The Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro was unprecedented for a UN conference, in terms of both its

size and the scope of its concerns. Twenty years after the first global environment conference, the UN
sought to help Governments rethink economic development and find ways to halt the destruction of
irreplaceable natural resources and pollution of the planet. Hundreds of thousands of people from all
walks of life were drawn into the Rio process. They persuaded their leaders to go to Rio and join other
nations in making the difficult decisions needed to ensure a healthy planet for generations to come.

In June 2012, more than 150 presidents and prime ministers and thousands of other top leaders
are expected to come to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil for the UN Conference on Sustainable Development. The
gathering will mark the 20th anniversary of the first historic Rio Earth Summit where governments
pledged to take actions to protect the planet while addressing poverty and equity. Yet a generation
later, the pressures on the planet continue to grow as do human numbers and needs.

The UN Secretary General has warned that we are running out of time. We do not need any
more ineffective treaties and abstract plans of action. The NRDC has challenged the UN instead to make
the Rio+20 Earth Summit different, indeed transformative. We want our leaders to come to ready to
take action to speed the transition to a low-carbon green economy.

The Summit’s message — that nothing less than a transformation of our attitudes and behavior would
bring about the necessary changes — was transmitted by almost 10,000 on-site journalists and heard by
millions around the world. The message reflected the complexity of the problems facing us: that poverty
as well as excessive consumption by affluent populations place damaging stress on the environment.
Governments recognized the need to redirect international and national plans and policies to ensure
that all economic decisions fully took into account any environmental impact. And the message has
produced results, making eco-efficiency a guiding principle for business and governments alike.

 Patterns of production — particularly the production of toxic components, such as lead in

gasoline, or poisonous waste — are being scrutinized in a systematic manner by the UN and
Governments alike;

 Alternative sources of energy are being sought to replace the use of fossil fuels which are linked
to global climate change;

 New reliance on public transportation systems is being emphasized in order to reduce vehicle
emissions, congestion in cities and the health problems caused by polluted air and smog;

 There is much greater awareness of and concern over the growing scarcity of water.

The two-week Earth Summit was the climax of a process, begun in December 1989, of planning,
education and negotiations among all Member States of the United Nations, leading to the adoption of
Agenda 21, a wide-ranging blueprint for action to achieve sustainable development worldwide. At its
close, Maurice Strong, the Conference Secretary-General, called the Summit a “historic moment for
humanity”. Although Agenda 21 had been weakened by compromise and negotiation, he said, it was still
the most comprehensive and, if implemented, effective programme of action ever sanctioned by the
international community. Today, efforts to ensure its proper implementation continue, and they will be
reviewed by the UN General Assembly at a special session to be held in June 1997.

The Earth Summit influenced all subsequent UN conferences, which have examined the
relationship between human rights, population, social development, women and human settlements —
and the need for environmentally sustainable development. The World Conference on Human Rights,
held in Vienna in 1993, for example, underscored the right of people to a healthy environment and the
right to development, controversial demands that had met with resistance from some Member States
until Rio.
Solar Energy –is radiant light and heat from the sun harnessed using a range of ever-evolving
technologies such as solar heating, solar photovoltaic, solar thermal energy, solar architecture and
artificial photosynthesis.

Solar Constant - is the average rate at which radiant energy from the sun is received by the earth, equal
to 430 Btu per square foot per hour (1353 W/m2/hr), used in calculating the effects of solar radiation on
buildings.

Solar House - a house equipped with glass areas and so planned as to utilize the sun's rays extensively in
heating.

Solar Heating System - a method of space heating by capturing radiant energy from the sun.

Active Solar Heating System - Is system that is converts energy into useable energy that requires a
mechanical device in order for it to be consumed as active solar energy. For example; water heating,
cooling systems, furnish electricity etc. These entire devices capture solar energy and convert it into
different forms of usable energy.

Solar Collector - any of various devices for the absorption of solar radiation for the heating of water or
buildings or the production of electricity.

Solar Orientation - The alignment of a building relative to the sun initially set either for maximum or
minimum heat gain, depending on the local climate.

Altitude - the height of an object or point in relation to sea level or ground level.

Azimuth - an arc of the horizon measured between a fixed point (as true north) and the vertical circle
passing through the center of an object usually in astronomy and navigation clockwise from the north
point through 360 degrees.

Solar Path - Sun path refers to the apparent significant seasonal-and-hourly positional changes of the
sun (and length of daylight) as the Earth rotates, and orbits around the sun. The relative position of the
sun is a major factor in the heat gain of buildings and in the performance of solar energy systems.

Summer Solstice - the time at which the sun is at its northernmost point in the sky (southernmost point
in the S hemisphere), appearing at noon at its highest altitude above the horizon. It occurs about June
21 (December 22 in the S hemisphere).

Equinox - An equinox occurs when the plane of Earth's Equator passes the center of the Sun. These
events are the reason that the period of daytime and night are approximately equal on the day of an
equinox.

Winter Solstice - the solstice that marks the onset of winter, at the time of the shortest day, about
December 22 in the northern hemisphere and June 21 in the southern hemisphere.

Latitude - the angular distance of a place north or south of the earth's equator, or of a celestial object
north or south of the celestial equator, usually expressed in degrees and minutes.

Meridian - a circle of constant longitude passing through a given place on the earth's surface and the
terrestrial poles.

Longitude - distance measured in degrees east or west from an imaginary line (called the prime
meridian) that goes from the North Pole to the South Pole and that passes through Greenwich, England.
Passive Solar Heating - 1. A continuous bank of earth alongside a road; a shoulder. 2. A continuous bank
of earth piled against a masonry wall. 3. A strip of ground, formed into a ledge to support beams or
pipes. 4. The horizontal surface between a moat and the exterior slope of a fortified rampart. 5. In earth
excavation work, that portion of the excavation, usually sloped, left at the perimeter and removed as
the sheeting and bracing are installed. 6. A narrow terrace or shelf built into an embankment, or the like,
which breaks the continuity of an otherwise long slope.

Drum - 1. One of the cylinders of stone which form a column. 2. A round or polygonal wall below a
dome, often pierced with windows. 3. The bell of Composite or Corinthian capitals.

Trombe Wall - A passive solar-energy thermal storage device used in houses. Consists of a thermal
storage wall, usually of masonry or concrete, 8 to 16 in. (20 to 40 cm) thick, that is coated with a dark
heat-absorptive material; and a glass skin, placed in front of the wall that leaves an air space 3⁄4 in. to 6
in. (2 cm to 15 cm) between the wall and the glass. Solar energy that strikes the glass is absorbed by the
wall during the day and released to the house during the evening.

http://www.un.org/geninfo/bp/envirp2.html
Dictionary of Architecture & Construction, 4th Ed., Cyril M. Harris
Building Construction Illus., 5th Ed., Francis Dk. Ching