On Monday 28th of July 2014, Felix Dodds[1] Jorge Laguna-Celis[2] and Liz Thompson’s [3] book “From Rio+20 to a New Development Agenda” will have a much-awaited companion “The Plain Language Guide to Rio+20: Preparing for the New Development Agenda” released in E-book form; thus constituting the definitive and most authoritative appraisal of the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development, otherwise known as Rio+20. Since before the Rio+20 conference, through Rio+20, and continuing today, many organizations have dedicated their input, thoughts, and work to improving the world we live in today.
This book is designed to help people from all backgrounds understand what was agreed at Rio+20 and the relevant UN Commissions, Conferences and Summit that laid the foundation for Rio+20 and the new sustainable development goals which are expected to be agreed upon in September 2015.
The book itself is divided into three core parts:
Part one entitled “A Resource Guide to the Future We Want,” is broken into twenty-one sections focused on the key elements of the Rio+20 document’s section 5 which deals with the thematic areas and cross sectorial issues.
Every section includes the context for which the issue was identified, a conversation about how these issues have been approached in the past, and biographies to organizations that are focused on the individual issue, as well as infographics that take a look at the statistics, targets that have been set in the past, indicators, and partnership examples.
Part two examines the hundreds of non-globally-negotiated commitments to action made at Rio+20 by governments at all levels, corporations, and civil society. It explores the role such commitments have played since the first Rio Earth Summit in 1992 and provides some thoughts for the future. This section was written by Jacob Scherr, Chelsea Phipps, and Brendan Guy [4]of the Natural Resources Defense Council.
Part three makes some recommendations for implementing Rio+20 and the new development agenda it makes ten solid recommendations which the authors hope governments will consider.
The goal of this book is to allow policy makers, government officials, think-tanks, and anyone else who wishes to learn and understand the issues we face in a quick and easy manner.
The book has already gained positive reviews from many, including the Deputy Executive Director of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), Ibrahim Thiaw, who was inspired in his forward to say:
“This very timely and practical publication will help to empower all stakeholders to take an active role in what must be a global partnership to implement the next, universal and transformative agenda to accelerate our transition to inclusive and sustainable societies.”
The book is built on two previous editions one by Chip Lindner of the Center for Our Common Future (1993) and by Rosalie Callway, Janet R. Strachan and Georgina Ayre for Stakeholder Forum and the Commonwealth.
This book is brought to you by the Global Research Institute at the University of North Carolina, Stakeholder Forum and New World Frontiers publishing.
The book will be released on Amazon.com and linked through our website:
The book is a companion book to: From Rio+20 to the New Development Agenda by Felix Dodds, Jorge Laguna Celis and Liz Thompson publisher Routledge (2014)
Quotes:
"I often say that sustainability is about effective management at the intersection of financial, natural, social and human systems. It is so difficult because we don’t understand very well how these systems intersect, the context keeps changing, there is a confusion of ends and means, and the future is random and chaotic. After reading The Plain Language Guide to Rio+20: Preparing for the New Development Agenda, however, I can no longer say that the attributes of Agenda 21 and the evolution of policy guidance from within the UN system are too complex to grasp. This book is a great service to those within the systems and anyone that is adjacent to but not within the system itself. It is clear, concise and a great service to historians of sustainability and those who must operationalize an agenda to optimize conditions for human development through time."
Gary Lawrence Chief Sustainability Officer AECOM
"The Plain Language Guide to Rio+20: Preparing for the New Development Agenda is a reader-friendly gateway to Rio +20 resources and outcomes that can equally guide the 'new comer' while also serving as a memo to the already engaged"
Maruxa Cardama Executive Project Coordinator, Communitas Coalition
"Unfortunately, our global aspirations remain limited by a few remarkably change-resistant barriers: insufficient funding of international institutions, mendacity on the part of national leaders and too-many military flash points.
Fortunately, in the face of such intransigence, we have the latest book from Felix Dodds, Jorge Laguna- Celis and Liz Thompson. Of all his publications, The Plain Language Guide is Felix's most accessible and encouraging. Dodds continues to work with other sustainable development advocates from the UN, governments and stakeholders to produce the indispensable resources for the serious global actor. I cannot imagine where we'd be across the world without him.“
Don Edwards, Chief Executive Officer, Justice and Sustainability Associates
This is the first book for New World Frontiers.
[1] Felix Dodds was Executive Director of Stakeholder Forum for Rio+20
[2] Jorge Laguna-Celis was a Mexican Government negotiator for Rio+20
[3] Liz Thompson was one of the two executive coordinators for Rio+20 and an Assistant Secretary General of the United Nations
[4] Jacob Scherr, Chelsea Phipps and Brendan Guy are with the Natural Resource Defence Council