UN Documentation: Environment

• Economic and Social Council resolution 1346 (XLV) of 30 July 1968 recommended the General Assembly consider convening a UN conference on problems of the human environment.
• Conference convened by General Assembly resolution 2398 (XXIII) of 3 December 1968
• Held in Stockholm, 5-16 June 1972
• Led to the establishment of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP)
• Outcome document: A/CONF.48/14/Rev.1 

• Established by General Assembly resolution 38/161 of 19 December 1983
• Prepared a report for General Assembly in 1987
  • Based on a four-year study
  • Transmitted by A/42/427
  • Entitled Our Common Future, also known as the Brundtland report
  • Developed the theme of sustainable development

• Convened by General Assembly resolution 44/228 of 20 December 1988
• Held in Rio de Janeiro, 3-14 June 1992
• Known at the time as the Earth Summit
• Later came to be called the Rio Conference
• Led to the establishment of the Commission on Sustainable Development
• Outcome document in 3 volumes: A/CONF.151/26/Rev.1
  • Vol.I + Corr.1: Resolutions adopted by the Conference
  • Vol.II: Proceedings of the Conference
  • Vol.III + Corr.1: Statements made by Heads of State or Government at the summit segment of the Conference
• Three major agreements adopted (found in Vol.I + Corr.1):
  • Rio Declaration on Environment and Development, a series of principles defining the rights and responsibilities of States
  • Agenda 21, a global plan of action to promote sustainable development
  • Statement of Forest Principles, a set of principles to underpin the sustainable management of forests worldwide
• Two multilateral treaties were opened for signature:
  • United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC)
  • Convention on Biological Diversity
• Called for several major initiatives in other key areas of sustainable development, such as, a global conference on Small Island Developing States; negotiations began for a Convention to Combat Desertification, and for an agreement on highly migratory and straddling fish stocks.

• Called for by General Assembly resolutions 47/190 and 51/181
• Known as the Earth Summit +5
• 19th special session of the General Assembly
• Held in New York, 23-27 June 1997
• Review of the implementation of Agenda 21
• Outcome document: General Assembly resolution S-19/2 of 27 June 1997, Programme for the Further Implementation of Agenda 21.

• Convened by General Assembly resolution 55/199 of 20 December 2000
• Also known as Rio +10
• Held in Johannesburg, 26 August - 4 September 2002
• Reviewed progress in the implementation of Agenda 21 since its adoption in 1992
• Outcome document: A/CONF.199/20 + Corr.1, includes:
  • Johannesburg Declaration on Sustainable Development
  • Plan of Implementation

• Called for by General Assembly resolution 66/197
• Known as Rio+20
• Held in Rio de Janeiro, 20-22 June 2012
• Rio +20 website
• Outcome document A/CONF.216/16, includes "The future we want"

• Convened as a high-level plenary meeting of the General Assembly
• New York, 25 - 27 September 2015
• Summit website
• Outcome document: A/RES/70/1, includes "Transforming our world: the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development"

• Paris, 30 November - 12 December 2015
• Also known as the Paris Climate Change Conference
• The Paris Agreement was adopted on 12 December 2015, decision 1/CP.21 found in:  FCCC/CP/2015/10/Add.1
• UN Treaty Collection Status of the Agreement
• UN Audiovisual Library of International Law Procedural History
• Ask DAG:  What is the history of the Paris Agreement (2015)?

• Global Warming of 1.5 ºC website
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• Prepared by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)

• Convened as part of High-Level Week of the 74th session of the General Assembly
• New York, 23 September 2019
• Included a Youth Action Summit, 21 September 2019
• Report of the Secretary General on the 2019 Climate Action Summit and the way forward in 2020

• AR6 Climate Change 2021: The Physical Science Basis website
  • Contribution of Working Group I to the Sixth Assessment Report
  • Includes summary, full report, interactive atlas, and data
• AR6 Climate Change 2022: Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability website
  • Contribution of Working Group II to the Sixth Assessment Report
• AR6 Climate Change 2022: Mitigation of Climate Change website
  • Contribution of Working Group III to the Sixth Assessment Report

AR6 Synthesis Report: Climate Change 2023: based on the content of the three Working Groups Assessment Reports and the three Special Reports: Global Warming of 1.5°C, Climate Change and Land, The Ocean and Cryosphere in a Changing Climate.