CSD reflections
By Elissa Smith
My experience at the Twelfth Session of the Commission on Sustainable
Development was extremely rewarding and I learned a great deal
about international decision-making, UN processes and the roles
that civil society, especially youth can play on the global level.
As 2004 was a review year for the CSD, discussion centered on
reflection and reporting of best practices and lessons learned
in the key themes of water, sanitation and human settlement. Within
this context, I worked with the 20-30 other youth caucus members
to advocate for youth related sustainable development concerns
through statements and interventions in the plenary, discussion
with members of national delegations and other major groups, and
written documents and campaigns. Our points included:
· The importance of education as a tool in promoting sustainable
development, and the need for development and implementation of
national Strategies on Education for Sustainable Development by
member states.
· The need for greater caution and monitoring when engaging
private sector partners in water, sanitation and housing provision.
· The role that youth can and do play as leaders in the
implementation and promotion of sustainable development practices
and initiatives, highlighting work that is already being done
through youth led projects around the world.
· The importance of consultation and engagement with local
communities (particularly marginalized groups like women and youth),
who are the primary stakeholders in the design and application
of development initiatives, to ensure projects are culturally
sensitive and effective.
· A push for the inclusion of youth in more official delegations
in the future, especially those from Southern countries, providing
for more equal and adequate representation of the various voices
and concerns of young people in the CSD.
During the two weeks I also had the opportunity to interact with
officials in the Canadian delegation, gaining incite into Canada’s
involvement in the implementation of Agenda 21 (Earth Summit,
1992) and the Johannesburg Plan of Implementation (World Summit
on Sustainable Development, 2002) both at home and abroad through
development assistance. It was interesting and perhaps disheartening
to experience the bureaucracy in which the Canadian government
and UN as whole operate, as it provides a major barrier to realizing
many of
the recommendations and goals set out in past years. In spite
of such limits a great deal has been achieved through both the
CSD and Canadian government and in many areas targets are being
achieved or remain within reach. The CSD is a unique and effective
process within the UN system as it is capable of unifying international
actors and stakeholders from both government and civil society
around the common goal of sustainable development.
Here
is the address to the UN webcast thing where I say the official
youth statement. The time is at about 2:36 when i speak but you
might want to listen to the whole row of major groups (there are
9) cuz i wrote the speach, (with Pieter from the northern alliance
for sustainability).
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Elissa Smith,
Environmental Science
University of Guelph
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