Environment & Urbanization

World leading environmental and urban studies journal

Implementing Agenda 21: NGO Experiences from Around the World

Author: 
Leyla
Alyanak

Other authors: 
and Adrienne Cruz (editors)

Published by: 
NGLS

Publisher town: 
Geneva

Year: 
1997

THIS BOOK FOCUSES on the role of NGOs in the implementation of Local Agenda 21, five years after the UN Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED) included a small section on Local Agenda 21s within its agreed action programme. It includes case studies describing NGO projects and other activities in the light of UNCED's promotion of sustainable development and provides examples of the potential embodied in post-UNCED local-level activities. It also considers the effectiveness of existing policies and practices in meeting the goals of Agenda 21.

After an introductory section describing the developing role of NGOs within the UN system, the first half of the book examines a range of issues relating to Agenda 21 – including the role of indigenous groups in implementing Agenda 21, the eco-volunteer concept, consumer responsibility and natural resource management. The second half of the book has case studies of country experiences from around the world (the Caribbean, India, Pakistan, the South Pacific, Russia, Slovenia, Scotland, Ghana and Zambia). These include NGO case studies, the role of different stakeholders in the process of implementing Agenda 21 and the specific constraints or successes experienced by the country in question. Despite the differences in projects, common themes emerge: for example, it seems that successful projects tend to include both environmental protection and local livelihood improvement, whilst challenges to implementing Agenda 21 are often related to a lack of financial resources or political or institutional obstacles. The principal theme throughout the book is the strong commitment of civil society organizations to the goals of Agenda 21 and their critical role in contributing to sustainable development, highlighting the need for genuine partnerships and for institutional recognition of civil society

Available from: 
Published by and available from the UN Non-governmetnal Liaison Service, Palais des Nations, CH-1211 Geneva 10, Switzerland.

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