Trade Issues on the Backburner in Final Regional Prep Meeting for Rio+20
The final regional meeting in preparation for next June’s Rio+20 Conference, held last week in Geneva, saw participants largely skirt around trade issues, despite previous regional meetings having seen significant debate surrounding the areas of green trade protectionism and the definition of a ‘green economy.’
The UN Economic Commission for Europe’s (UNECE) Regional Preparatory Meeting was the fifth in a series of regional gatherings being held in preparation for the 20-22 June 2012 Rio+20 UN Conference on Sustainable Development.
The ECE region encompasses North America, Europe, Russia, and Central Asia.
The Rio+20 Conference marks the twentieth anniversary of the 1992 United Nations Conference on Environment and Development. The conference’s objective is to secure a renewed commitment for sustainable development and to meet new and emerging challenges by focusing on the following themes: the green economy in the context of sustainable development and poverty eradication; and the institutional framework for sustainable development.
Original article published at www.uncsd2012.org