Sustainable Development, 21 Aug. 2002)

Business buys into earth summit, but at what price -...Green and human rights groups say it is not all a public relations exercise and that some firms have started to recognise the need to tackle poverty and environmental degradation. But they also say that the presence of big businesses - some of whose budgets dwarf the economies of countries attending the meeting - threatens to divert governments from setting targets that force business to do more on sustainable development...The British charity Christian Aid said this month there was already an indication big business had hijacked the summit to push its agenda of self-regulation over corporate accountability. (Jodie Ginsberg, Reuters, 20 Aug. 2002)

A world court on the environment? Multinationals object -...Nongovernmental organizations are demanding an agreement at the summit meeting [World Summit on Sustainable Development] that big private corporations be monitored and regulated on an international level. Business groups are pressing instead to ensure that the UN endorses industry plans for voluntary self-regulation. (Barry James, International Herald Tribune, 19 Aug. 2002)

Eskom: Corporate Powerhouse or Green Company? -...Eskom, Africa's largest electric company -- also a major coal and nuclear enterprise, will be South Africa's Corporate Environmentalism Exhibit #1 during the Johannesburg World Summit on Sustainable Development...In this article, EarthLife Africa looks at the reality, and finds that the company has behaved in ways that contrast with Global Compact Principles seven (support a precautionary approach to environmental challenges) and nine (encourage the development and diffusion of environmentally friendly technologies.) (Brian Ashe, EarthLife Africa eThekwini, 16 Aug. 2002)

company website: Eskom - Environment (Eskom)

Spotlight on corporates reveals need for global rules - Some corporations continue to abuse the rights of people, destroy the livelihoods of communities, and pollute water and forest resources for future generations, according to a new report by Friends of the Earth International published today. The report graphically illustrates the need for governments to agree to introduce tighter rules for multinationals at the Earth Summit in Johannesburg. (Friends of the Earth, 16 Aug. 2002)

Call for 'global enviro rules' - The environmental group, Friends of the Earth, on Friday called on world leaders meeting at the upcoming World Summit on Sustainable Development in Johannesburg to introduce global rules for business....In the report the environmental group mentions the mining giant, Rio Tinto that is prospecting for gold in the Poboya protected forest in Indonesia despite opposition from local people. South Africa's chemical company Sasol also comes under fire. (South African Press Association, 16 Aug. 2002)

full report: Clashes with Corporate Giants: 22 campaigns for biodiversity and community (Friends of the Earth, Aug. 2002)

includes section entitled "Towards binding corporate accountability"

also includes the following case studies:

Peru: Manhattan Minerals (Tambogrande gold mine)

Malaysia: Malaysian timber companies (logging in Sarawak - affecting indigenous peoples)

South Africa: Sasol, Total, Dow Chemicals (pollution of poor communities)

Russia/Lithuania: Lukoil (Baltic sea drilling)

Papua New Guinea: BHP Billiton (OK Tedi mine)

Chad/Cameroon: ExxonMobil, Chevron, Petronas (Chad-Cameroon oil pipeline)

Ecuador: AGIP, Alberta Energy, Occidental Petroleum, Perez Companc, Repsol-YPF, Techint (oil pipeline, affecting indigenous peoples)

Czech Republic: Ford, Nemak (car plant on agricultural land)

Nigeria: Shell (environmental justice issues in Niger Delta)

Chile: Noranda (aluminium plant)

Worldwide: Aventis, Monsanto (genetically modified food)

Colombia: Occidental Petroleum (oil extraction on land of U'wa people)

Australia: Barrick Gold (gold mine, affecting indigenous peoples)

Brazil: Petrobas, El Paso Energy (gas pipeline, affecting indigenous peoples)

Indonesia: Asia Pulp & Paper (logging of rainforests)

Chile: Nutreco (salmon farms)

Azerbaijan, Georgia, Turkey: BP (Baku-Ceyhan oil pipeline)

Malta: Ax Holdings, Carlson Companies, Regent Hotels (golf course on agricultural land)

Australia: Nihon Unipac (clearcutting Goolengook Forest)

Norway: Bayer, Monsanto, Kanegafuchi (Norwegian sea pollution)

Indonesia: Rio Tinto (gold mine, affecting indigenous peoples)

UK: Scott's Company (peat extraction for compost)

Shell Games at the Earth Summit -...Tracking the behavior of Royal Dutch Shell from the 1992 Earth Summit in Rio to the WSSD in Johannesburg is particularly instructive in drawing out how global corporations have pursued a pro-environment and human rights public-relations strategy on the one hand, while continuing to be deeply engaged in destructive activity on the other. (Kenny Bruno & Joshua Karliner CorpWatch, 15 Aug. 2002)

company website: Issues: Society / Environment (Royal Dutch Shell)

company website: Sustainable Development (Royal Dutch Shell)

Freedom Makes All the Difference [refers to World Summit on Sustainable Development] -...We can even question the general strategy of defining sustainable development only in terms of fulfillment of needs, rather than using the broader perspective of enhancing human freedoms on a sustainable basis... Indeed, it is not at all obvious why the enhancing of democratic freedoms should not figure among the central demands of sustainable development. Not only are these freedoms important in themselves, but they can contribute to other types of freedoms. (Amartya Sen, Master of Trinity College - Cambridge, Nobel laureate [economics], in Los Angeles Times, 15 Aug. 2002)

Johannesburg Summit: A New Framework for Business Engagement -...Business could and should be a strong partner in safeguarding the environment, reducing poverty, raising education standards and improving health...But business today, following the collapse of Enron and other corporate scandals of fraud and greed, is losing its credibility as a trustworthy partner. (Klaus Schwab, President of the World Economic Forum, on Earth Times website, 15 Aug. 2002)

How to Save the World in Johannesburg [World Summit on Sustainable Development] (Jeffrey Sachs, Director of the Earth Institute & Professor of Sustainable Development at Columbia University, Financial Times, 13 Aug. 2002)

World Summit on Sustainable Development - Human Rights must be Guiding Principle (Rights & Democracy, 6 Aug. 2002)

{···français} Le Sommet mondial sur le développement durable: les droits humains doivent constituer un principe directeur (Droits et Démocratie, 6 août 2002)

Letter to Prime Minister of Canada on the exclusion of references to human rights from the draft inter-governmental declaration expected to be adopted in Johannesburg (Rights & Democracy, 23 July 2002)

Rio + 10 Series: The Sustainability of the World Summit on Sustainable Development - Organizers are working to reduce the environmental impacts of the Johannesburg Summit...The Johannesburg Climate Legacy (JCL), initiated by South African businesses in conjunction with the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD), seeks to “neutralize” carbon emissions associated with the summit. (William Baue, SocialFunds.com, 2 Aug. 2002)

Fashioning A New Deal: Workers and Trade Unions at the World Summit for Sustainable Development, South Africa, August/September 2002 (International Confederation of Free Trade Unions, Aug. 2002)

{···español} Crear un Nuevo Pacto: Trabajadores/as y Sindicatos en la Cumbre Mundial sobre el Desarrollo Sostenible, Sudáfrica, en agosto/septiembre de 2002 (Confederación Internacional de Organizaciones Sindicales Libres, agosto 2002)

{···français} Façonner une Nouvelle Donne: Travailleurs et syndicats au Sommet mondial pour le Développement durable, Afrique du Sud, août/septembre 2002 (Confédération internationale des syndicats libres, août 2002)

Saving the planet -...To save the planet it is imperative that the powerful nations meeting in Johannesburg [at the World Summit on Sustainable Development] commit themselves on at least seven key issues:...the establishment of juridical frameworks to make companies answerable for their ecological impact, and reaffirming the precautionary principle as the governing principle of all commercial activity;... (Ignacio Ramonet, editorial, Le Monde diplomatique, Aug. 2002)

{···français} Sauver la planète -...Pour sauver la planète, il est indispensable que les puissants de ce monde adoptent, à Johannesburg [Sommet mondial sur le développement durable], au moins sept décisions capitales:...4) des résolutions pour mettre en place un cadre juridique instituant la responsabilité écologique des entreprises et réaffirmant le principe de précaution comme préalable à toute activité commerciale (Ignacio Ramonet, editorial, Le Monde diplomatique, août 2002)

Countdown to Rio +10: 'Sustainable Development' and the Public-Private Pantomime - As the World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD) approaches, conflicts intensify between North and South, civil society and industry... Calls from civil society for binding regulations on corporate behaviour are being ignored, instead business is given a central role as provider of 'Type II' outcomes for the summit. Corporate lobby groups have already submitted over 50 projects for UN approval, many of which depict environmentally destructive industries as contributors to sustainable development...Encouraged by the political winds in the Rio+10 preparations, business stubbornly continues its irresponsible campaign for industry self-regulation and voluntary action as alternatives to effective and binding regulation of corporate behaviour. Underlining the unfortunate hollowness of their commitment to 'sustainable development', corporate groupings also work hard to maintain the limited scope of voluntary initiatives. Within the WBCSD for instance, there is "strong concern about the very expanded reporting requirements in Global Reporting Initiative's new draft guidelines." (Corporate Europe Observer, Aug. 2002)

From Rio to Johannesburg: The Globalization Decade - As part of our special coverage of the Johannesburg Earth Summit, CorpWatch is running three excerpts from the new book, Earthsummit.biz: The Corporate Takeover of Sustainable Development written by CorpWatch staffers Kenny Bruno and Joshua Karliner and co-published by Food First Books and CorpWatch...The excerpt below outlines the decade leading up to the World Summit on Sustainable Development. (Kenny Bruno & Joshua Karliner, CorpWatch and Food First Books, 24 July 2002)

EarthSummit.biz: The Corporate Takeover of Sustainable Development by Kenny Bruno and Joshua Karliner - Written especially for the Johannesburg Earth Summit, the new book EarthSummit.biz by Kenny Bruno and Joshua Karliner exposes the reality behind the propaganda of big business as it attempts to convey a public image of concern for environment, sustainable development and human rights...Published by the Institute for Food and Development Policy and CorpWatch. To be released, August 2002

SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT: "Monterrey Bridge" Coalition Launched - Seeking to raise the visibility of the link between agriculture and conservation at next month's World Summit on Sustainable Development, a group of agriculture and conservation organizations yesterday launched a new coalition called the Monterrey Bridge. (Jim Wurst, UN Wire, 24 July 2002)

Business Urged to Take Part in Summit - Failure by business to be present in significant numbers at the World Summit on Sustainable Development would render the private sector ineffective and leave it isolated while others took crucial decisions at the summit, Business Co-ordinating Forum chairman Tokyo Sexwale said yesterday. (Ernest Mabuza, Business Day [South Africa], 18 July 2002)

Emirates to launch global data bank on environment - The United Arab Emirates (UAE) plans to launch a global data bank on the environment at next month's Earth Summit to help coordinate rapid reaction to disasters in poor countries (Reuters, 18 July 2002)

Business sets up HQ in Johannesburg for World Summit (International Chamber of Commerce, 16 July 2002)

Rio + 10 Series: Two UNEP Reports Chart Past, Present, and Future Course of Sustainable Development - Assessments of the progress since the Rio Summit guide the blueprints for the Johannesburg Summit. (William Baue, SocialFunds.com, 13 July 2002)

Earth summit collapse better than toothless pact - The head of the environmental group Greenpeace said yesterday he would prefer the collapse of next month's global earth summit in Johannesburg over a pact of toothless promises. (Eric Onstad, Reuters, 12 July 2002)

Responsibility vs. accountability - Counter viewpoint: Joshua Karliner and Kenny Bruno, CorpWatch, San Francisco - The world has moved backward on environment and development since Rio. Governments surely bear primary responsibility for this failure. However, global corporations are at the root of many of the most intractable problems and have hamstrung governments preparing for Earth Summit II in Johannesburg, South Africa. [refers to Shell & Enron]. (Joshua Karliner & Kenny Bruno, in International Herald Tribune, 10 July 2002)

Business Role Crucial at Global Summit, Leader Says - Mark Moody-Stuart, the former chairman of Anglo-Dutch oil giant Royal Dutch/Shell, said this week that business was essential if the United Nations World Summit on Sustainable Development next month is to succeed. (Jodie Ginsberg, Reuters, 5 July 2002)

Rio + 10 Series: Progress and Regress--Energy Sectors Report on Their Efforts Toward Sustainability - Three industry sectors that supply energy--oil and gas, coal, and electricity--reported on their improvements and shortcomings in sustainable development since the Rio Summit. (William Baue, SocialFunds.com, 5 July 2002)

HP donates world summit hardware [World Summit on Sustainable Development] - Hewlett-Packard has been named as the exclusive hardware sponsor for the event, and will supply 2300 PCs, 128 servers, 53 notebook computers, 10 scanners, 274 printers and 135 digital cameras. (Business Day [South Africa], 27 June 2002)

BRAZIL: Johannesburg Summit May Look To Dam, Newspaper Reports - The London Independent reported this week on Brazil's Castanhao Dam project, which it called a "testament to the growing worldwide crisis in the supply of freshwater" as identified by the U.N. Environment Program. (UN Wire, 19 June 2002)

Rio + 10 Series: A Brief History of the Earth Summits--From Rio to Johannesburg (William Baue, SocialFunds.com, 14 June 2002)

Rio + 10 Series: A Brief History of the Earth Summits--From Stockholm to Rio (William Baue, SocialFunds.com, 7 June 2002)

"No Tears for the WSSD" - Statement of the participants of the International Mining Workshop, Bali, 4 June 2002 - We, the people from mining affected communities, environmentalists and sustainable development advocates, strongly condemn the current Fourth Preparatory Committee Meeting for World Summit for Sustainable Development (Prepcom IV -WSSD). Human rights and ecological justice cannot be priorities in a conference sponsored by transnational corporations (TNCs), most of which are the worst polluters on the planet. (Indonesian People's Forum, 4 June 2002)

Rio + 10 Series -...Entitled the “Rio + 10” articles, the stories include overviews of the previous two Earth Summits, analysis of how the private sector is both facilitating and hampering sustainable development, and reviews of relevant publications. (SocialFunds.com, June-Sep. 2002)

UN - sustainability -...fears are growing that the summit [World Summit on Sustainable Develoment] will be seized as an opportunity to further push the corporate-led globalisation agenda, with genuine environmental and social concerns being sidelined as governments push their own vested interests – and those of the rash of corporations and corporate lobby groups attending the summit. (Corporate Watch [UK] Newsletter, June-July 2002)

BASDards at the World Summit on Sustainable Development - Business Action for Sustainable Development (BASD) is the distasteful lovechild spawned from an unholy union between the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC – the world’s premier business lobby group) and the benign sounding, but very dangerous, World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD – otherwise known as Greenwash International). The initiative was launched in April 2001, with the expressed intention of ‘rallying the collective forces of world business in the lead up to next year’s Earth Summit.’ It is aptly headed by Sir Mark Moody-Stuart, retired chairman of those arch-deacons of global greenwash Shell. (Corporate Watch [UK] Newsletter, June-July 2002)

A Guide for Potential Partnerships on Energy for Sustainable Development -...The creation of public-private partnerships on energy for sustainable development requires the active involvement of the private sector as strategic partners in building strong alliances to implement specific initiatives, and as sources of expertise, financing and experience. [page 3] (United Nations, Background Paper No. 3 for the World Summit on Sustainable Development, Fourth Preparatory Session, 31 May 2002) [to download this pdf file directly, click here: http://www.johannesburgsummit.org/html/documents/prep4_background_papers/energy_3.pdf]

Statement of the United Nations Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights -...the Committee observes with concern the overall decline in living conditions, particularly in connection with pressures of globalization and the shrinking role of the State, as more and more social services are turned over to non-State entities who have no comparable commitment to the progressive realization of economic, social and cultural rights, nor to the protection of the environment. The Committee has observed, for example, that the right to health is violated by "the failure to enact or enforce laws to prevent the pollution of water, air and soil by the extractive and manufacturing industries." [para. 3] (United Nations, Background Paper No. 5 for the World Summit on Sustainable Development, Fourth Preparatory Session, 30 May 2002) [to download this pdf file directly, click here: http://www.johannesburgsummit.org/html/documents/prep4_background_papers/humanrights_background5.pdf]

UN hails forum's declaration defining basis for ecotourism development - The dialogue [at the World Ecotourism Summit] culminated in the Québec Declaration on Ecotourism, which will be presented later this year to the UN World Summit on Sustainable Development in Johannesburg, South Africa. (United Nations, 23 May 2002)

World Bank VP urges more leadership on environment - A senior World Bank executive said yesterday strong political leadership was vital to ensure a world environment summit in three months time did not add to the discontent felt by some about the process of globalisation. (Nick Antonovics, Reuters, 22 May 2002)

The State Of The Planet Is Getting Worse But For Many It's Still "business As Usual" - Industry and the environment - achievements, unfinished business and future challenges. Global launch of 22 Industry Reports prepared for the 2002 World Summit on Sustainable Development - There is a growing gap between the efforts of business and industry to reduce their impact on the environment and the worsening state of the planet, a new report by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) reveals today...in most industry sectors, only a small number of companies are actively striving for sustainability (United Nations Environment Programme, 15 May 2002)

Industry still failing on environment - UN report - Despite the best efforts of a minority of firms, world industry as a whole is failing to pull its weight on protecting the environment, a United Nations report concluded yesterday. (Reuters, 16 May 2002)

SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT: UNEP Blasts Industry "Business As Usual" (UN Wire, 16 May 2002)

Sector Reports - UNEP DTIE is facilitating the preparation of a series of sector reports [for World Summit on Sustainable Development], whereby international, industry organisations and associations take stock of progress towards sustainable development and outline future challenges and actions to be taken (United Nations Environment Programme)

Sector report - Accounting

Sector report - Advertising

Sector report - Aluminium

Sector report - Automotive

Sector report - Aviation

Sector report - Chemicals

Sector report - Coal

Sector report - Construction

Sector report - Consulting engineering

Sector report - Electricity

Sector report - Fertilizers

Sector report - Finance and insurance

Sector report - Food and drink

Sector report - Information and communications technology

Sector report - Iron and Steel

Sector report - Oil and gas

Sector report - Railways

Sector report - Refrigeration

Sector report - Road transport

Sector report - Tourism

Sector report - Waste management

Sector report - Water management

PrepCom IV for the World Summit on Sustainable Development Bali, Indonesia - 27 May to 7 June 2002 (United Nations) (posted on this site 13 May 2002)

Indonesian People's Forum - a consolidation forum for local, regional, national, and international civil society, and also as a medium for national and international campaigns that aim at contributing inputs to strengthen the outcomes of PrepComm IV - May 25 - June 6, 2002 (Indonesian People's Forum)

Energy Emerges as a Key Issue for Johannesburg - Beyond the debates over energy use and efficiency that have featured during the preparatory process for the World Summit on Sustainable Development is the fact that more than a third of the world's population does not have clean and affordable energy services [includes comments by Electricité de France, Tata Environmental Research Institute, Tokyo Electric, American Electric Power] (U.N. Johannesburg Summit 2002, 8 May 2002)

Centre stage at World Summit for land, property, construction and development - Aspiration and Reality: Building Sustainability, Johannesburg, 28-30 August 2002: A seminal conference for practitioners in land, property, construction and development will be staged in Johannesburg as part of the World Summit for Sustainable Development (WSSD). (RICS Foundation, 24 Apr. 2002)

Nordic Partnership Signs Sustainability Manifesto in Preparation for Rio + 10 Summit: A group of companies from the four Nordic countries convened recently to report on their progress in generating a model for sustainable business development (William Baue, SocialFunds.com, 24 Apr. 2002)

Mining sector starts countdown to earth summit -...The industry is still using noxious chemicals to extract metals, mining waste continues to pose a potential ecological hazard and the sector remains a leading source of the greenhouse gases believed to be responsible for climate change. Yet the industry is seen to have recognised that is has a pressing problem that demands speedy action. [refers to Global Mining Initiative] (Amanda Cooper, Reuters, 23 Apr. 2002)

SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT: Consensus Eludes Preparatory Meeting - The third preparatory meeting for the World Summit on Sustainable Development ended Friday night with the lack of an anticipated agreement on consensus documents for the event prompting organizers to decide to meet again ahead of a planned ministerial meeting in May...Craig Bennett of Friends of the Earth said the text's references to "private-public partnerships" are "essentially opportunities given to corporations to deliver the implement of sustainable development. ... Do they really have the interest of sustainable development at heart? ... We are talking about corporations taking advantage of global trade yet not willing to be accountable globally..." (Jim Wurst, UN Wire, 8 Apr. 2002)

Environmentalists say US hijacking UN summit: Environmental groups last week accused the United States and oil exporting nations of trying to gut a global action plan for environmentally friendly development to be adopted at a U.N. summit in South Africa..."The United States' only vision is that this planet should be run like a business park," Greenpeace's Remi Parmentier told a news conference (Irwin Arieff, Reuters, 8 Apr. 2002)

SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT: Prep Meeting Nears End Without Agreement - The third preparatory meeting for the World Summit on Sustainable Development entered its final day this morning without a consensus for the summit and with civil society representatives highly critical of the entire process...Paul Tennassee of the World Confederation of Labor said, "In this conference, they are trying to evade the whole issue of the social responsibility of corporations and this is an issue that has to be tackled head on." (Jim Wurst, UN Wire, 5 Apr. 2002)

Public-Private Partnerships to Save the World? Friends of the Earth today slammed the UK Government, the EU, and governments from other industrialised countries for putting big business before people and the environment during the preparations for this year's "Earth Summit". The environment group warned that the Johannesburg meeting looked set to become "the world's largest trade fair", unless governments seized the opportunity to address the negative aspects of corporate-led globalisation. (Friends of the Earth, 5 Apr. 2002)

The Jo'burg Memo - Fairness in a Fragile World - A Memorandum for the World Summit on Sustainable Development [a Memorandum for the World Summit by 16 authors from across the world, to contribute to the debate on both the desired outcomes of the Summit and the critical path for the sustainable development agenda in the next decade...the authors are drawn from NGOs, business, academic community, politics] (Heinrich Boell Foundation, 4 Apr. 2002)

UN and business unveil new project to open Jo'burg Summit to the world:...Virtual Exhibition is a joint project of BASD - Business Action for Sustainable Development - and UNDP - the United Nations Development Programme. Billed as "a multi-media showcase of sustainable development initiatives", Virtual Exhibition will use web technology to profile sustainable development projects from all over the world. It will also provide a worldwide webcast of proceedings during the Johannesburg conference and encourage participation in the summit via a series of online exchanges. (Virtual Exhibition, 3 Apr. 2002)

World summit firm gets more donors, needs more cash: Organisers of a world development summit to be held in Johannesburg later this year said yesterday it had secured more money from local firms but still lacked a third of funds needed to meet its budget...State-owned firms Eskom, the South African Post Office and South African Airways said yesterday they had each contributed five million rand, along with mining giant Anglo American and construction company Murray & Roberts. The country's biggest bank Standard Bank and number two cellphone operator MTN have already contributed. (Reuters, 3 Apr. 2002)

Enthusiasm and Some Concerns Voiced Over Partnership Proposals: The idea of using the World Summit on Sustainable Development as a launching pad for new partnerships between governments, the private sector, and community and citizen groups gained considerable momentum during a wide-ranging discussion of the concept at PrepCom III for the Summit [but qualifications expressed by EU, and concerns expressed by Third World Network and Women's Caucus] (United Nations website for the Johannesburg Summit 2002 - the World Summit on Sustainable Development, 2 Apr. 2002)

Polar Partnership Promotes Sustainable Development in Arctic:...Natural resource utilization, mining and military operations in the Arctic have expanded...the [Arctic] Council does promote the precautionary principle and urges the use of environmental and social impact assessments to assure that all activities benefit local people while providing the maximum environmental protection. (United Nations website for the Johannesburg Summit 2002 - the World Summit on Sustainable Development, 2 Apr. 2002)

Leading Environmentalists Launch Global Initiative: Leading Indian environmentalist and activist, Vandana Shiva and award winning South African community leader, Mandla Mentoor will join Friends of the Earth Director- Designate, Tony Juniper to launch the Peoples Earth Summit on Thursday 28 March. The event is a global initiative that brings together communities world-wide in the lead up to the Earth Summit in South Africa later this year. (Friends of the Earth, 22 Mar. 2002)

FORESTS: NGOs Call U.N. Declaration Too Timid; More Environmental groups have criticized as too limited a call Thursday by ministers at a U.N. Forum on Forests meeting for this year's World Summit on Sustainable Development to support immediate action against illegal forest exploitation. (UN Wire, 18 Mar. 2002)

SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT: Desai Speaks Out On Mining, Cars, More - The Aug. 26-Sept. 4 World Summit on Sustainable Development will be marked by a new level of support from business for sustainable development goals, summit head Nitin Desai told Le Figaro...Desai said...mining companies will be invited to seek new modes of operation. ... Big automobile makers like Renault, Toyota, Honda, Ford and Volkswagen, together with oil companies like BP and Shell, will also have to develop a new strategy of sustainable mobility...All big businesses must become good planetary citizens. (UN Wire, 6 Mar. 2002)

{···français} Le deuxième sommet de la Terre se prépare: Le secrétaire général de la conférence qui se tiendra en septembre à Johannesburg affiche sa confiance - Nitin Desai : «Toutes les grandes entreprises doivent devenir de "bons citoyens planétaires".» (Le Figaro, 4 mars 2002)

The Road to Johannesburg: Will Sustainability Be the Coming Norm or a Passing Fad in Travel? In anticipation of next year's World Summit on Sustainable Development in Johannesburg, South Africa, the travel and tourism industry is taking stock of what it has accomplished since the Rio summit. What can the industry report in Johannesburg? [refers to companies taking steps to protect environment, including Nepal Electric Vehicle Industry Ltd. in Nepal, Punta Cana Resort and Club in Dominican Republic, Borneo Eco Tours in Malaysia] (Michael Seltzer, BEST - Business Enterprises for Sustainable Travel, Conference Board, 28 Feb. 2002)

Summit chief says "enlightened" businesses understand benefits of sustainable development: Secretary General of the Johannesburg Summit, Nitin Desai has called on major corporations around the world to dramatically increase their involvement in sustainable development initiatives. (International Chamber of Commerce, 4 Feb. 2002)

Earth Summit Must Focus On Environ Rights: Olver - The agenda of the World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD) must focus on the environmental rights of the poor, [South Africa's] Environment and Tourism director general Crispian Olver said on Friday. (South African Press Association, 2 Feb. 2002)

ENVIRONMENT: Promises Fall Short of Performance - U.N. Head: The international community has fallen short of promises to prevent deterioration of the global environment, U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan said Monday...Kenny Bruno, U.N. Project Coordinator for the U.S.-based non-governmental organisation CorpWatch, said one of the primary reasons for poor implementation following the Earth Summit was the failure to confront the growing power of multinational corporations. (Thalif Deen, Inter Press Service, 28 Jan. 2002)

Greenwash + 10: The UN's Global Compact, Corporate Accountability and the Johannesburg Earth Summit [includes references to Aventis, DaimlerChrysler, Nike, Rio Tinto, Norsk Hydro, Royal Dutch/Shell, Unilever] (Kenny Bruno, CorpWatch, 24 Jan. 2002)

company website: Aventis CropScience: Our position on... (Aventis CropScience)

company website: DaimlerChrysler (DaimlerChrysler)
company website: Responsibility: labor (Nike)
company website: Norsk Hydro (Norsk Hydro)
company website (Rio Tinto):
- PT Kelian Equatorial Mining: Environment (PT Kelian Equatorial Mining: A member of Rio Tinto)
- PT Kelian Equatorial Mining: Community (PT Kelian Equatorial Mining: A member of Rio Tinto)
- Mining and the environment (Rio Tinto)
- Human rights (Rio Tinto)

company website: Shell (Royal Dutch/Shell)
company website: Unilever - Thermometer factory: Kodaikanal, India - 21 June 2001 (Unilever)

Seminar to review environment and human rights links held a decade after Earth Summit (United Nations, 15 Jan. 2002)

SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT: Toepfer Calls For Flexibility - U.N. Environment Program Executive Director Klaus Toepfer [said] he is encouraged by the attention that was given to the environment, poverty and sustainable development at the World Trade Organization's November ministerial conference in Doha, Qatar. Toepfer said more flexibility in dealing with those issues is needed ahead of the World Summit on Sustainable Development (UN Wire, 14 Jan. 2002)

2001:

SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT: Annan Outlines Visions In Report For Summit - In a report released yesterday, U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan submits a critical assessment of progress made toward Agenda 21, the plan of action adopted at the 1992 Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro....His report also says that "despite initiatives by governments, international organizations, business, civil society groups and individuals to achieve sustainable development, progress towards the goals established at Rio has been slower than anticipated and in some respects are worse than they were 10 years ago." (UN Wire, 21 Dec. 2001)

Secretary-General outlines vision for building secure future in report for World Summit on Sustainable Development (United Nations, 20 Dec. 2001)

Environment summit [Earth Summit - Johannesburg 2002] in South Africa to battle poverty:..."The most toxic substance, also for the environment, is poverty," Klaus Toepfer, Executive Director of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), told a news conference..."We need private businesses in Johannesburg, and we need them in a reliable and concrete way," he said....Brende [Norway's Environment Minister Boerge Brende] said he was working to create an U.N. High Commissioner for the Environment as well as an U.N.-sponsored international expert panel in order to lift environmental issues higher on the global agenda. (Erik Brynhildsbakken, Reuters, 21 Dec. 2001)

SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT: Oscar Arias Backs Ecoagriculture - In a commentary in Sunday's Folha de Sao Paulo, former Costa Rican President and Nobel Peace laureate Oscar Arias expressed support for ecoagriculture ahead of next year's Johannesburg World Summit on Sustainable Development (UN Wire, 11 Dec. 2001)

{português} Tendências e Debates: A ecoagricultura (Oscar Arias, Folha de Sao Paulo [Brasil], 9 Dec. 2001)

City of London Principles Anticipate Global Summit on Sustainability: The UK financial sector is developing sustainable business principles that it hopes can act as a blueprint for similar principles to be created and adopted at the UN's 2002 World Summit on Sustainable Development. (William Baue, SocialFunds.com, 10 Dec. 2001)

Shell's Phil Watts becomes chairman of the World Business Council for Sustainable Development:...The WBCSD was created in 1992 to provide business input to the Rio Earth Summit, and has since become the leading business advocate on sustainable development issues. (World Business Council for Sustainable Development, 15 Nov. 2001)

SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT: Experts Lament Arab States' Environment - During a meeting of environmental ministers in Cairo yesterday, Arab experts expressed dismay about the state of the environment in Arab countries, describing regional endeavors to fulfill environmental commitments as mere "ink on paper." (UN Wire, 26 Oct. 2001)

Experts lament state of environment in Arab world: As Arab environment ministers convened in Cairo to set a unified list for the second Earth Summit to be held in South Africa next year, experts expressed dismay at the state of the environment in the Arab world. (Ruba Saqr, Jordan Times, 25 Oct. 2001)

Environmental damage hits poor hardest, Administrator tells Latin American conference: Environmental damage, from disappearing tropical forests to diminishing supplies of clean water, has a "disproportionately brutal impact on the poor", said UNDP [U.N. Development Programme] Administrator Mark Malloch Brown in statement delivered at a regional conference yesterday in Rio de Janeiro preparing for the World Summit on Sustainable Development. Unless these problems are reversed, the world will not meet the development targets set at last year's UN Millennium Summit, particularly the goal of halving extreme poverty by 2015, he pointed out. UNDP has made the summit on sustainable development, to be held in Johannesburg next September, "our highest corporate priority for next year", said the Administrator. (Newsfront, U.N. Development Programme, 24 October 2001)

full text of statement: Address by UNDP Administrator Mark Malloch Brown - Latin America and Caribbean Regional Preparatory Committee Meeting for the World Conference on Sustainable Development - Rio de Janeiro, Brazil 23 October 2001

SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT: 2002 Summit To Stress Poverty Reduction - African environment ministers meeting this week at the U.N. Environment Program's Nairobi headquarters issued a statement yesterday outlining a common position to be pursued when delegates convene in Johannesburg next September for the World Summit on Sustainable Development. The ministers said poverty alleviation and environmental regeneration will be key priorities for the summit, and that Africa will urge attendees "to adopt concrete measures to provide a solid foundation for an immediate and focused international assault on some of the worst aspects of global poverty and hence environmental degradation." (UN Wire, 18 Oct. 2001)

UNEP's [United Nations Environment Programme's] 18th Consultative meeting with Industry Associations Paris, 4 - 5 October, 2001: Preparing for the World Summit on Sustainable Development - A call for partnerships and a proactive approach - As a contribution to the preparation process for next year's World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD) in Johannesburg, South Africa, representatives of some fifty industry associations from different parts of the world met in Paris last week. The two day event, the United Nations Environment Programme's (UNEP) 18th Consultative Meeting with Industry Associations, was, for the first time, also attended by non-industry civil society representatives such as Rémi Parmentier, Political Director of Greenpeace International and Ricardo Navarro, Chair of Friends of the Earth International. With discussion often returning to the need for "partnerships" and the greater involvement of business and industry from the developing world, various speakers called for a more pro-active approach by the sector in addressing the complex issues surrounding sustainable development. (United Nations Environment Programme, 12 Oct. 2001)

Business wants legacy on sustainable development, but that will take money: World business leaders attending the Business Strategy Meeting said that they will focus on leaving a lasting legacy benefiting Johannesburg and South Africa, the hosts of the World Summit on Sustainable Development 2002, consisting of infrastructure development, inward investment, and social programs...The idea behind the meeting was to look at the good examples over the last 10 years where business has actually made a contribution to sustainable development and to examine the industries where there are plans in place for a sustainable future. This would provide governments with concrete examples on both what has worked and what has failed in the past. (Sacha Shivdasani, Earth Times News Service, 11 Oct. 2001)

RIO+10: Pay For Summit Yourselves, Business Group Tells Governments - At the close of a two-day Paris meeting, Business Action for Sustainable Development yesterday rejected South Africa's appeal for private sector funding for next year's World Summit on Sustainable Development in Johannesburg, calling on governments to pay for the summit instead..."If business were to provide core funding, this would feed all the suspicions about business, inevitably leading to charges that it was exerting undue influence," Mark Moody-Stuart, chairman of the business association coalition, said. (UN Wire, 11 Oct. 2001)

Business tells governments to pay up for Jo'burg Summit: Business Action for Sustainable Development, a coalition of business associations, today called on governments to provide funding for next year's World Summit on Sustainable Development and relieve South Africa as host country of an unacceptable financial burden that was imperiling the event. (Business Action for Sustainable Development, 10 Oct. 2001)

Business sees key consumer role at Jo'burg Summit: Business preparations for next year's World Summit on Sustainable Development moved into top gear today with an appeal to governments for clarity about what should be expected of companies - and insistence that consumers have a key role to play. (Business Action for Sustainable Development, 9 Oct. 2001)

Leaders gather in Paris to plan for 2002 World Summit on Sustainable Development: Business leaders from across the world are gathering in Paris to discuss the role of business at the World Summit on Sustainable Development 2002, to be held in Johannesburg, South Africa. The meeting is being organized by the Business Action for Sustainable Development, a joint initiative of the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) and the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD). (Sacha Shivdasani, Earth Times News Service, 7 Oct. 2001)

Earth Summit - still stuck at Rio?: The Governments of Europe and North America agreed at a formal UN meeting in Geneva today that they are not prepared to go beyond commitments made at the Rio Earth Summit in 1992...Friends of the Earth International (FoEI) wants to see the governments of the ECE region honestly assess why unsustainable development continues and develop a new set of actions to turn the tide of social and environmental degradation. (Friends of the Earth, 25 Sep. 2001)

UNECE Ministers Adopt Declaration for Johannesburg Summit: Ministers of the member States of the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) met in Geneva on 24-25 September 2001 to prepare their contribution to next year’s World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD)...The Ministers set priorities for regional and global action on: poverty eradication; sustainable management and conservation of the natural resource base; making globalization work for sustainable development; improving governance and democratic processes at all levels; financing sustainable development; and education, science and technology for decision-making. (United Nations Economic Commission for Europe, 25 Sep. 2001)

Address by Klaus Töpfer, Executive Director of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) to the Regional Ministerial Meeting for the World Summit on Sustainable Development Geneva, 24-25 September 2001:...Through the Global Compact we should work to ensure that the private sector becomes a full partner in the efforts to secure lifestyles and development patterns which are environmentally sound and sustainable in the long run. Jointly we should develop a new culture of environmental accountability; one of a full acceptance and rigorous application of the polluter pays principle and the precautionary approach in investment and technology decisions, while promoting cleaner and more resource efficient technologies. (Klaus Töpfer, Executive Director of the United Nations Environment Programme, 24 Sep. 2001)

Nitin Desai: 'We have to spur action now!' [interview of Nitin Desai, United Nations Under Secretary General for Economic and Social Affairs, regarding Sep. 2002 World Summit on Sustainable Development; Mr. Desai is in charge of organising the summit] (Pranay Gupte, Earth Times News Service, 8 Sep. 2001)

The need for a global environment body: Debate getting warmer ahead of next year's world summit in South Africa - On Sept. 3-4, a large number of eminent persons gathered in Tokyo at the United Nations University to seriously discuss the possibility of dramatically strengthening the system of international governance that is charged with protecting the world environment. The meeting was part of official preparations for the 2002 World Summit on Sustainable Development, which will take place in South Africa late next year. (W. Bradnee Chambers, Japan Times, 8 Sep. 2001)

The business case for sustainable development: Making a difference toward the Johannesburg Summit 2002 and beyond (World Business Council for Sustainable Development, Sep. 2001) {···english} {···español}

Business and sustainable development take to the net: Business preparations for next year's Earth Summit have found a new home on the internet with the launch of the Business Action for Sustainable Development (BASD) website. A joint project of ICC (International Chamber of Commerce) and WBCSD (World Business Council for Sustainable Development), the website (www.basd-action.net) will serve as a portal for all business actions leading up to the Second Earth Summit in Johannesburg, September 2002. (International Chamber of Commerce, 22 Aug. 2001)

Business gears up for Earth Summit: Business leaders from all over the world will gather in Paris in October for the first major meeting of the new environmental initiative, Business Action for Sustainable Development (BASD). Charged with the task of setting a business agenda for next year's Earth Summit in Johannesburg, more than 150 industry leaders have registered to attend the BASD Strategy Meeting at ICC headquarters, October 9-10. (Business Action for Sustainable Development, 31 July 2001)

Climate change (briefing paper for World Summit on Sustainable Development, published by IIED [International Institute for Environment and Development] and RING [Regional and International Networking Group], June 2001)

Drylands management (briefing paper for World Summit on Sustainable Development, published by IIED [International Institute for Environment and Development] and RING [Regional and International Networking Group], June 2001)

Environmental rights (briefing paper for World Summit on Sustainable Development, published by IIED [International Institute for Environment and Development] and RING [Regional and International Networking Group], June 2001)

Local agenda 21s (briefing paper for World Summit on Sustainable Development, published by IIED [International Institute for Environment and Development] and RING [Regional and International Networking Group], June 2001)

The UN Financing for Development process (briefing paper for World Summit on Sustainable Development, published by IIED [International Institute for Environment and Development] and RING [Regional and International Networking Group], June 2001)

National Strategies for Sustainable Development (briefing paper for World Summit on Sustainable Development, published by IIED [International Institute for Environment and Development] and RING [Regional and International Networking Group], June 2001)

Sustainability and trade (briefing paper for World Summit on Sustainable Development, published by IIED [International Institute for Environment and Development] and RING [Regional and International Networking Group], June 2001)

Ecological debt (briefing paper for World Summit on Sustainable Development, published by IIED [International Institute for Environment and Development] and RING [Regional and International Networking Group], June 2001)

Poverty and environment (briefing paper for World Summit on Sustainable Development, published by IIED [International Institute for Environment and Development] and RING [Regional and International Networking Group], June 2001)

Food and Agriculture - the impact of agribusiness (briefing paper for World Summit on Sustainable Development, published by IIED [International Institute for Environment and Development] and RING [Regional and International Networking Group], June 2001)

Biodiversity (briefing paper for World Summit on Sustainable Development, published by IIED [International Institute for Environment and Development] and RING [Regional and International Networking Group], June 2001)

Tourism (briefing paper for World Summit on Sustainable Development, published by IIED [International Institute for Environment and Development] and RING [Regional and International Networking Group], June 2001)

Gender and globalisation (briefing paper for World Summit on Sustainable Development, published by IIED [International Institute for Environment and Development] and RING [Regional and International Networking Group], June 2001)

Mining and Sustainable Development (briefing paper for World Summit on Sustainable Development, published by IIED [International Institute for Environment and Development] and RING [Regional and International Networking Group], June 2001)

Water - Can Private Sector Participation meet Social and Environmental needs? (briefing paper for World Summit on Sustainable Development, published by IIED [International Institute for Environment and Development] and RING [Regional and International Networking Group], June 2001)

Health and Sustainable Development (briefing paper for World Summit on Sustainable Development, published by IIED [International Institute for Environment and Development] and RING [Regional and International Networking Group], June 2001)

NGOs Vow to Scrutinize Business Plans for Earth Summit II (CorpWatch, 18 Apr. 2001)

Shell chairman to lead business group at Earth Summit review (Jason Topping Cone, Earth Times News Service,18 Apr. 2001)

Business gears up for Earth Summit with launch of new initiative (International Chamber of Commerce, 18 Apr. 2001)

Earth Summit has to keep up with times (Mick Corliss, Japan Times, 2 Mar. 2001)

World earth summit all set for major flop - The "Earth Summit" in South Africa in August is shaping up to be a major flop with politics in the driving seat and science hardly to be seen, scientists and environmentalists say. (Jeremy Lovell, Reuters, 17 June 2002)