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Environment
and development in coastal regions and in small islands |
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Environment
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Extract from 169EX/4 March 2004
(pdf
version of the complete document)
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Environment and development in coastal regions and in small islands (CSI)
Towards sustainable living in coastal regions and on small islands
Main line of action 1: Enhancing sustainable living in coastal regions
and on small islands: mainstreaming integrated approaches and intersectoral
cooperation
110. As described below, equitable and sustainable management of coastal and small-island resources was advanced through a series of key events and ongoing field project activities. The field projects in Africa, the Caribbean, Mediterranean and Asia-Pacific regions, as well as in Jordan, Kazakhstan, Qatar and the Russian Federation, were pursued with the corresponding field offices. The formal evaluation of the Mediterranean "Small Historic Coastal Cities" project was carried out at a workshop in Essaouira, Morocco (November), which brought together national partners from Croatia, Lebanon, Montenegro, Morocco, Syrian Arab Republic and Tunisia, international experts and regional NGOs. Based on lessons learned, the next phase will optimize cooperation between municipalities and nearby universities with technical assistance from partners in Italy, France and Spain. Impact assessment of the Kandalaksha port enlargement (Russian Federation) and the coastal flooding prevention project in Lagos (Nigeria) resulted in "wise practice" agreements (Russian agreement). External assessments of the field projects in Haiti (French/English), Jordan, Papua New Guinea, Philippines and of the UNESCO Chair in Latvia were finalized and follow-up activities aligned accordingly. Wise practices, guidelines and principles were also furthered through six new postings to the trilingual, Internet-based "Wise Coastal Practices for Sustainable Human Development" Forum (www.csiwisepractices.org) that ranged from contrasting views on Pacific aid to the effectiveness of awareness campaigns in coastal management.
111. Information and knowledge sharing were enhanced through the above-mentioned forum, which now connects over 18,000 people with a wide variety of expertise and affiliations in over 115 countries. Moreover, 21 texts on field project and university chair activities, summaries and assessments, as well as two publications were added to the CSI website, which is now receiving an average of around 100,000 hits per month. Feedback confirms that both the forum and the website have become dynamic parts of the coastal and small island knowledge societies. "Towards integrated management of Alexandria’s coastal heritage" was published as CSI Paper 14 (www.unesco.org/csi/pub/papers2/alex.htm). Three posters on different programme dimensions were prepared and distributed. The Almaty Office published results of a study on sustainable development of Atyrau city and region (Caspian Sea).
Main line of action 2: Advance actions on priority areas of Small Island Developing States and
effective contribution to implementing Barbados+5 and other multilateral
agreements and action plans
112. The sustainable development capacity of small islands was strengthened through the continuation of intersectoral field project activities in a dozen eastern Caribbean islands, as well as in Cuba, Haiti, Jamaica, Papua New Guinea and Samoa. This is in addition to the keen interest and increase in local, regional and interregional Small Islands Voice project activities as reported under the cross-cutting projects and fully documented at www.smallislandsvoice.org. A beach monitoring workshop was organized in Seychelles (July). Sandwatch equipment was provided to 10 island countries in the Caribbean, Indian Ocean and Pacific. Knowledge and information sharing was improved through the Caribbean Sandwatch workshop in Dominica (July), also attended by several participants from the Indian Ocean and Pacific islands, as well as through the expansion of the small islands webline (www.unesco.org/csi/smis/smallislands.htm), the Internet-based discussion forum (www.sivglobal.org), and publication of various topical articles, including the one on beach erosion and management in the New Courier (English/French) (www.unesco.org/csi/wise/sands.htm).
113. UNESCO’s preparations for and input to the United Nations-wide review and forward planning of the Small Island Developing States’ Programme of Action (Barbados+10), culminating in an international meeting in Mauritius, end August-early September 2004, and follow-up implementation, was given increasingly detailed attention during the period under review as fully documented at http://portal.unesco.org/islandsBplus10.
(32 C/Resolution 48) Implementation of the Barbados Programme of Action for the Sustainable Development of Small Island Developing States, Mauritius 2004
114. As called for in 32 C/Resolution 48, UNESCO has continued to participate in the Barbados+10 (B+10) review and Mauritius 2004 (M’04) forward-planning process, most recently by contributing to the consolidated report that the United Nations Secretary-General will submit to the Commission on Sustainable Development at its April 2004 session. Within the Secretariat, a process has been continued to strengthen contacts and cooperation between different sectors, programmes and units concerned with small islands issues. A series of monthly open planning meetings has been in operation since May 2003, incorporating conference-call facilities to link up staff in relevant field offices. In addition, the Director-General decided in February 2004 to create a high-level intersectoral and interregional working group (WG-SIDS), which will promote and coordinate UNESCO-wide contributions to the B+10/M’04 process, including building of bridges and networks of various kinds, and promoting effective collaboration between societal/organizational sectors, between regions and between generations. The Organization also has a specific role in highlighting the importance of culture, education and youth, in working towards a new vision and commitment for small islands.
116. UNESCO continues to have a distinctive function to fulfil on many issues related to sustainable development in SIDS – in the lead-up to the Mauritius meeting and its follow-up. Among specific actions, the Organization is closely involved in youth events associated with B+10/M’04 (including the "Youth Focus Bahamas" in late January, http://www.iisd.ca/sids/bpoa10/bahamasprep), as part of a visioning process whereby young people can articulate how they want their islands to develop in the future. The Small Islands Voice (SIV) and Wise Coastal Practices (WiCoP) Internet-based discussion forums provide an innovative means for mobilizing the general public, young people and technical specialists in the B+10/M’04 process. In conclusion, UNESCO is aiming to contribute distinctively and effectively to the Mauritius international meeting and follow-up implementation. The issues at stake are of strategic importance for some 40 Member States and Associate Members of UNESCO as well as to the wider international community, since small islands represent big challenges and big potential.
Local and Indigenous Knowledge Systems (LINKS) in a global society
304 By promoting and mobilizing local knowledge, practice and world views, the LINKS project supports rural and indigenous communities in their efforts to resist marginalization and impoverishment, while enhancing resource security. Efforts have been reinforced to place traditional knowledge at the heart of resource management and sustainable development processes and to uphold the vitality of traditional knowledge within local communities through an expanding network of field projects. A recent project with the Mayangna of the Bosawas Biosphere Reserve in Nicaragua, in cooperation with the University of Missouri (United States), is recording indigenous names and categories for hundreds of tropical forest animals, as a first step towards a community-based compendium of local knowledge serving pedagogical and resource management ends.
305 Strengthening awareness of power issues in the biodiversity arena, the proceedings of the international seminar organized with CNRS (France) on "NGOs, Indigenous Peoples and Local Knowledge" has been published as volume 178 of the International Social Science Journal. Member States were informed of project progress through a side event at the 32nd session of the General Conference, jointly hosted by the Assistant Directors-General for the Natural Sciences and Social and Human Sciences, the Executive Board Member for Australia and the Permanent Delegate for Bangladesh.
306 Extrabudgetary support has been received from UNEP/GEF for the design of a medium-sized project on indigenous knowledge and marine biodiversity in the Pacific with the countries of Palau, Solomon Islands and Vanuatu. The Cree School Board (Canada) provided funds to support the development of a CD-ROM on Cree knowledge, practice and rituals relating to the natural environment. Canadian government internships have brought two indigenous youths to work with the LINKS project at UNESCO Headquarters. Finally, the University of Wageningen (Netherlands) provided funds to publish indigenous peoples’ contributions to the Third World Water Forum in Kyoto, including the "Indigenous People’s Kyoto Water Declaration" that was highlighted by the Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues at its second session.
Small Islands Voice
359. One of the main goals of the Small Islands Voice (SIV) project is to optimise the use of ICTs so that the views of the general public are heard, and that these views work as a driving force for development in the islands. This process facilitates the input of civil society and the general public in the preparations for and follow-up to the review of the Programme of Action for Small Island Developing States (SIDS) to be held in Mauritius 2004.
360. In pursuit of increased awareness and understanding about environment and development issues in small islands, UNESCO continued to encourage open and transparent dialogue through various mechanisms. These included: (i) the publication and distribution in July 2003 of 5,000 copies of the report, Small Islands Voice: Laying the foundation, to National Commissions, governments, NGOs and civil society bodies in small islands and other relevant member countries; the report was also put on the web (www.unesco.org/csi/pub/papers2/siv.htm); (ii) during the global conference on Oceans, Coasts and Islands in November 2003, three SIV representatives (from the Caribbean, Indian Ocean and the Pacific) made presentations on behalf of the general public, civil society and youth; (iii) discussion on the SIV global Internet forum (www.sivglobal.org) centred on breaking the cycle of crime and violence, and whether small islands benefit from the export of their water resources; and (iv) debate on the SIV youth Internet forum (www.sivyouth.org) focused on the quality of drinking water in Raki Raki (Fiji); health issues in Mauritius; the lack of jobs for school leavers in the Maldives; gang violence in Dominica; and alternative uses of fish in the San Andres archipelago. By the end of December 2003, 37 schools in 11 small islands across three regions had been involved in the SIV youth Internet forum, while the SIV general public Internet forum reached over 13,000 people.
361. In July 2003, Small Islands Voice encouraged greater inter-regional collaboration by supporting representatives of youth groups from the Indian Ocean and Pacific to participate in the Caribbean-based "Sandwatch" beach monitoring programme which aims to empower and strengthen the capacities of young people. Inter-regional linkages were enhanced when, in November 2003, a youth ambassador from Saint Kitts and Nevis visited Seychelles to meet with youth representatives, government officials and other individuals to further the goals of Small Islands Voice. This activity was a collaborative effort on the part of the National Commissions in Saint Kitts and Nevis, Dominica and Seychelles.
