Rio+20 messages
In this section we want to show what is happening and critically reflect on various initiatives from small-scale farmer’s perspective. Read more on Rio+20
Agriculture and Rural Development Day at Rio+20
This event is being organised during the UN Conference on Sustainable Development (UNCSD, or Rio+20), on the theme "Lessons in Sustainable Landscapes and Livelihoods", and aims to ensure that the vision for a sustainable green economy includes clear steps for building a sustainable food system.
Big scale policies won't work!
Interview > Cornelia Butler Flora - Cornelia Butler Flora, a professor at the Iowa State University explains why we should work on small-scale rather than big-scale policies and why she is sceptical about the possibility to mainstream agroecological approaches.
Combatting Monsanto - Grassroots resistance to the corporate power of agribusiness in the era of the ‘green economy’ and a changing climate
This report provides snapshots of frontline struggles against Monsanto and other agrochemical corporations pushing genetically modified (GM) crops onto farmers and into the environment. It shows that small-holder and organic farmers, local communities and social movements around the world are resisting and rejecting Monsanto, and the agro-industrial model that it represents.
We need to do everything… to increase agriculture based on agroecological principles
Interview > Julia Wright - Julia Wright, Deputy Director of the Centre for Agroecology and Food Security at Coventry University, speaks about why policy-makers fear agroecology, sustainable agriculture based on modern technologies and what civil society can do to increase agroecological approaches.
Getting heard in Rio
In the preparatory process to the coming conference in Rio, many different civil society organisations are preparing position papers with which they bring their agendas to the negotiation tables. In this section we present you short review of some of the documents that are already being discussed.
Against a 'green' avalanche
There is no dictionary definition of a "green economy". Nevertheless, the term is part of UN documents and will play a part in determining our lives. The Zero Draft for Rio+20 is a good example: the term is mentioned 40 times in 20 pages, but a definition is nowhere to be found.
Globally connected: What is a “green economy”?
With the Rio+20 conference coming up, it is time to evaluate what a “green economy” really means. Is this addressed in discussions throughout the world? Is a truly "green" economy viable in different regions? What are the main barriers in different countries? Network colleagues shared some of their opinions.
Sustainable family farming needs recognition
Twenty years ago, the first global conference on Sustainable Development in Rio de Janeiro became a milestone, and there are high hopes that Rio+20 will be an even more significant event. In the previous issue of Farming Matters we introduced Rio+20. Since then, the complex preparations for the conference have been continuing.
"We need to convince civil society..."
Interview > Jean Marc von der Weid - Twenty years after Rio de Janeiro was the stage for the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development, the world’s gaze returns to Brazil for the Rio+20 Conference in June this year. The sequel to this first international meeting on sustainable development may well have important implications for the future of family farmers. Jean Marc von der Weid founded and works with AS-PTA, a non-governmental organisation based in Rio, supporting capacity building and institutional policies in favour of family farming and agro-ecology.
Agroecology can feed the world!
Interview > Irene Cardoso - To tackle global problems and move towards a "green economy", we need to upscale the number of farmers following an agro-ecological approach says Irene Cardoso, vice-president of the Brazilian Agro-ecology Association. Conferences like Rio+20 are not the solution, but can be part of it. "But we need a lot of pressure from the international social movement, because the current political environment favours agribusiness... "
We need more women’s presidents and queens
Interview > Sabina Voogd - The gender aspect of sustainable development is not fully integrated into the Zero Draft document for Rio+20. "It seems like if it was ‘added on’ at the end. We need to take into consideration that policy interventions have different effects on men and women. If we say that we need ‘more access to technology, and more support for sustainable agriculture’, we have to understand what does it mean from men and women’s perspectives".
Sustainable farming organisations disappointed with Zero Draft of the Rio Conference
Feb 23, 2012: During the workshop at the BioFach organic fair in Nurnberg on 15th February, influential figures from the sustainable farming world and visitors of the fair discussed Zero Draft of the Rio+20 outcome document. General conclusion: Zero Draft is far from expectations.
How can civil society organisations impact Rio+20 process?
Interview > Felix Dodds - "If you want to have a strong impact, you have to come to the meetings. And the reality is that to have a big impact, you have to be in New York permanently, between now and probably the end of May..."
What is cooking? Negotiations on the zero draft of the Rio+20 outcome document
Everybody is commenting on the zero draft of the Rio+20 outcome document. Among others, The Guardian, IIED, the Green Economy Coalition and Greenpeace presented their responses. The general opinion is that the draft is a good starting point for subsequent negotiations but that it falls short of the hopes and ambitions is often repeated.
Zero draft of the Rio+20 outcome document
Very recently Secretariat and Bureau of the Rio+20 conference published the zero draft of the outcome document, based on more than 600 submissions from more than 400 actors including governments, Major Groups and civil society organizations. What is in there?
Food security – how do we feed 9 billion people in 2050?
As world population rises we are facing increasing challenges to find suitable land and harness enough water to produce more food. How do we meet the challenge of feeding a growing world population with a sustainable and secure supply of food?
Sneak preview of Panel’s on Global Sustainability Report
On the of 30th January 2012, UN Secretary-General's High-level Panel on Global Sustainability (GSP) will issue its report. In the article for OUTREACH magazine Georgios Kostakos, Acting Deputy Exeuctive Secretary and Senior Advisor in the Secretariat of GSP, provides insight to the most important provisions of the report.
Towards a Green Economy
UNEP’s report 'Towards a Green Economy: Pathways to sustainable development and poverty eradication' published in November 2011 draws detailed picture of UNEP’s vision of what Green Economy could mean in practice. More than 600 pages long report includes a section on greening agriculture. How does the UNEP’s vision of green agriculture look like? And what is the role for small-scale farmers in this vision?
Zero Draft text submissions from the small-scale farming perspective
Recently 'Green Economy Coalition' presented an analysis of the UNCSD Zero Draft text submissions. Are small-scale farmers already on Rio+20 agenda?
Rio+20 conference
Twenty years ago, the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED, also known as Earth Summit) was held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Many of the recommendations made in 1992 are still valid today.
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