- 15 June
- 18 June
- 19 June
- 20 June
- 21 June
Catalina Gomez, Rio de Janeiro Community Manager
The Rio+20 side events have just begun. The main gathering place is in the Rio Centro complex in Rio de Janeiro’s southern region. The event seems well organized: there are plenty of local people helping with logistics and providing information; the venue is spacious and comfortable. There are countless rooms where different kinds of conferences, discussions and debates are taking place. There are even blogging rooms, where participants can work on their computers and report back to their virtual communities about the events … and yes, there’s a lot to report. But covering everything is just impossible, so we’ll be reporting on selected events that focus on issues related to urban problems and the challenges of sustainable development in cities.
Two of today’s events dealt with two topics in that area — namely, sustainable transportation in cities and the importance of environmental education, especially among youth. The first event, entitled “Sustainable Transport in the Cities of the Future,” was sponsored by EMBARQ, from the WRI Center for Sustainable Transport. The debate, which dealt with how public transport and railways can help to create more sustainable cities, highlighted the need for cities to discourage the use of cars and expand public transportation as the most sustainable means of transportation. One of the panelists, Judit Sandor of the European rail industry, noted that public transportation, including railroads, metros, and commuter buses have the lowest external transportation costs — i.e., costs paid by society as a whole, including congestion, health problems caused by pollution and stress, and accidents, among others. Another speaker on that panel, Fernando Sanches of Estação da Luz Participações, presented some of the challenges of public transportation in Brazil and other developing nations. Sanches explained that although the importance of expanding public transportation is already recognized by many cities in developing countries, greater efforts are needed to make public transportation reliable and accessible to all citizens. He commented that “in many cities in the developing world, when taking public transportation, one knows when one is leaving, but never when one will arrive,” calling for relevant improvements in the quality of public transportations in terms of time and accessibility.
The second event, part of the UN Policy Dialogues, presented “Framing Sustainable Development Policy Dialogues: The Importance of a Well Prepared Civil Society.” The discussion was wide-ranging, but one speaker worth highlighting focused on the importance of environmental education in civil society, especially for the younger generations. Luiz Felipe Guanaes, a professor from PUC in Rio, talked about the Environmental Education Program, which works with children and adolescents from the favelas in Rio and its metropolitan region. Among the key points that he highlighted were the importance of understanding the local context when teaching environmental education; for example, because children from the slums may not engage with scientific explanations of climate change, a key success factor is to help them engage with environmental issues through activities that connect them with their own local conditions and values. In addition, Guanaes mentioned the importance of adding environmental classes in all school curriculums: “as math and geography are included, so children from future generations grow with a consciousness of taking care of the environment based on their own experiences.”
You can also follow these and other discussions on the sites of the specific organizations. During the coming week, we will be reporting on other discussions and relevant news and events from Rio+20. Let us know what you think of these events and other related debates on urban sustainability!
Submitted by Catalina Gomez — Fri, 06/15/2012 – 00:00
Catalina Gomez, Rio de Janeiro Community Manager
With more than half of the world’s population now living in cities — and estimates suggesting this figure will reach 70 percent by 2050 — the debate about how to achieve more sustainable and inclusive cities is at the heart of the Rio+20 discussions. Well worth highlighting were two events on “The Sustainable and Just City: Rio+20 and Beyond,” which were sponsored by the Ford Foundation and took place June 17 at the Forte de Copacabana and June 18 at Rio Centro.
Speaking at the June 17 event were Joan Clos i Matheu, Executive Director of UN-HABITAT and former Mayor of Barcelona; Carlos Muniz, Vice Mayor of the City of Rio de Janeiro; Raquel Rolnik, UN Special Rapporteur on Adequate Housing; Luis Ubiñas, President of the Ford Foundation; and Xavier de Souza Briggs, Professor of Sociology and Urban Planning at MIT.
Participants discussed mega-events and their contribution to long-term sustainability and inclusion, keeping in mind that Brazil will soon host the World Cup in 2014 and Rio de Janeiro will host the Olympics in 2016. On this question, Joan Closi i Matheu stressed that for mega-events to contribute to sustainable development in cities, “interventions need to be planned — they don’t just happen by chance.” Raquel Rolnik added that mega-events must be prepared carefully to avoid abuses of the right to adequate housing, since large-scale evictions and displacements are common in the context of such events in order to clear space for new infrastructure — actions which typically target the city’s most vulnerable populations.
Participants also discussed several key features of just and sustainable cities. The panelists highlighted three key issues: participation, social inclusion, and opportunities. On the issue of participation, Xavier de Souza stressed that while top-down approaches had proved to be ineffective, there is still a need to find participatory approaches that “don’t simply add more voices to the debate, and that actually enable progress.” On social inclusion, Rolnik commented that a just city is “one that provides opportunities for all and not just for a small percentage of the population.” In this context, Rio’s Vice Mayor highlighted the efforts made by the local municipal government to extend high-quality infrastructure and services to a vast number of slums. On the issue of opportunities, Luis Ubiñas suggested that just and sustainable cities are those that link their populations to economic opportunities and that open up to the participation of new stakeholders in the solution of key development challenges.
The second event, which built on the first discussion, included Jorge Bittar, Municipal Secretary of Housing for the City of Rio de Janeiro, and Jeb Brugmann, Founder of ICLEI — Local Governments for Sustainability, as well as Xavier de Souza, Raquel Rolnik, and Luis Ubiñas. The debate focused principally on urban upgrading and housing interventions in cities. In this context, Rolnik, Brugmann, and Ubiñas emphasized the need to reduce the ambiguity of land tenure for many slum dwellers as a key move to reduce poverty and promote economic opportunity within cities.
In the housing debate, Rolnik emphasized the need for cities to move beyond social housing projects that limit themselves merely to providing shelter for the poor, since such projects fail to promote adequate connections to the city’s economic opportunities and social services. She stressed the importance of avoiding programs that relocate populations into the city’s outskirts — areas that tend to be the cheapest for developers, but also tend to isolate communities and perpetuate their exclusion. De Souza mentioned the importance of considering mixed-income housing strategies, as Amsterdam does, in order to ensure a more balanced mix of people and activities within neighborhoods and reduce the number of people living in the excluded outskirts of the city.
With respect to upgrading and housing issues, Bittar praised the learning process of the city of Rio de Janeiro in its own upgrading programs, from Favela Bairro to Morar Carioca. He noted that with Favela Bairro, the local government learned that successful upgrading programs needed to provide slum dwellers with social services, like schools and health centers. He also mentioned that this program had only limited success in ensuring accessibility of slums to the formal city; it is for this reason that Morar Carioca builds on Favela Bairro, expanding its focus on improving access and connecting slum dwellers with economic opportunities.
Finally, Luis Ubiñas noted the importance of NGOs, foundations, and think tanks in the debate about just and sustainable cities, given their critical role in helping governments try out new models and strategies for combating poverty and promoting opportunities for all in urban areas.
The debate stopped there, leaving the audience with numerous ideas and topics for further discussion.
Submitted by Catalina Gomez — Mon, 06/18/2012 – 00:00
Catalina Gomez, Rio de Janeiro Community Manager
The Cúpula dos Povos is located at the Aterro do Flamengo, close to the center of Rio de Janeiro. It is the main congregation point for social movements that want to have their voices heard during Rio+20. The Cúpula is also where indigenous communities from several parts of the world have gathered to discuss issues that range from climate change and poverty reduction to land rights. An estimated 1,500 to 1,700 indigenous people are said to be present at the event.
Within the Cúpula, there are lots of parallel discussions going on, most of which are about rejecting lifestyle choices and decisions by those in power that adversely affect our planet. In some debates, local and international non-governmental organizations have presented alternative solutions to such unsustainable lifestyles. For example, Greenpeace has brought attention to the need to promote the use of solar panels and the importance of reducing energy consumption to contribute to more sustainable lifestyles. Some other local initiatives, such as Cocajupi, a small cooperative that produces cashew nuts in the north of Brazil, are participating in the Socio-Environmental Fair, where products of small cooperatives that promote sustainable agriculture are being showcased.
In addition to the debates, there have also been several protests. For example, on June 18, it was said that about 5,000 people marched to protest violence against women and demand equal rights. This protest was followed by another one claiming land rights and demarcation for indigenous peoples, as well as a march against the Belo Monte hydroelectric power plant, which is financed by the Banco Nacional de Desenvolvimento (BNDES) and will be located on the Xingu River in the northern state of Para.
What is worth highlighting at the Cúpula is that people are connecting to learn and exchange ideas, as well as to express their thoughts about potential solutions to the planet’s environmental problems. The Cúpula has also become a gathering place for students and youth to exchange thoughts and ideas, as well as to learn from indigenous communities with whom they might otherwise have no contact.
Submitted by Catalina Gomez — Tue, 06/19/2012 – 00:00
Catalina Gomez, Rio de Janeiro Community Manager
The official sessions of the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development Rio+20 started today, with 193 heads of state in attendance. Although specific agreements are still to be announced, it is already known that key topics of discussion include the need for urgent measures for poverty reduction and for making communities more resilient in responding to climate change. In the meantime, the parallel sessions of Rio+20 have been discussing a range of topics, most related to these priorities; some participants have presented global, regional, and national perspectives, while others have examined these issues from a local point of view.
Two events worth highlighting took place today at Rio Centro, both of which explored the importance of building more resilient communities capable of adjusting and adapting to shocks and adversity.
The first event, entitled “Local Action and Partnerships for More Resilient People and Communities,” was sponsored by the International Federation of the Red Cross (IRFC). Among the participants were Christian Friis Bach, Denmark’s Minister for Development Cooperation; Margaret Chan, Director General of the World Health Organization; Ertharin Cousin, Executive Director of the United Nations World Food Programme; Hasan Tuluy, Vice-President for Latin American and the Caribbean from the World Bank; and Gabriel Marcelo Fuks, President of the White Helmets in Argentina.
At this event, two clear messages were presented. The first concerned the urgent need to shift from emergency response to long-term disaster prevention and response planning. The message is clear: IFRC estimates show that for every dollar spent on prevention, about US$7 is saved in reconstruction efforts.
The second message highlighted the need to strengthen local governments’ capacity to manage risk prevention and response, as they are the ones “closer to the people” that know the local needs and culture. This was emphasized by the World Bank’s Hasan Tuluy, who noted that since Latin America and the Caribbean have some 80 percent of the population living in urban areas, and because all indications are that other regions will follow the same rapid rates of urbanization, the emphasis should be on cities and on how local governments and residents can work together to strengthen mechanisms for resilience according to their specific needs.
Building on this discussion was a second event, entitled “Resilient Cities: Fostering Local Actions to Achieve Sustainable Development.” Panelists included Margareta Wahlstrom, Special Representative from the UN Office for Disaster Risk Reduction; Saber Chowdhury, Member of Parliament in Bangladesh; Jean-Pierre Guiteu, Red Cross Representative in Haiti; Mary Jane Ortega, Secretary General of CITYNET; Peter Gruetter, representative from Cisco; Graciela Ortuzar, Mayor of Lampa city in the metropolitan region of Santiago, Chile; and John Beddington, Chief Scientific Advisor to the British Prime Minister.
This meeting examined key specific actions to promote resilient cities. First, the discussion focused on the need to plan for prevention and to allocate national and local funding to provide for it, including the need for individual cities to consider investments in early warning systems and risk mapping and analysis.
Second, the panel highlighted the importance of engaging with civil society and making them part of local risk prevention strategies. In this context, Lampa Mayor Graciela Ortuzar noted the importance of partnering with schools and building networks of volunteers so they can be adequately trained and ready to act when needed. Last, but not least, the session stressed the importance of establishing new partnerships — including both the development of tools and mechanisms by the private sector to help cities become more resilient, and ongoing exchanges among cities to share best practices and lessons learned.
Submitted by Catalina Gomez — Wed, 06/20/2012 – 00:00
Catalina Gomez, Rio de Janeiro Community Manager
Rio+20 has offered a space for reflection and exchange on many aspects of our relationship with the environment, as well as stimulating focused discussion on concrete changes we can make as we move forward. One such subject — one that concerns all of us in its various aspects — is waste and the need to massively reduce it, better collect it, systematically recycle it, and make it the basis for profitable green businesses.
An event on Wednesday entitled PlastiCity — organized by the Ocean Recovery Alliance in partnership with Republic of Everyone and Applied Brilliance, with support from Google, among other companies — offered an excellent opportunity to learn from different approaches to waste in its various dimensions. The event touched on issues related to plastics, but also explored the importance of recycling and partnering with all actors in the “recycling chain.”
Several topics were agreed upon by the various participants across the board — including, first and foremost, the urgent need to reduce the amount of garbage produced and the traditional means of disposal into landfills, dumps, and incinerators, all of which generate innumerable health and societal problems. It was in this context that Mariel Vilella from an organization called GAIA spoke about the aim of zero waste: the idea that nothing should be wasted, but that all our waste should become recyclable or compostable.
This is not some utopian dream, Vilella pointed out, explaining that her organization has been working with many cities around the world to identify best practices on waste collection and recycling, as well as encouraging cities to adopt procedures that move them toward the zero waste approach. She noted the case of the city of Hernani in Spain, which has adopted a municipally supported door-to-door collection service that is contributing to more efficient recycling practices. Nor were Vilella’s examples limited to cities in the developed world. She highlighted the experience of Pune in India, which also adopted a door-to-door collection service — training a cooperative of more than 2,000 informal wastepickers and incorporating them into the recycling chain. Other cities, such as Flanders in Holland, have adopted landfield and incinerator restrictions and charges for their operation. Currently, 40 percent of such charges are going back into waste management projects and education.
Another point of agreement among the participants was the importance of reducing the proportion of the recycling burden that is borne by consumers. This means that producers and manufacturers should also be participating in the recycling process. An excellent example was provided by Cesar Faccio of RECICLANIP, a Brazilian entity established by tire producers such as Michelin, Goodyear, Bridgestone, Pirelli, and Continental, which has collected and recycled around 270 million waste tires since its creation in 1999. Faccio explained that RECICLANIP works with cities through consortiums with one or more municipalities, in which RECICLANIP collects the waste materials and transport them to appropriate recycling facilities. Faccio also noted that the organization promotes training and health education in Brazil to address the need to return and recycle waste tires, which are a vector for dengue and other mosquito-transmitted diseases — making their collection and removal a public health priority.
The event also presented successful cases of innovation in the use of plastic and in developing a culture of recycling. Such is the case of Replenish, a company created by entrepreneur Jason Foster that is dedicated to the production of reusable cleaning liquid bottles and their refilling with concentrated capsules. Replenish provides an excellent example of a thriving business based on a culture of reusing materials rather than discarding old products and buying new ones. Another story of innovation was presented by Mike Biddle of MBAPolymers, who has developed a technology to recycle plastic. Biddle is currently raising awareness on the importance of recycling plastic and other toxic materials — as well as sending a clear message that green business can also be profitable.
Last but not least, it is worth highlighting that this week at Rio+20, there have been many interesting attempts to increase awareness of the importance of recycling through public art and installations. One of these came from artist Vik Muniz, who is creating an interactive 20-by-30-meter “postcard” from Rio de Janeiro made out of bottles and recyclable material. During this week, he has invited visitors to collect waste material and join the collective art project. Muniz, a world-renowned artist who works with waste materials, is also an activist who has helped to raise awareness about the living conditions of wastepickers in Brazil — especially in Jardim Gramacho, located on the outskirts of Rio de Janeiro, which operated for 34 years and was Latin America’s biggest waste disposal site until it was shut down less than a month ago.
Submitted by Catalina Gomez — Thu, 06/21/2012 – 00:00