Bali, 25 February 2010
- As policy-makers continue to address global
environmental issues from climate change
to biodiversity loss,
from land degradation to water pollution,
a multi-partner initiative is calling upon
all major players in the international environmental
arena to bridge the global environmental
knowledge gap.
A cooperative and systematic
approach through a broad network which builds
capacity and takes advantage of cutting
edge information and communication technologies
will achieve the immediate objective of
providing quality and timely information
to decision makers.
Addressing this and
other similar challenges requires a global
perspective, coordinated intervention and
a common basis for sharing knowledge and
information, upon which well informed decisions
and policies can be built.
Many initiatives are
already under way, reflecting a diversity
of objectives and approaches. The challenge
is to strengthen and accelerate multilateral
cooperation, bringing together governments,
donors, United Nations agencies, international
and regional organisations, the science
community, NGOs and the private sector.
Building on the success
of the Abu Dhabi Global Environmental Data
Initiative (AGEDI) which was launched by
the United Arab Emirates, in collaboration
with the United Nations Environment Programme
(UNEP) at the World Summit on Sustainable
Development in Johannesburg in 2002, Abu
Dhabi is now calling for an 'Eye on Earth'
Global Summit to take such action forward.
Speaking at the 11th
Special Session of UNEP Governing Council/Global
Ministerial Environmental Forum in Bali,
Mr. Majid Al-Mansouri, Secretary General
of the Environment Agency - Abu Dhabi (EAD),
announced that EAD would be hosting this
Summit in Abu Dhabi on November 15-17, 2010.
"We must continue
to keep an eye on Planet Earth", he
added. Environmental degradation and change,
not only climate change, continues at an
unprecedented rate to adversely affect the
planet and inhibit sustainable development.
The need to continue monitoring environmental
change at all levels and to provide information
for decision-making must be a top priority
for the international community.
Supporting the Abu Dhabi
initiative, UNEP Executive Director, Achim
Steiner, added "Keeping the global
environmental situation under review and
bridging the environmental knowledge gap
is a core mandate for UNEP. Assessment and
reporting on the environment must be focused,
coherent and continuous work. Fostering
multilateral cooperation among environmental
systems and networks is fundamental in order
to put effective institutional arrangements
in place to deliver the data and information
needed by decision-makers."
The Summit to be organized
in partnership with UNEP, the European Environment
Agency and others, will involve participation
of high-level policy-makers, decision-makers
and technical specialists from the international
community, as well as governmental and non-governmental
sectors with the aim of setting in motion
a global process that will:
Strengthen, synergise,
and extend a global process to provide quality
and timely information for decision-making
on a common platform
Reinforce multilateral
policies and institutional arrangements
to interlink environmental information systems
and networks
Support technical cooperation
to accelerate the building of an integrated
global environmental information infrastructure
Accelerate capacity
building and technology support programmes
around the world to further close the gap
between developed and developing nations
Establish a global fund
to support developing countries.
The Abu Dhabi Government,
together with its partners, invites UN agencies,
Governments, Non Governmental Organisations
(NGOs), the private sector and other major
players in the international environmental
arena to support the initiative, and work
together towards bridging the global environmental
knowledge gap.
Peter Gilruth, Director, Division of Early
Warning and Assessment, United Nations Environment
Programme
Majid Al Mansouri, Secretary General, Environment
Agency Abu Dhabi, P.O. Box 45553, Abu Dhabi,
United Arab Emirates
