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Introduction to the Earth Charter The Earth Charter is an international effort to produce an agreement on the basic elements necessary to create a sustainable society on earth. (Below are excerpts from the Earth
Charter website) For over a decade diverse groups throughout the world
have endeavored to create an Earth Charter that
sets forth fundamental ethical principles for a sustainable way of life.
Hundreds of groups and thousands of individuals have been involved in the
process. Representatives from government and nongovernmental organizations
worked to secure adoption of an Earth Charter during the Rio Earth Summit in
1992. However, the time was not right. A new Earth Charter initiative was
launched by the Earth Council and Green Cross International in 1994. An Earth Charter Commission was formed in 1997 to
oversee the project and the drafting of the Charter. The Secretariat for the
Commission is at the Earth Council in Costa Rica. In March, 1997, at the
conclusion of the Rio+5 Forum in Rio de Janeiro, the Earth Charter Commission
issued the Benchmark Draft Earth Charter. The Commission also called for
ongoing international consultations on the text of the document. Between 1997 and 1999 over forty national Earth
Charter committees were formed, and numerous Earth Charter conferences were
held. Comments and recommendations from all regions of the world were
forwarded to the Earth Council and the Drafting Committee. Guided by these
contributions to the consultation process, the text of the Charter was
extensively revised. In April, 1999, the Earth Charter Commission issued
Benchmark Draft II. The consultation process continued throughout 1999 in
order to provide individuals and groups with a further opportunity to make
contributions to the drafting process. As a result of the worldwide
consultation process, the Earth Charter Commission issued a final version of
the Earth Charter after their meeting on March 12 - 14, 2000 at the UNESCO
headquarters in Paris. Objectives of the International Earth Charter Initiative are:
·
To disseminate the Earth Charter to individuals and organizations in all
sectors of society throughout the world.
·
To promote the educational use of the Earth Charter in schools,
universities, faith communities, and a variety of other settings, and to
develop and distribute the necessary supporting materials.
·
To encourage and support the use, implementation, and endorsement of the
Earth Charter by civil society, business, and government at all levels.
·
To seek endorsement of the Earth Charter by the United Nations General
Assembly in 2002, the tenth anniversary of the Rio Earth Summit. A Declaration of Interdependence and Principles for Sustainable Development The Earth Charter is a declaration of interdependence
and responsibility and an urgent call to build a global partnership for
sustainable development. The principles of the Earth Charter are closely
interrelated. Together they provide a conception of sustainable development
and set forth fundamental guidelines for achieving it. These principles are
drawn from international law, science, philosophy, religion, recent UN Summit
meetings, and the international Earth Charter conversation on global ethics. The goal of sustainable development is full human development and ecological protection. The Earth Charter recognizes that humanity's environmental, economic, social, cultural, ethical, and spiritual problems and aspirations are interconnected. It affirms the need for holistic thinking and collaborative, integrated problem solving. Sustainable development requires such an approach. It is about freedom, justice, participation, and peace as well as environmental protection and economic well-being. Return to Top Building a New Order Developing Sustainability
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