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Environment and Development Series No.1
by Martin
Khor Third World Network Environment and Development Series is a series of papers published by TWN on the increasing challenges to the relationship between the environment and development, in particular those posed by the process of globalization, liberalization and new technologies. It aims to advance a Third World perspective of analyses, strategies and proposals for reforms of policy, practice and institutions, at both the international and national levels - towards greater social justice, equity and ecological sustainability. About the book: The process after the 1992 United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED) in Rio de Janeiro, has largely failed to fulfill its promises and commitments. The Summit had placed the environment crisis at the top of the international agenda but today such a priority is fast vanishing. It had linked environment and development in a new paradigm of sustainable development, but the globalisation paradigm has far outstripped the former, resulting in more socio-economic inequities. Instead of a supposed North-South partnership in dealing with the environment and development, a widening gap exists. This paper re-states the principles of the Rio Summit, in particular the principle of "Common but Differentiated Responsibility", and reviews the weaknesses and the problems of non-implementation of the Rio agreements. It gives examples of how globalisation has undermined sustainable development goals. The paper outlines proposals for dealing with some of the problems in the interface between globalisation and sustainable development . It also proposes some necessary reforms in policy, practice and institutions, at both international and local levels - towards a fair and sustainable global order. About the author: Martin Khor is an economist trained at Cambridge University. He is the Director of Third World Network, and the author of several books and articles on trade, development and environment issues. He is also the Honorary Secretary of the Consumers' Association of Penang in Malaysia and a board member of the International Forum on Globalisation. He was formerly a Vice Chairman of the UN Commission on Human Rights Expert Group on the Right to Development and a consultant in several research studies under the United Nations. Contents: 1. The crisis of sustainable development 2. The basic understanding at Rio 3. Some basic weaknesses of UNCED 4. The
failures of the post-UNCED follow-up 5. Effects
of liberalisation and globalisation and the clash of paradigms 6. IPRs,
technology transfer and sustainable development 7. "Trade and environment" and environmental standards 8. Other
aspects of globalisation and the environment 9. Some
proposals for sustainable development Note
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Globalisation
and the Crisis of Sustainable Development