Adopted by the United Nations Conference on the Human Environment, Stockholm, 1972

United Nations Conference on the Human Environment,

Having considered the need for a common approach and general principles that will inspire and guide the peoples of the world in preserving and improving the human environment,

I

declares that:

1. Man is a creation and at the same time the creator of his environment, which ensures his physical existence and provides him with opportunities for intellectual, moral, social and spiritual development. In the course of the long and painful evolution of mankind on our planet, a stage has been reached in which, as a result of the accelerated development of science and technology, man has acquired the ability to transform his environment in numerous ways and on a scale hitherto unheard of. Both aspects of the human environment, natural and man-made, are critical to human well-being and to the enjoyment of fundamental human rights, including even the right to life itself.
2. Preserving and improving the quality of the human environment is an important problem affecting the well-being of peoples and the economic development of all countries of the world; it is an expression of the will of the peoples of the whole world and the duty of the governments of all countries.
3. A person constantly summarizes the accumulated experience and continues to make discoveries, invent, create and achieve further progress. In our time, the human ability to transform the world around us, if used wisely, can bring all peoples the opportunity to enjoy the benefits of development and improve the quality of life. If this ability is used incorrectly or thoughtlessly, it can cause immeasurable damage to humanity and its environment. We see around us an increasing number of cases of human damage in many areas of the earth: dangerous levels of pollution of water, air, land and living organisms; serious and undesirable disturbances in the ecological balance of the biosphere; destruction and depletion of non-renewable natural resources and huge flaws in the physical, mental and social condition of man, in the man-made environment, especially in the domestic and working environment.
4. In developing countries, most environmental problems arise from underdevelopment. Millions of people continue to live in conditions that fall far short of the minimum necessary for a decent human existence, experiencing a shortage of food and clothing, housing and education, medical and sanitation services. Therefore, developing countries must direct their development efforts based on their priorities and the need to maintain and improve the quality of the environment. To the same end, industrialized countries must make efforts to reduce the gap between them and developing countries. In industrialized countries, environmental problems are mainly related to the process of industrialization and technological development.
5. Natural population growth continually raises environmental problems and appropriate policies and measures must be adopted where appropriate to address these problems. The most valuable thing on earth are people. It is people who are the driving force of social progress; people create the welfare of society, develop science and technology, and with their hard work constantly transform the human environment. Every day, along with social progress and the development of production, science and technology, man's ability to improve the quality of the environment increases.
6. We have reached a point in history when we must regulate our activities around the world, taking greater care of the environmental impacts of those activities. Through ignorance or indifference, we can cause enormous and irreparable damage to the earth's environment on which our lives and well-being depend. Conversely, through the fullest application of our knowledge and a more intelligent approach, we can provide for ourselves and our offspring a better life in an environment that is more responsive to the needs and aspirations of people. We have broad prospects for improving the quality of the environment and creating good living conditions. This requires a ardent but firm mind, intense but organized work. In order to achieve freedom in the natural world, man must use his knowledge to create a better environment in accordance with the laws of nature. The protection and improvement of the human environment for present and future generations has become the most important goal of humanity - a goal that must be achieved jointly and in accordance with the established and fundamental goals of peace and international economic and social development.
7. Achieving this human environmental goal will require recognition of responsibility on the part of citizens and societies, as well as businesses and institutions at all levels, and equal participation of all in the overall effort. Individuals of all professions and occupations, as well as organizations of various kinds, using their capabilities, through common efforts, must create the environment of the future world that surrounds people. Local authorities and national governments should bear the greatest burden of responsibility for broadly implementing human environmental policies and activities within their jurisdictions. International cooperation is also needed to provide resources to support developing countries in meeting their responsibilities in this area. The increasing number of environmental problems, because they are regional or international in nature or because they affect the general international sphere, will require extensive cooperation among States and action by international organizations in the common interest. The Conference calls on all governments and peoples to make joint efforts to protect and improve the human environment for the benefit of all peoples and for their prosperity.

II

Principles

Expresses the general belief that:

Principle 1

Human beings have the fundamental right to freedom, equality and favorable living conditions in an environment of sufficient quality to lead a life of dignity and prosperity, and have the primary responsibility to protect and improve the environment for the benefit of present and future generations. In this regard, policies promoting or perpetuating apartheid, racial segregation, discrimination, colonial and other forms of oppression and foreign domination are condemned and must be stopped.

Principle 2

The earth's natural resources, including air, water, land, flora and fauna, and especially representative examples of natural ecosystems, must be conserved for the benefit of present and future generations through careful planning and management as appropriate.

Principle 3

The land's ability to produce vital renewable resources must be maintained and, where practical and desirable, restored or improved.

Principle 4

Humans have a special responsibility for the conservation and wise management of wildlife products and their environment, which are currently under serious threat due to a number of unfavorable factors. Therefore, conservation of nature, including wildlife, should be given an important place in economic development planning.

Principle 5

The earth's non-renewable resources must be developed in such a way that they are protected from future depletion and that the benefits of their development accrue to all humanity.

Principle 6

The introduction of toxic substances or other substances into the environment and the release of heat in quantities or concentrations that exceed the ability of the environment to neutralize them must be stopped so that they do not cause serious or irreparable damage to ecosystems. It is necessary to support the just struggle of the people of all countries against pollution.

Principle 7

States shall take all practicable measures to prevent pollution of the seas by substances that may endanger human health, harm living resources and marine species, impair amenity or interfere with other legitimate uses of the seas.

Principle 8

Economic and social development is critical to providing favorable environmental conditions for people to live and work, and to creating the conditions on earth that are necessary to improve the quality of life.

Principle 9

Environmental degradation resulting from underdevelopment and natural disasters poses serious problems that can best be addressed by accelerating development through the provision of substantial financial and technical assistance to complement the efforts of developing countries themselves, as well as such timely assistance as may be required.

Principle 10

In the case of developing countries, price stability and associated revenues from commodities and materials are essential for environmental management, since both economic factors and environmental processes need to be taken into account.

Principle 11

The environmental policies of all States should enhance the existing or future development potential of developing countries, rather than negatively impact them or prevent them from achieving better living conditions for all, and States and international organizations should take appropriate steps to reach agreement to overcome possible national and international economic consequences resulting from environmental measures.

Principle 12

Resources should be allocated for the protection and improvement of the environment, taking into account the circumstances and specific needs of developing countries and any costs that may be associated with the inclusion of environmental protection measures in their development plans, as well as the need to provide them with additional international technical and financial assistance upon request. assistance for these purposes.

Principle 13

In order to ensure better management of resources and thereby improve the environment, States must take a unified and coordinated approach to planning their development to ensure that this development is consistent with the needs of protecting and improving the environment for the benefit of the people of those States.

Principle 14

Rational planning is an important means of resolving any discrepancy between the needs of development and the needs of protecting and improving the environment.

Principle 15

Human settlements and urbanization must be planned to avoid negative environmental impacts and to maximize the benefits of social and economic development. In this regard, it is necessary to abandon projects designed to ensure colonialist racist domination.

Principle 16

In areas where rapid growth or excessive population density may adversely affect the human environment or the pace of development, and in areas where low population density may create obstacles to the improvement of the human environment or development, it is necessary to a population policy that does not infringe upon fundamental human rights, a policy that the governments concerned consider appropriate.

Principle 17

Relevant national institutions should be entrusted with the task of planning, managing and controlling the environmental resources of States with a view to improving the quality of the environment.

Principle 18

Science and technology, while contributing to socio-economic development, should be used to identify, prevent and control environmental damage and to solve environmental problems for the benefit of all mankind.

Principle 19

Familiarizing the younger generation, as well as adults, with due regard to the lower strata of the population, with environmental issues is essential to broadening the basis necessary for the conscious and correct behavior of individuals, businesses and communities in protecting and improving the environment in all its aspects, associated with a person. It is also important that the public media do not contribute to the degradation of the environment, but rather disseminate knowledge regarding the need to protect and improve the environment in order to ensure opportunities for full human development.

Principle 20

National and multinational research and development activities related to environmental issues should be supported in all countries, especially developing countries. To this end, it is necessary to maintain and promote the free flow of modern scientific information and the transfer of experience in order to facilitate the resolution of environmental problems; technical knowledge in the field of the environment should be made available to developing countries on terms that will facilitate its widespread dissemination and will not impose an economic burden on developing countries.

Principle 21

In accordance with the Charter of the United Nations and the principles of international law, States have the sovereign right to develop their own resources in accordance with their environmental policies and are responsible for ensuring that activities within their jurisdiction or control do not harm the environment of other States or areas beyond the limits of national jurisdiction.

Principle 22

States cooperate to further develop international law concerning liability and compensation to victims for pollution and other damage caused by activities within their jurisdiction or environmental control in areas outside their jurisdiction.

Principle 23

While respecting the criteria that may be agreed upon by the international community or the norms that must be established at the national level, it is essential in all cases to take into account the value systems established in each country and the extent of the application of norms that are suitable for most developed countries, but which may be inappropriate and cause unnecessary social costs in developing countries.

Principle 24

International problems related to the protection and improvement of the environment should be resolved in a spirit of cooperation of all countries, large and small, on the basis of equality. Cooperation, based on multilateral and bilateral agreements or other appropriate basis, is essential for the effective control, prevention, reduction and elimination of negative environmental impacts associated with activities carried out in all areas, and this cooperation should be organized in such a way that the sovereign interests of all states were duly taken into account.

Principle 25

States should encourage international organizations to play a coherent, effective and dynamic role in protecting and improving the human environment.

Principle 26

Man and his environment must be freed from the consequences of the use of nuclear and other weapons of mass destruction. States should strive to quickly reach an agreement in the relevant international bodies on the elimination and complete destruction of such types of weapons.

For the first time, the basic principles of international environmental cooperation were summarized in the Declaration of the Stockholm UN Conference (1972). A special structure was created - the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP). An attempt to develop a new model for the development of human civilization was made at the Conference on Environment and Development at the level of heads of state and government held in Rio de Janeiro in 1992. The conference stated that it is impossible for developing countries to move along the path that developed countries have achieved their prosperity, since the nature of production and consumption in the industrialized part of the world undermines the systems that support life on Earth. The dominant economic system views unlimited growth as progress without considering environmental values ​​and damages. This model of civilization is recognized as leading to disaster and, in connection with this, the need has been declared for the world community to transition to a new concept - the concept of sustainable development, which means ensuring a balance between solving socio-economic problems and preserving the environment, satisfying the basic life needs of the current generation while preserving such opportunities for future generations. If humanity does not do this, then civilization will collapse. But humanity will be able to make a transition to a new type of relationships in the world, to a new nature of production and consumption only if all layers of society in all countries realize the absolute necessity of such a transition and will contribute to it in every possible way.

The concept of Sustainable Development includes the following main provisions:

 the focus is on people who should have the right to a healthy and productive life in harmony with nature,

 environmental protection must become an integral component of the development process and cannot be considered in isolation from it,

 meeting the needs for development and conservation of the environment should extend not only to the current, but also to the future generation,

 reducing the gap in living standards between countries, eradicating poverty and destitution are among the most important tasks of the world community,

 To achieve sustainable development, states must eliminate or reduce production and consumption patterns that are not conducive to this development.

Five main documents were discussed and adopted in Rio:

1. The Rio Declaration on Environment and Development, whose 27 principles define the rights and responsibilities of countries to ensure development and human well-being;

2. The UN Program of Action “Agenda 21” is a program on how to make development sustainable from a social, economic and environmental point of view;

3. Statement of Principles on Forests, covering the management, protection and sustainable development of all types of forests vital to economic development and the conservation of all forms of life;

4. Framework Convention on Climate Change, the purpose of which is to stabilize the concentration in the atmosphere of gases that cause the greenhouse effect at levels that will not cause a dangerous imbalance in the planet’s climate;

5. The Convention on Biological Diversity, which requires countries to take measures to conserve the diversity of living things and ensure equitable distribution of benefits from the use of biological diversity.

Subsequent parts of the document address issues of atmospheric protection, rational use of land, combating deforestation and desertification, conservation of biological diversity, protection of seas and water bodies, issues of the use of toxic substances, environmentally safe disposal of hazardous waste, etc. In addition, special consideration is given to the possibility of strengthening the role of key population groups: women, children and youth, indigenous peoples and local communities, non-governmental organizations, trade unions, industrialists, scientists, farmers. The role of science and education in achieving sustainable development, the role of international cooperation, etc. are emphasized.

At the moment, there are several groups of organizations in the world involved in environmental protection. Firstly, these are organizations of the UN system, secondly, these are various intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations, thirdly, these are environmental monitoring and surveillance systems, as well as various scientific and educational institutions studying this problem. Today, the need for more serious interaction between various environmental organizations for the most effective protection of the environment is becoming increasingly obvious.

The United Nations Conference on the Human Environment met in Stockholm from 5 to 16 June 1972.

In 1970, the government of England published the White Paper on environmental protection, and a little later created the Department of the Environment. On January 1, 1970, the National Environmental Policy Act was signed into law in the United States. In 1971, the Ministry of Nature Protection and Environment was created in France. In Sweden, Canada, Japan and many other countries, new environmental institutions are being opened and existing departments and ministries are being restructured.

In 1971, the UNESCO intergovernmental program “Man and the Biosphere” was created. In the spring of 1972, the Club of Rome issues its first report, “The Limits to Growth.” In the period from 1953 to 1973, more than 400 international congresses, symposiums, and conferences on environmental issues were held. Delegates from 113 countries and 40 international organizations, famous scientists and public figures took part in the Stockholm Conference.

The Stockholm Conference on Environmental Problems brought together industrialized and developing countries to determine the rights of the human race to a viable and productive environment, raised questions about regulating the use of natural resources, identifying and controlling the most important types of pollution, and international cooperation on environmental issues.

The most important outcome of the Conference was the proposal to recognize the human right to a favorable environment as a fundamental legal principle. The first principle of the Stockholm Declaration states: “Human beings have the fundamental right to freedom, equality and adequate living conditions in an environment of sufficient quality to enable them to live in dignity and well-being.” The Declaration further solemnly proclaimed the responsibility of governments to preserve and improve the environment for present and future generations. Since the Stockholm Conference, several states have recognized in their constitutions or laws the right to an adequate environment and the obligation of the state to preserve this environment.

The Conference adopted a 109-point action plan addressed to national governments and international organizations, and proposed the creation of a new mechanism within the UN system that would facilitate the translation of the decisions of the Conference into concrete political and scientific actions. To implement the decisions of the Conference, a new intergovernmental organization of the UN system was created in 1972 - the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP), headquartered in Nairobi (Kenya). It performs coordinating and catalyzing functions in the field of environment and natural resources.

The recommendations also included suggestions for education and training programs for professional, technical and administrative personnel to enable them to use environmental concepts more effectively in their work.

The Stockholm conference gave impetus to the development of environmental studies at the national and international levels, contributed to the formation of legal norms and legislative initiatives, contributed to the search for resource-saving technologies, and accelerated the emergence of international forms of cooperation in environmental protection. The Stockholm conference served as the basis for new, broader international action on environmental protection and development. It became the forerunner of the 1992 Rio de Janeiro Conference.

1992 UN Conference on Environment and Development in Rio de Janeiro. Positions of the participating countries in Rio 92.

In December 1989, the UN General Assembly adopted resolution 44/428, calling for the organization of a special conference at the level of heads of state and government dedicated to the development of a strategy for sustainable, environmentally acceptable economic development of civilization. With this resolution the direct road to Rio began. The general management of the preparations for the conference was carried out for two and a half years by the Secretary General of the Conference on Environment and Development (CEED), Maurice Strong (Canada). An ad hoc preparatory committee was established in December 1989 and held the first session in August 1990 in Nairobi, the second and third in 1991 in Geneva, and the fourth in March 1992 in New York. Representatives from more than 170 countries took part in its work, jointly preparing three fundamental documents of the conference - the Rio Declaration on Environment and Development, the Statement of Principles for the Global Consensus on Forest Management, Conservation and Sustainable Development and Agenda 21. In parallel, the work of a special UN intergovernmental negotiating committee on the preparation of the Framework Convention on Climate Change and the Convention on Biological Diversity was underway. In accordance with General Assembly resolution 45/211 of 21 December 1990 and its decision 46/468 of 13 April 1992, the UN Conference on Environment and Development began its work on 3 June and continued until 14 June 1992. Its participants included 177 countries, the European Economic Community (according to the list of participating countries). A problem arose with the representation of Yugoslavia in the presence of Slovenia and Croatia at the conference. The conference was also attended by representatives of UN divisions, secretariats of regional commissions, UN bodies and programs, some specialized agencies and related organizations. Delegates from the associate members of regional commissions, national liberation movements such as the African National Congress (South Africa) and the Pan-African Congress of Azania, as well as representatives of 35 intergovernmental organizations attended the conference as observers. The conference was opened by UN Secretary General Boutros Ghali.

One of the most important issues of the conference was the signing of the Convention on Biological Diversity and the issues of reducing carbon dioxide emissions into the atmosphere associated with the signing of the Convention on Climate Change.

The Convention on Biological Diversity was prepared by the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) with the participation of the World Resources Institute, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and other international and national organizations, agreed upon before the start of the Conference and opened for signature on the third day of its work - 5 June 1992.

The development of the Convention was an expression of the international community's concern about the significant decline in biological diversity as a result of human activities. To date, about 1.4 million biological species have been described, and in total, according to available estimates, there are at least 5 million. Experts have calculated that now 10-15 thousand species, mainly protozoa, disappear annually. At this rate, in the next 50 years the planet will lose between a quarter and half of its biological diversity, which took hundreds of millions of years to develop.

The biosphere as an area of ​​active life on Earth is not only an integral natural system, but also a unique bank of genetic resources. Genetic resources are the basis of breeding work to create new varieties of plants and animal breeds, for biochemical processes and biotechnologies, which provide, in particular, a significant part of the range of medicines. It is no coincidence that the creators of the Convention presented its main goal as the conservation of biodiversity at the ecosystem, species and genetic levels, the sustainable use of components of biodiversity and the receipt of benefits associated with the use of genetic resources and the exchange of relevant technologies.

Tropical countries lead in biological diversity. It is believed that up to 2/3 of all species on the planet live in their forests and coastal waters, in coral reef zones. However, they are used mainly by biotechnology companies in industrialized countries. Today, the annual cost of products produced using biotechnology is estimated at 4 billion dollars, by 2000 it will grow to 40-50 billion per year. The competition between the relevant companies in the USA, Western Europe, and Japan is unusually intense.

The Conference raised the question of whether it would be fair to transfer to developing countries either part of the profits received from the use of their genetic resources for the conservation of biodiversity, or, on preferential terms, new technologies that can help solve environmental issues. But on the way to its implementation, many problems arise related to the right of private property.

The United States acted as loyal and staunch defenders of private property at the Conference. Despite the fact that during the development period the text of the Convention on Biodiversity was agreed upon with representatives of this country, at the Conference itself, President George W. Bush acted as a strong opponent of it and refused to sign it. When, at the Rio 92 Conference, George W. Bush, defending the right to private property, refused to sign the Convention on Biodiversity, he hoped that representatives of other industrialized countries would support him. But that did not happen. The first to declare disagreement with George W. Bush's position was then Prime Minister of Canada B. Mulroney, then others supported him.

The refusal to sign the Convention by the United States caused a sharply negative reaction in the world and was even regarded by many circles as an attempt to disrupt the Conference in Rio. Other countries, including developing ones, have viewed the Convention more favorably. It was signed and came into force on December 29, 1993 after being ratified by 30 countries. As Secretary-General Maurice Strong said at the closing of the Conference: “The Convention on Biological Diversity has not been accepted by at least one of the States whose acceptance is necessary for its full and effective implementation.”

The US Democratic Party, taking into account the miscalculations of George W. Bush and the Republicans in environmental policy, offered itself to voters in a more “green” light and won. After the Uruguay Round of negotiations of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) in 1993 fundamentally resolved issues of intellectual property protection, US President Bill Clinton signed the Convention on Biological Diversity on April 22, 1994.

Greenhouse gases are gases of both natural and anthropogenic origin that absorb infrared thermal radiation. Thus, they enhance the role of the atmosphere as a greenhouse cover in relation to the Earth's surface (the "greenhouse" or "greenhouse" effect). An increase in the concentration of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere ultimately leads to global warming, which threatens many ecosystems that have adapted to certain climatic conditions. Greenhouse emissions include carbon dioxide; chlorofluorocarbons (freons) used in refrigeration units and aerosols; methane, ozone and nitrogen oxides. Restrictions on freon emissions have already been introduced by the 1985 Vienna Convention for the Protection of the Ozone Layer and the 1987 Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer, as amended on June 29, 1990. Therefore, at the Rio 92 Conference, when developing relevant documents, the main attention was paid to carbon dioxide.

The most important anthropogenic sources of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere are energy and transport powered by fossil fuels. It is no coincidence that the main emissions of carbon dioxide come from the leading industrialized countries: the USA - 25%, the former USSR - 19%, the European Union - 14%, China - 10%, the rest of the world - 32%. You can imagine what the per capita emissions figures will be. This is a vivid illustration of the many environmental problems generated by highly developed industrial countries, in particular by their excessive consumption of resources. Scientists say carbon emissions must be cut by at least 60% just to halt the global warming trend.

The Conference widely discussed the issue of introducing a price system for all types of resources, taking into account damage to the environment, as well as quotas for greenhouse gas emissions per capita. The principle of quotas means the need to buy emission quotas that exceed the established norm calculated per capita. Under current conditions, the main buyers of quotas will, of course, be industrialized countries. The United States will be at a significant disadvantage, since it consumes the most energy resources per capita, despite large-scale energy conservation policies.

During the discussion of the framework Convention on Climate Change, US representatives did everything to exclude from the text any binding specific entries on quotas, the scale and timing of emissions reductions. In this regard, they found themselves “on the same side of the barricades” with the oil-producing Arab countries and sharply diverged from the European ones, thereby again pitting themselves against the world community. Journalists branded George W. Bush a “prisoner of the oil industry.” Green groups organized a series of protests in Rio de Janeiro against the US position, including attempts to break into the meeting room, which ended with glass breaking and the intervention of security forces.

European countries took a winning and widely approved position on this issue. They focused on the problem of the entity responsible for reducing emissions. According to Article 4 of the Convention, parties must take into account common and differentiated responsibilities, specific national and regional priorities. This provision makes it possible to consider not only individual states, but also regional organizations as the entity responsible for emissions, which is what the European Union decided to take advantage of. First, European countries dissociated themselves from the obstructionist position of the United States. Secondly, they proposed an interesting solution to the quota problem. Emission quotas can be calculated for the region as a whole, leaving it the right to maneuver within, or simply give regional structures the opportunity to pay for the quotas of their participants at their discretion. These proposals were fully consistent with the spirit of the EU's common environmental policy, enshrined in the 1991 Maastricht Treaty.

Speaking at the closing of the Conference, UN Secretary-General Boutros Ghali noted that “the Framework Convention on Climate Change lays the foundation for a process of cooperation aimed at keeping greenhouse gas emissions into the atmosphere within safe limits. The initial level of commitment is not as high as many would like. However, a low level of commitment should maximize the number of participants, which is one of the conditions for effectiveness."

Representatives of Japan tried to present their country in a humane and attractive light of the movement towards a new development model. This line was led by prominent political figures, former Japanese Prime Ministers N. Takeshita and T. Kaifu. They played a big role in preparing the Conference. At a critical moment, when differences on the financial issues of Agenda 21 became threatening and could disrupt the Conference, N. Takeshita gathered the world's political and financial leaders in Tokyo in April 1992, and they were finally able to agree on mutually acceptable solutions.

A serious “minus” for Japan was that Prime Minister Kiichi Miyazawa could not attend the Conference. The text of his failed speech distributed at the Conference said: “...Japan has set a course for becoming an energy- and resource-efficient society and has dramatically improved the state of its natural environment. Today, Japan, which accounts for 14% of the global gross national product, has emissions of "Atmospheric carbon dioxide accounts for less than 5% and sulfur oxides account for only 1% of global emissions. Japan's prosperity, achieved through the use of the planet's resources, places a responsibility on Japan to play a leading role in international efforts on both environmental and development issues." Taking into account the economic, scientific and technical potential of modern environmental policy, one of the most stringent environmental legislation, Japan's claims seem quite justified.

The tricentricity seen by many researchers in the geopolitical alignment of the modern world can be clearly seen in relation to environmental problems. According to the apt assessment of the magazine "Ecologist", the meeting in Rio was a phenomenal success for the main players.

However, the traditional power and environmental triangles do not coincide. If at the 1972 Stockholm Conference on Environment and Development the United States played the role of a clear leader in the movement of humanity towards an environmentally friendly future, then at Rio 92 it did not retain this role. It was confidently taken up by European countries and Japan, which pleased the international community with a balanced, thoughtful position. The United States, according to the apt assessment of the Earth Summit Times newspaper published at the Conference, “... to the concern and even confusion of most Americans, is no longer capable of leading. Broad circles view them as a reactionary force.” This is a harsh and uncompromising assessment, especially against the background of large-scale environmental policies and many serious successes in environmental protection. The Conference participants did not deny these achievements, but they were still more interested in the mood for the future, the readiness for serious changes. The US position did not make the right impression here.

What about the pole of socialism? What did Russia and other post-Soviet and post-socialist countries look like at Rio? Unfortunately, they were not up to par. At the Conference, tirades were heard, especially from George Bush, about the exclusive guilt of totalitarianism in environmental degradation, but they did not receive approval. Moreover, references to totalitarianism did not find a response in the speeches of representatives of Russia, the CIS and Eastern European countries. The environment is ultimately beyond ideology; it requires global unity and responsibility.

At the final meeting of the Conference, Secretary General Maurice Strong said that the world must be a different place. In relation to such a different, sustainably developing, environmentally friendly world, the traditional geopolitical alignment of the world has its own characteristics.

The United Nations Conference on the Human Environment (Stockholm Conference) took place on June 5-16, 1972. At this international forum, the concept of sustainable development, which is currently the most popular concept of human development, was discussed for the first time. The conference created the Stockholm Declaration, which established 26 principles for preserving the environment.

The 1972 conference recognized the human rights to “freedom, equality and adequate living conditions in the environment.” A 109-point action plan was also adopted, the implementation of which was undertaken by the UN organization proposed at the conference - the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP, created in December 1972). An Environmental Fund was also created. In honor of the conference, World Environment Day was established on June 5.

The conference attracted significant attention to the issue of environmental protection. For example, in the period 1971-1975, 31 environmental laws were adopted in OECD countries. In the ten years after the conference, about one hundred environmental ministries were created.

The development of the Stockholm Declaration was the Rio Declaration, adopted in 1992 at the Earth Summit. 20 years after the adoption of the Rio Declaration, a major UN conference on sustainable development, Rio+20, was held (June 2012).

The emergence of the term “sustainable development”, translated into Russian as “sustainable development”

Sustainable development is a process of economic and social change in which the exploitation of natural resources, the direction of investment, the orientation of scientific and technological development, personal development and institutional changes are coordinated with each other and strengthen the present and future potential for meeting human needs and aspirations. In many respects it is about ensuring the quality of life of people

Various authors have repeatedly noted the inaccuracy of the Russian translation of a foreign expression (English: sustainable development, development durable, German: nachhaltige Entwicklung). Indeed, the definition of the term “sustainable development” simply means sustainable, continuous growth. At the same time, in European languages ​​the translation of the following words is given as follows:

English sustainable - stable, viable; environmentally sustainable, future-proof

development-- development, growth, improvement, evolution, presentation, disclosure, result, enterprise, cultivated plot of land, development, production;

development-- development;

durable - strong, long-lasting, long-lasting, long-lasting, long-lasting, reliable;

nachhaltige-- stable;

Entwicklung - development, manifestation, development, creation, construction, deployment, change, construction, modernization, project, design.

In this context, this translation should have a narrower meaning. This is “continuing” (“self-sufficient”) development, that is, one that does not contradict the further existence of humanity and its development in the same direction.

Sustainable development of a model of resource use that aims to meet human needs while preserving the environment so that these needs can be met not only for the present, but also for future generations. The Brundtland Commission coined the term; it has become the most frequently cited definition of sustainable development as development that "meets the needs of the present generation without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs."

The Brundtland Commission, officially the World Commission on Environment and Development (WCED), known by the name of its chairman Gro Harlem Brundtland, was convened by the UN in 1983. The commission was created as a result of growing concerns "about the rapid deterioration of the environment, human and natural resources, and the consequences of deteriorating economic and social development." When creating the commission, the UN General Assembly recognized that environmental problems are global in nature and determine that it is in the common interests of all countries to develop policies for sustainable development.

As far back as the 1970s, “sustainability” has been used to describe an economy “in balance with basic ecological support systems.” Environmentalists point to the “limits to growth” and present as an alternative “steady state economics” in order to solve environmental problems.

“The Limits to Growth” is a book modeling the consequences of rapid growth of the world's population and the finite supply of resources, published by order of the Club of Rome. The book attempts to model the consequences of interaction between the Earth and man, presenting some of the problems and predictions of the Rev. Thomas Robert Malthus in An Essay on the Law of Population (1798). The original model considered five variables under the assumption that exponential growth accurately described its growth patterns, and that the ability of technology to increase resource availability grows only linearly. These variables are: world population, industrialization, pollution, food production and resource depletion. The authors planned to consider the possibility of a stable inverse pattern that could be achieved by changing the growth trend among the five variables. The last updated version was published on June 1, 2004, entitled "The Limits to Growth: 30 Years." Donella Luga, Jorden Randers, and Dennis Meadows have updated and expanded the original version. In 2008, Graham Turner at the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization (CSIRO) in Australia published a paper entitled "Comparing the 'Limits to Growth' with Thirty Years of Reality." It looks at the last 30 years of reality and the predictions made in 1972, and finds that changes in industrial production, food production and environmental pollution are consistent with the book's predictions of economic and social collapse in the twenty-first century.

In the Solow growth model (named after Robert Solow), the steady state is the long-run outcome of the model. The term usually refers to a national economy, but can be applied to the economy of a city, region, or planet.

According to the reasoning of academician N. N. Moiseev, the meaning of the idea is expressed by the term “coevolution of man and the biosphere,” which is almost synonymous with the “noosphere” of V. I. Vernadsky (see N. N. Moiseev “Development Algorithms,” M.: “Science ", 1987). From this point of view, a more accurate translation of “sustainable development” may be “joint development”.

Where and when did the 1st UN Environment Conference take place?

First UN Conference on Environment took place in 1972 in Stockholm. It became political when Swedish Prime Minister Olof Palme accused the United States of using defoliants in Vietnam and demanded that “the environmental war be stopped immediately.” That same year, the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) was established to monitor the environment and coordinate acceptable environmental protection measures. In 1987, preparations began for the Meeting of the Earth conference, later called the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED).

The first UN Conference on the Environment, held in Stockholm in 1972, became a historical event that marked the turn of the vast majority of developed countries to an active environmental policy, the intensification of public environmental movements, and the beginning of broad international cooperation in solving environmental problems. The opening day of this conference, June 5, is celebrated as World Environment Day.

The Conference adopted a Declaration on the Environment and an Action Plan in this area.

Twenty years after Stockholm, the UN Conference on Environment and Development took place in June 1992 in Rio de Janeiro. The forum attracted a record number of participants: 179 states sent a total of 8 thousand delegates to Brazil.

What differences between developed and developing countries emerged at the UN conference in Rio de Janeiro

In 2011, it will be 19 years since the summit meeting in Rio de Janeiro of the leaders of 179 states, including Russia, when the most important documents were adopted, designed to change the direction of the further development of earthly civilization.

Some calm in relations between developed and developing countries after the UN Conference in Rio de Janeiro quickly gave way to irritation of the latter and growing confrontation: the promises of the leaders of developed countries were not followed by corresponding actions. The allocation of funds to support the transition of developing countries to sustainable development has not increased, but has decreased, with a significant part of the allocated funds being used by developed countries themselves, and the rest ending up in the pockets of corrupt officials in developing countries. The external debt of developing countries continues to grow rapidly.

By seeking to open the national borders of other countries under the slogan of free trade and internationalization of production, developed countries (especially the United States) pursue, first of all, their national interests.

The conference stated the impossibility of developing countries moving along the path by which developed countries arrived at their prosperity. This model leads to disaster. In this regard, the need was recognized for the world community to transition to the path of sustainable development, ensuring the solution of socio-economic problems and the preservation of the environment, satisfying the basic life needs of the current generation and preserving such opportunities for future generations.

Humanity, as emphasized at the Conference, can make a revolutionary transition to a new partnership type of relationship in the world, to a new nature of production and consumption, only if all layers of society in all countries realize the absolute necessity of such a transition and will contribute to it in every possible way.

The world's population today is about 6.3 billion people. It has increased over the past 10 years by more than a billion, and by 2025, according to forecasts, it will reach 9-10 billion people. The population of developing countries is growing rapidly and today accounts for 3/4 of the planet's population, but it consumes only 1/3 of global production, and the gap in per capita consumption continues to widen.

The widening inequality between rich and poor (75% of humanity), an economic system that does not take into account environmental values ​​and considers unlimited growth of production and consumption as progress, creates an imbalance characterized by economic and environmental instability.

The world social product has been increasing in recent decades by an average of 1 trillion. dollars per year. But only 15% of this increase comes from developing countries. More than 70% goes to already rich countries, i.e. every child born in a country in a developed part of the world consumes 20-30 times more of the planet’s resources than a child in a third world country.

The meeting participants approved the Declaration on Environment and Development, consisting of 27 principles that define the rights and responsibilities of countries in ensuring future development; signed the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, aimed at mitigating the effects of climate change by limiting greenhouse gas emissions, and the UN Convention on Biological Diversity, which provides for measures to conserve biological resources.

The adopted Agenda 21 sets out a program to make development sustainable from a social, economic and environmental perspective. “Agenda 21” contains a list of actions that should be taken in each country to ensure the transition to sustainable development. Differences in views on a number of issues divided the Conference into two camps: the United States and the rest of the world.

Particularly acute were the disagreements over the conventions “On Biological Diversity” and “On Climate Change”.

In terms of biological diversity, tropical countries stand out. It is estimated that up to 2/3 of all biological species on the planet live in tropical forests, in the coastal waters of tropical countries and in coral reef zones.

On the other hand, the development of biotechnological processes requires a very serious scientific base and is therefore carried out mainly in developed countries, whose companies and corporations derive very high profits from their use, and there are prospects for expanding the use of biotechnologies in relation to the problems of crop production, animal husbandry, medicine, and environmental protection huge. The average cost of products produced using biotechnology is estimated at tens of billions of dollars. This explains the fierce competition that has unfolded in the field of biotechnology between companies in the USA, Western Europe and Japan.

A very peculiar situation is emerging - the genetic material comes largely from developing countries, and the profits from the use of biotechnologies created on the basis of this material go only to companies in developed countries. Naturally, developing countries consider it fair to transfer part of the profits to them for carrying out the necessary measures to preserve biological diversity or transfer to them on preferential terms new technologies created on the basis of their genetic materials and capable of directly or indirectly helping to resolve environmental issues, and therefore conservation of biological diversity.

This is where a tight knot of problems arises related to satisfying the claims of developing countries: not only taxpayers of developed countries are opposed, but also the ownership of patented technologies of corporations, companies and individuals, and the head of state or government cannot ignore the right of private or corporate property. This problem is of a general nature - private property in many respects becomes a stumbling block on the path to the sustainable development of civilization. In all documents that touch on the transfer of new technologies, the United States took the toughest position, believing that such transfer should be resolved through bilateral negotiations on a commercial basis.

The text of the Convention was agreed upon with the United States at the preparatory stage. All the more unexpected was the statement by George W. Bush, made immediately before the Conference, that the United States would not sign the Convention on the Conservation of Biological Diversity. The refusal to sign a previously agreed document caused a sharply negative reaction in the world and was regarded by many as an attempt by the United States to disrupt the Conference in Rio de Janeiro.

It can be assumed that before the start of the Conference, the US President was under strong pressure from national and transnational companies and corporations working in the field of biotechnology, which he could not ignore during the election campaign.

It should also be emphasized that the United States has done everything possible to weaken the effectiveness of the Climate Change Convention and Agenda 21 on issues related to reducing greenhouse gas emissions, primarily carbon dioxide, into the atmosphere.

The main anthropogenic sources of increase in carbon dioxide content in the atmosphere are energy and transport running on fossil fuels. In accordance with this, the main carbon dioxide emissions come from industrialized countries: USA - 25%, Russia, CIS and Baltics - 19%, EEC - 14%, China - 10%, the rest of the world - 32% .

If we calculate emissions per capita, the ratio of figures is even more impressive and indicates that the origins of global climate change lie in the excessive consumption of resources by developed countries.

Currently, the world community is moving towards introducing a price system for all types of resources that fully takes into account the damage caused to the environment and future generations, as well as per capita emissions quotas, which, for example, has already been done in relation to emissions of chlorofluorocarbons that destroy the ozone layer. The transition to quotas means that many developed countries will have to buy quotas for emissions, in particular for carbon dioxide emissions, so even taking into account the serious energy conservation policies pursued in the last two decades by the United States and Western European countries, the United States will be at a significant disadvantage as the country that consumes the most energy resources per capita. Taking this into account, the United States is trying to push back the resolution of quota issues.

Even during the preparation of the Conference, they did everything possible to prevent the introduction of any specific records on the scale and timing of reducing carbon dioxide emissions into the atmosphere into the Climate Change Convention and the chapter of Agenda 21 devoted to atmospheric problems. And it must be said that, despite the sharply negative position of developing countries, they managed to do this in a bloc with a group of Arab countries. They achieved a soft resolution to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by developed countries.