Commission+of+Sustainable+Development

2010 ST. BONAVENTURE UNIVERSITY MODEL UNITED NATIONS CONFERENCE Commission for Sustainable Development

Hi, my name is Drew Fairbrother and I will be your Chair for this conference. I am a senior Political Science and French major at St. Bonaventure, and I am from the Hornell area. Outside of academics, I love to travel. I have lived in Paris, spent a short amount of time in Italy, and have travelled to Senegal and around Europe. I am an avid soccer and tennis player and love watching it in person and on TV. This is my first year in Model UN despite being a senior, but so far, I have found it pretty interesting and enlightening, and I hope that you do to. Study up on these topics, have fun, and welcome to Bonaventure!

**__Land Conservation and Rehabilitation in Sub-Saharan Africa__** Land degradation is the most important environmental problem affecting extensive areas of land in both developed and developing countries. The problem of soil erosion is particularly prevalent in developing countries, while problems of salinization, waterlogging, soil pollution and loss of soil fertility are increasing in all countries. Land degradation is serious because the productivity of huge areas of land is declining just when populations are increasing rapidly and the demand on the land is growing to produce more food and fuel. It is estimated that up to 40% of the world's agricultural land is seriously degraded. Efforts to control land degradation, particularly in developing countries, have had limited success to date. //The wealth of Sub-Saharan Africa depends on the ability to conserve and manage land resources//. Soil degradation not only results in decreased food production but also in droughts, ecological imbalance and consequent degradation of the quality of life. In Africa, the most conspicuous symptoms of the negative impact of land degradation on food production are stagnating and declining yields and increasing levels of poverty. M//any African countries have already lost a significant quantity of their soils to various forms of degradation. Many areas in the continent are said to be losing over 50 tones of soil per hectare per year. This is roughly equivalent to a loss of about 20 billion tones of Nitrogen, 2 billion tones of Phosphorus and 41 billion tones of potassium per year//. Serious erosion areas in the continent can be found in Sierra Leone, Liberia, Guinea, Ghana, Nigeria, Zaire, Central African Republic, Ethiopia, Senegal, Mauritania, Niger, the Sudan and Somalia. //The n//atural resource base of Africa is being degraded and destroyed at a rate which will soon make food and agricultural production un-sustainable. Poverty, coupled with increasing population pressure, is the biggest single cause of this degradation. //The rural poor, the overwhelming majority of Africa's citizens, destroy their own environment, not out of ignorance, but simply to survive//. Peasant farmers preoccupied with survival over-crop marginal and because there is no alternative employment and no better technologies they can afford. Pastoralists overstock to improve their chances of surviving the next drought. Rural dwellers strip trees and shrubs for fuel-wood because they need fuel. //In the short-term, these practices are essential for individual survival, however in the long-run, the effects of these practices are disastrous.// The UNCSD is concerned that the current trends of land degradation in Sub-Saharan Africa //place many countries on the edge of survival, which consequently reduces regional stability and the quality of life of the inhabitants. During debate, not only consider ways to aid Sub-Saharan Africans in the short term that rely on the land for their survival, also consider ways to reduce and rehabilitate land degradation and to educate the inhabitants so that the problems do not continue in the future.//

// Some helpful websites: // __ http://www.un.org/esa/dsd/ __ __ http://www.fao.org/wssd/sard/index-en.htm __ __ http://www.stakeholderforum.org/sf/ __ __ http://www.sdissues.net/SDIN/ __

**__ Environmental Sustainability Index __** In 2005, Yale University published the Environmental Sustainability Index, which tracked the natural resource endowments, past and present pollution levels, and the environmental management efforts of every country. According to this data, China, North Korea, Iraq, Taiwan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan ranked among the weakest of the world’s countries in the terms of sustainable development. Since the report has come out, many of the low-ranking countries have made tremendous stride to improve their global impact. Now, sustainable development is official government policy in China. Plans have been made to implement the first fast commercial train line based upon magnetic levitation in Shanghai. The train will connect the new Pudong international airport to the city’s rapidly growing subway system, a distance of 30 km. Furthermore, Shanghai, Beijing, Shenzen, Qingdao and Chengdu are building or planning new underground railway lines and in some cases light rail lines at ground level. These great strides towards sustainable development were made possible through the funds available to China. However, many developing countries lack the funds necessary to provide great reform to the way of life within their developing cities. Examine the Environmental Sustainability Index, and pinpoint the countries that have scored the lowest. Does their economic situation allow for such reforms as China? If so, what kinds of changes can be made? How can the poorer countries contribute to this solution as well?

__ Helpful Links: __ [] [] [] http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/3598966.stm

**__ Small Island Developing States __** The small island developing states (SIDS) include low-lying coastal countries that fall into three categories: the Caribbean islands; the Pacific islands; and the islands of Africa, the Indian Ocean, the Mediterranean and the South China Sea (AIMS). A serious issue that faces SIDS is their vulnerability to natural disasters and external shocks. In January 2005, a UN conference in Mauritius led to the Mauritius Strategy, which states that there is a “belief that they are already experiencing major adverse effects of climate change” and that “adaptation to adverse impacts of climate change and sea-level rise remains a major priority.” The Mauritius strategy also promotes renewable energy sources and cleaner fuel technologies. (un.org) While there have been several conferences pertaining to climate change, this topic needs a new resolution calling for more action. According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, if no action is taken against rising carbon emissions, the Earth’s temperature could rise by 4.50°C (8.1°F) or more. This effect is already being felt by SIDS that faces rising sea levels, inherently detrimental to their survival, affecting their livelihood (harming their economy and living spaces, and depleting resources). The resolution should call for measures to ensure that carbon emissions are lowered, alternative sources of energy are used more prevalently, and a general reaffirmation of the Kyoto Protocol by all member countries of the UN. Include an expansion on the negotiations of the Barbados Programme of Action (BPOA) and a definite resolution on land, biodiversity, and costal and marine resources (all of which are affected by climate changes and sea-level rise). __Helpful Links:__ [] [] http://www.iisd.ca/sids.html http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-12049951