Business
for the Environment Summit brings together
hundreds of key business leaders to discuss
green solutions
Paris, 15 April 2009
- More than 700 leaders from business, civil
society, international organizations and
government are set to meet at the Business
for the Environment Global Summit in Paris
on 22-23 April to discuss ways of powering
green growth around the globe.
The event, now in its
third year, is the world's leading international
conference for business-driven action for
the environment. As the world struggles
with a deep economic recession, the conference
will highlight the green solutions that
can turn crisis into opportunity.
Achim Steiner, UN Under-Secretary-General
and Executive Director of UNEP, said: "Today's
crises are a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity
to make a transition to a low carbon, resource
efficient society. Business has a key role
to play in this transformational process,
and the B4E summit is a crucial opportunity
to bring together key decision-makers to
sharpen and discuss their role in delivering
a Green Economy."
Participants to B4E will
include the Chief Executives of Suzlon,
Suntech, Alcatel-Lucent and Siemens France,
as well as the seven inspirational laureates
of the 2009 UNEP Champions of the Earth
awards, who will be announced in an award
ceremony on 22 April.
With a focus on a new,
green economy driven by leadership, technology
and innovation, the summit will bring together
participants from more than 30 countries
to make the connection between the environment
and global economic recovery.
Delegates will learn
how to identify and manage the challenges
posed by climate change, and explore the
many opportunities of investing in a green
economy.
The two-day conference
will feature sessions on the Green Economy
Initiative, innovation and technology, policy,
resource efficiency, the extractives industry,
and the global water crisis among other
key topics.
The event is also held
in conjunction with the UNEP Champions of
the Earth 2009 awards presentation on 22
April, which is also Earth Day. The seven
laureates - all of whom are inspirational
environmental leaders - are the living proof
that amid today's environmental and economic
crises lay unprecedented opportunities for
innovative solutions, fresh approaches and
dynamic leadership, from policy action to
grassroots initiatives.
The Business for the
Environment conference comes on the heels
of the UNEP Global Green New Deal Policy
Brief, which advises policymakers on the
key areas where investment is required in
order to power sustainable economic recovery.
The Policy Brief argues
that investing just one per cent of global
GDP, or around $1000 billion, into five
key sectors could be the key to realizing
a Global Green New Deal that in turn can
set the stage for a Green Economy The five
sectors, from renewable energy to freshwaters,
could in conjunction with other measures
play an important role in reviving the global
economy and boosting employment while accelerating
the fight against climate change, environmental
degradation and poverty.
Notes to Editors:
The Business for the
Environment Summit is co-hosted by the United
Nations Environment Programme and the UN
Global Compact. The event is organized by
UNEP and Global Initiatives, and supported
by leading international organizations including
MEDEF (the French Employers Confederation),
the AFP Foundation, WWF, Greenpeace, Business
for Social Responsibility and many others.
In the margins of the
summit, a Media Seminar, co-organised with
the AFP Foundation on 21 April, will be
the opportunity for journalists to learn
more about climate change, the Global Green
New Deal and how the environment can feed
into global economic recovery. The seminar
will feature Pavan Sukhdev, UNEP Project
Leader on The Green Economy, as well as
participants from the B4E Summit.
KEY PARTICIPANTS WILL
INCLUDE:
Achim Steiner, Executive
Director, United Nations Environment Programme
H.R.H Prince El Hassan bin Talal, Crown
Prince, Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan
Juan Elvira Quesada,Mexican Minister for
the Environment and Natural Resources
Georg Kell, Executive Director, UN Global
Compact
Yann Arthus-Bertrand, Photographer and chairman
of GoodPlanet.org
Ben Verwaayen, CEO, Alcatel-Lucent
Tulsi Tanti, Chairman & Managing Director,
Suzlon Energy
Shi Zhengrong, Chairman & CEO, Suntech
Power Holding
James Leape, Director General, WWF International
Pascal Husting, Executive Director, Greenpeace
France
Kevin Conrad, Executive Director for the
Coalition for Rainforest Nations
Nathalie Kosciusko-Morizet, Minister of
State to the Prime Minister on the Digital
Economy & Strategic Studies, France
Philippe Carli, Chairman and CEO, Siemens
France
Graeme Sweeney, Executive Vice President,
Future Fuels & CO2, Shell International
Petroleum
Anders Wijkman, Member of the European Parliament
Philippe Huet, Senior Executive Vice President,
Strategy and Coordination, Electricité
de France SA
Joost Martens, Director General, Consumers
International
Steffen Frankenberg, VP Corporate Development,
Deutsche Post WorldNet
Pavan Sukhdev, Project Leader on the Green
Economy, UNEP
Aron Cramer, President & CEO, Business
for Social Responsibility
Jean-Pierre Clamadieu, Chairman, Sustainable
Development Commission, MEDEF
Neil Hawkins, Sc.D., Vice President &
Chief Sustainability Strategist, Dow
John Gaffney, Executive Vice President,
First Solar
For more information, and to request interviews,
go to www.b4esummit.com
To register as a journalist for B4E and
the media seminar, please visit:
http://www.b4esummit.com/newsroom.html#AccreditationAndRegistration
The UNEP Green Economy initiative is at:
http://www.unep.org/greeneconomy/
The UNEP Global Green New Deal Policy Brief
is at: http://www.unep.org/pdf/A_Global_Green_New_Deal_Policy_Brief.pdf
Nick Nuttall, UNEP Spokesperson
