Making a liveable world for our children's grandchildren

This must also be the goal for the world’s leaders when we meet in Rio.

I am working for a more just world. At the same time, parents all over the world want their children to have a better life than they have had. This is why we must promote economic growth and create jobs and security for millions of people. We must encourage the use of more climate-friendly technology and more sustainable development. And those who create most pollution must also do most to cut emissions.

I am pleased to know that the Thai government gives priority to developing a strong and balanced economic structure for the country, as an important basis for sustainable growth with quality, and that development in the quality and health of Thai people of all ages is recognised as a determining factor for the survival and competitiveness of Thailand’s economy.

Thailand has also been widely recognised for the Sufficiency Economy philosophy introduced by His Majesty King Bhumibol Adulyadej, as a model for a green economy. Sufficiency Economy calls for a more diversified and balanced development strategy, and has played a crucial role in shaping Thailand’s economic and social development plans.

This year it is 20 years since sustainable development first hit the agendas of world leaders, when Gro Harlem Brundtland launched this new approach to development and environment at the World Summit in Rio de Janeiro. This week, world leaders will again gather in Rio. This UN summit – Rio+20 – will be a new opportunity to agree on how to achieve growth and welfare and at the same time protect the environment.

We need to find ways of making growth sustainable. We also need to distribute revenues more equitably as countries become richer. At the moment, every fifth person worldwide lacks access to electricity. Twice as many – 3 billion people – have to gather fuel to cook food and heat their homes. The smoke from inefficient stoves is harmful and claims the lives of nearly 2 million people every year. This is unfair, is a waste of resources, and is unsustainable. Instead, children should have time to go to school, and adults to take paid work.

In the rich world, we waste electricity and use more than our fair share of energy resources. The widespread use of energy from oil, gas and coal is causing dangerous climate change. In Norway, buildings account for 40 per cent of all energy use. We can halve our electricity consumption by 2040 by improving the energy efficiency of buildings – and at the same time live more comfortably and reduce our electricity bills. We are already beginning to feel the effects of interference with the climate system. But the consequences for those who come after us will be far more serious.

Thailand has been one of the fastest-growing economies in Southeast Asia. In the last two decades, energy consumption in Thailand has continuously increased. At present, it is 2.3 times the amount it was in 1990. The government’s intention to promote and drive energy conservation through the reduction of power usage in the production process by 25 per cent within the next two decades, is therefore commendable.

Food is another key area. According to UN figures, about a third of all food is thrown away or destroyed. Every one of us in the rich world throws away an average of 100 kilos of food a year. In Norway alone, 500,000 tonnes of food goes into the bin. At the same time, more than a billion people go hungry. Even in poor countries, a good deal of food is wasted, partly because of poor roads and inadequate storage facilities. If we are to feed all the children in the world properly, we must make some major changes.

These are some of the issues we will be discussing in Rio. Governments, NGOs, researchers and representatives of the business sector from all over the world will work together to identify opportunities. We all agree that the way we are living today is not sustainable. But it is much more difficult to find solutions that everyone can agree to because the key is more equitable distribution. Aid from rich countries to poor countries is one way of improving the situation. But aid is most effective when it stimulates private investment and enables a country to develop its own solutions. Poor countries now have better opportunities to choose environmentally friendly solutions than we had during our industrialisation.

But this is far from enough. The financial crisis, and elections in a number of key countries, is deflecting the attention of politicians and the public towards domestic problems and short-term prospects. Rio+20 reminds us that the most serious challenges require the ability to think along new lines. World leaders need to cooperate more closely. We must create the political will needed to ensure that Rio+20 is a milestone towards sustainable development. We must find solutions that make sustainable development profitable.

We cannot produce enough food for everyone simply by producing more food. We need to look at the whole value chain from farm to fork. When food is lost during harvesting and storage, small farmers lose income and poor consumers pay higher prices. We must therefore invest in better methods of food production, in infrastructure and in technology that will reduce food waste and bring more food to more people. As a substantial provider of food security, Thailand is well placed to play an active role.

Norway is seeking to ensure that Rio+20 culminates in new goals for sustainable energy. We support UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s focus on energy for all. His aim is to double the use of renewable energy and the efficiency of existing energy use by 2030. To do this, we must all work together. The business sector is playing a decisive role in the implementation of the new technology that is needed to achieve these goals. 

In the worst case, Rio+20 will be too much talk and not enough action. The pessimists are already pointing out that the UN has been unable to resolve major global problems on several occasions. But the UN is the only arena where all the countries of the world come together to address these issues.

We must all make use of Rio+20 as an opportunity to improve the UN’s ability to take action and stake out a pathway to equitable green growth. We are working towards an agreement on new goals for sustainable development. This will require both rich and poor countries to take appropriate steps at home. We must ensure that the world we leave to our children’s grandchildren is a place where everyone can afford to take part. That will require bold decisions at Rio+20 and in the coming years.

 

Heikki Holmas is Norwegian Minister of International Development.