Brussels, 09/12/2014 (Agence Europe) - The environmental dimension should be a key element and not the poor relation of sustainable development, in order to guarantee the universal nature and effectiveness of the future global framework for development post-2015, the WWF on Monday told the Foreign Affairs Council, which is due to meet in Brussels on Friday 12 December in its Development format.
It is now time for the Council to adopt conclusions on the position to be defended by the EU on the sustainable development programme in the framework of international negotiations on a new global framework for sustainable development, to be adopted by the United Nations in September 2015 to take over from the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).
WWF believes that integrating environmental sustainability needs to be a central part of this new framework, recognising the essential link between the sustainable and fair use of natural resources and poverty reduction. It therefore calls on the member states to support a new single and universal framework applicable to all countries - developed as well as developing - which tackles all aspects of poverty and addresses all dimensions of sustainable development, including the environment.
“The EU can make a difference this week and show it wants a truly effective and universal sustainable development agenda that will allow us to eradicate poverty and protect our planet. Environmental sustainability is at the heart of all human well-being and economic activity”, stressed Sally Nicholson, of WWF European Policy Office. She added: “Water, for example, is essential for food security, for health, for energy, for production and manufacturing - in fact for all aspects of life”.
WWF would like the EU to be bold in defining how it plans to implement this framework domestically and internationally and to champion policy coherence through integrating sustainable development considerations into their decision-making across all sectors.
The nature NGO believes that a transformative global programme which will tackle poverty and inequality within a generation can only be achieved with economic models that go beyond 'business as usual'. It therefore argues that the future framework for post-2015 should promote social and economic development that remains within planetary boundaries to ensure the prosperity and well-being of current and future generations. (AN)