Youen

We survived! And here's something special, put up by the Secretariat.

Don – opening

Ivana – Role of this major group at CSD

Lisa – Explanation of our policy points

Chair: We have a very important role to play, not only in making contributions during plenary sessions but also in the corridors. It is important to discuss and talk with representatives of different countries and with the representatives of your own government. We shouldn’t only discuss the current situation, we must also discuss about the future and the future of the next generation. In ten or fifteen years, you will be representing your countries. Responsibility to represent the interests of your own country but also take into account the common interests… we have two weeks …best results come under pressure.

We think all these difficulties can be overcome and make concrete steps forward…how do we feed the world today and in the future…in a sustainable way? Combination of solutions for climate change and lack of shortage of water, drought, desertification etc.

Questions:

Question: excited by the tone set by the bureau – action oriented CSD – even though now, it has taken a different shape,…how optimistic are we that the outcome document will translate into action? What can we do as youth and as civil society to help translate what happens here into action back home?

Response: It’s possible to come out with concrete deliverables but what is important is a means of implementation. Many countries have an economic crisis and have to be aware of that. However, if you have made promises, stick to it because even in difficult times, people who are hit hardest should be able to count on what we promised. MoI will play a key role in the outcome of CSD 17. How do we translate it into complete action? You can play a key role in that. What are you going to do with outcomes of CSD? How will you execute what you promised? In the Netherlands, youth are members of the delegation –a full part of the delegation. You have the opportunity to discuss what has already been implemented and to see whether all the groups stick to their promise.

There are many opportunities to be influential – write articles in papers, do interviews etc.

Question: I’m happy to note that in the language of the working text, youth are being taken out of the context of vulnerable groups. What concrete measures can we take to really include youth as real collaborators in the process?

Response: Try to become full members of the delegation of your country.

You are not only ‘decoration’ in this meeting. It is not true. You underestimate your own capabilities your own influence here. You have the opportunity to be here. Use it. You can participate in high level segments, you can influence the reflections of the major groups, you will have the opportunity on Friday to give your opinion. I would advise you to try and be the spokesman in the ministerial segment.

Question: Why do the African youth not see development as a priority?

Response: You will be a decision maker in 10 years. Use your position in changing this. Since you’re aware what is wrong, start making the difference.

Question: One of the problems is climate change…what chances do you think we’ll have to get strong language into the text?

Question: The outcome of the negotiations – difficult to be specific on this. We have to sort out the positive role that agriculture and rural development can play - part of the solution to climate change. Some people consider agriculture a problem that causes climate change. This is the wrong way of looking at agriculture. Agriculture is one of the solutions. Agriculture and rural development can both play a huge role in steps toward sustainability and steps toward Copenhagen.

How do we feed the world and how do we put the challenge of climate change on the agenda. Be aware and convince others that agriculture and rural development are part of the solution and not part of the problem.

Question: What are the most pressing issues of education for sustainable development? How do we engage youth in action towards sustainable development?

Response: Sustainable development, climate change, and education are back on the agenda. We should be aware ourselves to keep on talking. The end of this week is time to go back to our home countries and to put words into action. You could play an important role in your own country which you may already be doing. Put pressure on the government. Put it on the agenda at election period.

Question from the Chair: What do you think of the processes and the results until now? What are the actions that you will undertake during this week to get the best outcome that you and I together can wish to have.

Comment: This year, emphasis has been on creative solutions. We have been touching on the ethical and moral dimensions of a number of issues. It is exceptionally important to enter those into the dialogue. Specifically for the youth, this is what we’re trying to focus on. This can shape a lot of the way we interact with a lot of the delegations this year.

Comment: Youth are being included in the process. There is a concerted effort to listen and for us to step up to it. We hear the call and we are stepping up to it.

Question: What we see is that the Netherlands is at the avante garde, leading the rest of the UN system in how young people should be involved. How can the youth join forces with the moral authority of the chair in ensuring that a signal is sent to other national processes in other countries and meetings to pick up the best practices that we’re creating here together?

Response: Use all the instruments that you can use – internet, try to identify the key events, organizations and persons to be influenced and bring your message forward to them, but be as concrete as possible. That’s what we need. Try to influence your own government and come back next year.

For the past two weeks, delegates from around the world have gathered to discuss, debate and negotiate. We've been monitoring this process.

Coming here, we have no hidden agenda - we are fighting for our future - and this future has become a battleground, fought over with commas, brackets and watered-down words. We are thrilled that youth involvement has been emphasised in multiple parts of the text and that free access to capacity building in rural development and education has been secured. However, we find it surprising, and unacceptable, that occupational safety and the elimination of exploitative child labour has been completely left out, despite repeated attempts and concrete and constructive ammendments provided by the Youth and submitted by some national delegations. The importance of this in terms of agricultural development and access to education cannot be emphasised enough.

We urge the increased involvement of local communities and education for sustainable development through both formal and non-formal learning. We would like to clarify that youth are not vulnerable, and our inclusion in development strategies is crucial.

We are ethically and morally bound to take action in implementing the necessary measures for true sustainability. The vision must be followed by the venture. Let it not be tomorrow and let it not be others. Let it be now, and let it be us.

Thank you Madame Chair, YOU have the floor.

Thanks to all the youth that helped put this statement together... it's been a long night!

Hi guys,

We changed our dinner-plans for tonight. We will meet at 8pm inside grand central station and going to Madras Mahal Restaurant (Madrasmahal.com). Afterwards we celebrate the party in smalls Jazz Club (smallsjazzclub.com).

See you all there !!

Thanks Kevin...

• Checkback on negotiating text
o Can text still be revised?
• Rio + 20 – should we endorse it?
o Shaun: it seems vague
o Jeth: it needs to happen
o 14 In favour
 Jeth: Maybe rio+20 should be one of many regional forums
o 2 Against
 Vic: because it’s vague, and the same thing can be done elsewhere
 But Rio + 20 is an executive focused, centralized meeting by nature
o Discussion will be put online
• CSD Feedback to be consolidated by Shaun, email him within the week (check the google group email)
• Reflection session 3:00 pm, Cafeteria, Contact Rebecca
• Reorganisation of the CSD based on document
o Nominees to submit a one paragraph reason of why they should be a coordinator
o Beth: Australia, to be added to the list of regions?
o Vic: What does ‘facilitator’ mean?
 Alicia: we can decide together
o Alex: Online voting very open
o Florian: loose definition of democratic - who is the electorate? Present CSD members, all the Listserve members, or future ones? Also, facilitating committee should be more involved
 Shaun: Vouching system; lisa against
o Marc: No informed choice by open; no one to vote for in South America; so regional rep should be abolished
 Objection: Vidar: We must have regional representation because underrepresented regions aren’t here due to money, not lack of interest.
o Steven: Keep it simple, choose 5 now
 Melody: No, process very important
o Vic: the 15 steering committee people from last year seemed committed, but they still disappeared
o Ben: Likes regional representation, but fears the loss of administrative functions; expand membership past five? Organisational backing or individual backing is not a good distinction, both can do a good job. Insulted by ‘no agenda’, felt it targeted Europeans.
 Jeth: wasn’t targeted at Europeans, he just means detachment so that the caucus can be open.
o Alicia: choose 3-4 coordinators, then 5 regional coordinators – Esther and Marc like it
o Shaun: Why not just have one point person to have continuity?
o Ben: Needs to get mandate from organisation, so is sceptical that individuals will be able to commit for so long
o Clarification of proposal:
 1. Vote on 4 people here who will prepare for CSD and be functional during CSD + 5 regional coordinators
 2. Vote on 4 people who will set up the structure but dissolve themselves during CSD (and 5 coordinators would still exist)
o There will be a vote online on both proposal to be accomplished by 5pm

Dear friends,

Tomorrow will be our last day at CSD-17 and the end of two great weeks. Therefore we want to invite you celebrating a big party with us at “Smalls Jazz Club” in South Manhattan!
Take all your friends, delegates, ministers....the more people the more fun!
Here`re the information:

• We meet 8pm at Grand Central Station
• Having Dinner in RED BAMBOO (Great and cheap vegetarian restaurant)
• Big Party at “Smalls Jazz Club” (http://www.smallsjazzclub.com)

The restaurant is 5 min. away from the Jazz Club. Thanks to Ryan for organizing the locations.
We look forward to see you all there!!

Love,
Marlon

8:10 - 8:20
Rio +20 discussion

8:30 - 8:50
Arrangement of Youth Caucus

8:50 - 9:00
Final Announcements

Sorry for the incoherence of these minutes...

Minutes from Thursday 14 May 2009
1. Flowers
- Need to finish the flowers and pin them all together
- Meet at breakfast to finish up
- Idea of the ‘waste’ – NGO caucus, seen little substantive progress, CSD not taken seriously, point highlights the issue of waste – something visible and creative that people can really see
2. Rio +20 – Felix Dodds
- G77 table of motion in Nov called for new summit on sust dev
- System isn’t working – multiple crisis and present config of UN can’t deal with it
- Not sure when this will happen – will we agree on text? Not sure
- No recognition that there are links btw energy crisis, climate crisis, etc even when text agreed on
- Need global conversation about how we will live on this earth
- 2030 to live on this earth
- Our chance ot make a diff blueprint for this century
- Stakeholder forum – 2 events -1. www.earthsummit.2012.org
- Clear need to designate space ot have conversation – Joburg – conversation did not happen prior to conference
- Gone back to Rio model – discusson
- Need for global green economy, address institutional economies
- Rethink about what kind of institutions we mneed to address issues
- Summit is opportunity to look at that – highlight human, economic and enviro security
- Hope approach taken by Obama – energized new technology and people to be involved, use this to gain access to people across the planet
- Become an engine for delivery – take away a doc that threy believe they can make it happen
- Use internet to galvinise people into action
- We need a neew global concensus – our involvement, our direction, our engagement
- Hope YC endorses it
- LAex: is there a way to direct us? – website; create your own space to engage with people, invited – intl advisory board, broad group of stakeholders
-BBC involvement – first radio with CSD, looking for money, Copenhagen, u-tube, twitter, facebook, all sorts of things – adding to what Obama did
- Costly summit, duplicates in discussions, mDG – how will you ensure that it’ll be different?
- The impact we have is at the very beginning – move through a process that reduces – agenda is completely open – only docs are ones we’ve produced; think about what the influence should be about – no guarantees, 4 yrs of work into 2002 process. Expense – Rio conference – how much will it cost? How much will it cost if we don’t implement it? Cost is more CSDs – need to get the global family back together. G20 personally not legitimate body, elite club of countries that think they can take a particular view point. MDG – nbi mistake, MDG7 is week. STAKEHOLDER FORUM. 2012 set in stone that there must be SD goals. Need a coordinated approach.
- Not sure if there is enough time, maybe
3. Working groups
- 2 has 50% youth points incorporated
- Text will cvontinue until 10pm tonight and then whatever not discussed will be left
- Canada chairing meeting in ECOSOC chambers today, prob 10
- Secret meetings, youth will have to find where they meeting
- Not great sentiment
4. Reception
- Chjeqs – EU – felt disappointed without ministers, amused with young people activities, stressed edu proposals we wanted to keep.
- Met with the Chair, very pleased with work done by women and youth, support for dedication
- CXonfident that process would end soon, thought 1st text was the best
- Unanimous sense of frustration at what was happening – people not happy with the outcomes, lots of effort but not getting anywhere. Most delegation keen on exploring young reps. Youth have been apparent
- Is this sentiment of getting no where normal? Not sure if this is something new, but seems more apparent this year?
5.Announcements
- Rio def something we need to talk about and link to CSD
- Feeling, watched 1992 video from Rio – same problems exist, not progress has been made. Need to try new ideas, but maybe there is something we as civil society need to think about how we approach the issue. Its our job to motivate them – limited progress – we need to make the progress we all want. We need to try a completely diff approach to how we work and address cc in terms of negotiation – sometimes soft, sometimes hard. Need to relook at all things.
- Cautious – think CSD not going so well, ditch it and go something together. We want this to sustain whole summit – not nec sust, we need to think about what’s fundamentally missing.
- Round table – Green revolution – forwarded our statement to other people.

8:00 - 8:10
Creative flowers for waste

8:15 - 8:25
Rio +20 Talk by Felix Dodds

8:25 - 8:30
Report back on Roundtables - Alicia and Ryan

8:30 - 8:35
Working Groups report back

8:35 - 8:40
Appointing chair for NGO meeting

8:40 - 8:45
Report back from reception - Vicnan and Ben

8:45 - 9:00
Announcements:
- Theatre of Survival today at BIC at 13:30
- Meeting with Federica at 15:00 - 16:00 Conf. Room B
- Swedish side event tonight at 18:15
- UN YAK interviews for those interested - Akua

Wed afternoon – Food Crisis
Youth speak in conf room 4
Farmers speak in conference room 2

Thurs morning – Sustainable Green Revolution
Scientific & tech community speakin conf room 4
NGOs speak in conf room 2

Thurs afternoon – Land & Water Management
Women speak in conf room 4
Indigenous peoples speak in conf room 2

Friday morning – Summarizing Ministerial Roundtables (This is NOT the closing statement)
Business, local authorities, trade unions speak on behalf of all major groups

NOTE: The above 3 groups ARE willing & happy to collaborate with all other major groups. Contact information for the coordinators of these groups will be sent out by Frederica soon