Activity 13

1. Select one global organization and examine the current efforts of this organization to solve the issues
regarding the natural resources.

Human activities are growing substantially having an influence on ecosystem integrity, which provides critical
resources and services for human well-being and economic activity. Sustainable development necessitates the
sustainable and coordinated management of natural resources. The term "sustainable development" was conceived
in 1987 by the United Nations Commission on Environment and Development, which was headed by Norwegian
Prime Minister Gro Harlem Brundtland, and refers to "progress that meets the needs of the present without
adversely affecting future generations' ability to meet their own needs." Sustainability refers to not only the
survival of humanity, but also the productivity of natural, created, and human assets from generation to generation.

In this view, sustainability encompasses more than simply the environment; it also encompasses institutions,
economies, and cultures that can change and persist through time. This long-term, future-oriented part of
sustainable development is perhaps the most significant, and it is the aspect of sustainable development that is least
conveyed by other terminology like green growth. It's also important to note that, by extension, sustainable
development is deeply concerned with concerns of limitations, given that considerations of unsustainability
inevitably arise when present growth trajectories are on the edge of exceeding naturally set boundaries. Accepting
that naturally imposed constraints exist does not imply that economic progress is constrained in any way.

Moreover, growth limits may still exist: while green growth focuses on 'separation' economic growth from
environmental impacts (i.e. Reducing resource intensity for each unit of production), progress has been far
outpaced by higher rates of economic growth, resulting in rising total environmental impact. For decoupling rates
to exceed those of growth, it becomes evident that revolutionary technology advances (or, opposite, catastrophic
economic recession) will be required.

In this regard, strategies that include targets adopted at the national and, where appropriate, regional levels to
protect ecosystems and achieve integrated management of land, water, and living resources, while strengthening
regional, national, and local capacities, must be implemented as soon as possible in order to counteract the current
trend in natural resource degradation. This would apply to all levels of activity. The United Nations was to become
a platform for country-based sustainable development, performance indexes, as well as a framework for country-
to-country sustainable development peer review. Given their potential to help disseminate best practice –
particularly given that remarkable innovations in sustainable development are now beginning to take place in many
emerging markets and some low-income countries – these were arguably two of the best and most practical
recommendations included in the GSP.

The idea of the UN developing a comprehensive system for monitoring the planetary limits defined by the SRC
is another major innovation that might occur in the UN's data-gathering capacity in sustainable development. The
SRC admits that much more research is needed to determine where crucial boundaries are located and how close
humans have come to violating them. At the same time, the SRC does not have the same status as a formal
international organization or intergovernmental body because it is a think tank (although one with substantial
academic qualifications).

In 2015, the United Nations announced its Sustainable Development Agenda, reflecting a growing recognition
among the Member States that a development model that is sustainable for current and future generations is the
greatest task ahead for decreasing poverty and enhancing people's lives worldwide. At the same time, climate
change began to have a significant influence on humanity's consciousness. With the melting of the polar ice caps,
rising global sea levels, and increased fury of cataclysmic weather events, no country on the planet is immune to
the consequences of climate change. Given their potential to help propagate best practices – especially given that
spectacular breakthroughs in sustainable development are already taking place in many developing economies and
some low-income countries – these were probably two of the greatest and most practical suggestions contained in
the GSP. As a result, it's crucial that the worldwide community meets the UN's Sustainable Development Goals –
as well as the Paris Climate Agreement's 2015 carbon reduction objectives. Sustainable development and climate
action are intertwined, and both are critical to humanity's ongoing and prospective well-being.

While these goals were being developed and accepted, the UN-backed climate change discussions, which
culminated in the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement. The Paris Agreement's main goal is to enhance the global
response to the threat of climate change by limiting global temperature rise to far below 2 degrees Celsius over pre-
industrial levels if not even 1.5 degrees Celsius. In addition, the Paris Agreement intends to improve nations'
abilities to deal with the effects of climate change. Financing, new technology, and a strengthened capacity-
building framework will be put in place to achieve these objectives. Through a transparent framework, the
Agreement also provides for increased openness of activity and assistance.

At the Climate Action Summit in September 2019, 65 countries and main sub-national economies, including
California, pledged to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to net-zero by 2050, while 70 countries said they would
either increase or begin the process of increasing their national action plans by 2020. Over 100 corporate
executives, including asset owners with over $2 trillion in assets and leading firms with a combined worth of over
$2 trillion, offered tangible initiatives to line with the Paris Agreement goals and accelerate the transition from the
grey to a green economy. Many governments, as well as over a hundred cities, including many of the world's
largest, have launched major new initiatives to address the climate catastrophe. The promises made by Small Island
Developing States and Least Developed Countries were among the highest.

REFERENCES

[1] United Nations. (n.d.). Support Sustainable Development and Climate Action. https://www.un.org/en/our-

work/support-sustainable-development-and-climate-action
[2] Evans, A. (n.d.). The UN’s Role on Sustainable Development . Retrieved from

https://cic.nyu.edu/sites/default/files/evans_sustainable_development.pdf.