Organizations across the globe are set to commemorate the Stockholm+50 international meeting in June 2022. In lead-up to the event, the Government of Sweden has been supporting Stockholm+50 National Consultations across 58 countries. Here, UNDP provides a read-out of the consultations.
Stockholm+50 calls for an inclusive approach that reflects the richness and diversity of voices and perspectives of various stakeholder groups - local governments, cities, civil society, women, indigenous peoples and local communities, faith-based groups, academia, youth, industry, finance, and others. To enable stakeholder groups from developing countries to contribute to the preparation of the international meeting, between February and May 2022, the Government of Sweden held national consultations, facilitated by UNDP through UNDP Country Offices.
The national consultations aimed to stimulate an inclusive, whole-of-society and whole-of-government dialogue on the themes of Stockhom+50 and the Leadership Dialogues. Consultation outcomes will inform the Stockholm+50 international meeting through national reports and a global synthesis report that captures key findings, recommendations, data, media coverage, and links to national policy frameworks such as NDCs, NAPs, NBSAPS, green recovery, and sector strategies.
Over 160 Stockholm+50 national events have taken place across more than 50 countries. In-person and hybrid consultations are supported with on-line dialogues on UNDP’s SparkBlue Platform. We have been hearing a great diversity of voices from all countries - all calling for a healthier planet and a more inclusive and sustainable development choices.
The messages and highlights from the national consultations are summarized below.
- Countries call for stronger partnerships on improved means of implementation of the Decade of Action, including improved capacities, technology transfer, North-South and South-South cooperation.
- There is a need for strengthened environmental governance at all levels, building upon enhanced public participation and access to environmental information, improved evidence-base and risk knowledge, rebuilt trust between governments and society, and an effective response to the needs of stakeholder groups, including women, youth, indigenous peoples, local communities, people with disabilities, and others.
- There is a call to radically improve financing for the delivery of environmental targets of SDGs by unlocking and consolidating environmental finance across all sources – domestic and international, public and private, and hybrid – and by smarter and more effective management of environmental and climate finance.
- There is an understanding of the need for integrated resilient solutions beyond nature, climate and energy that address complex and growing risks of food and energy insecurity, fragility and conflict, growing debt, poverty and inequality.
- Countries are looking for strong drivers for economic transformation towards greener and healthier development. This includes support to adjust national targets and metrics, to reform economic systems and investment flows towards sustainable consumption and production and circularity, and to reduce the environmental footprint from high-impact sectors such as food, energy, extractives, tourism, transport and infrastructure.
- National stakeholders have highlighted the need for a just and inclusive transition towards greener and resilient development, which should include targeted support to workers across formal and informal sectors and their families who might be negatively affected by the economic transformation, with a particular focus on groups living in vulnerable and marginalized contexts
- Youth leaders and activists have been very vocal across all supported countries sharing their views on the Stockholm+50 Leadership Dialogue themes. Youth participants have highlighted: the need for environmental and climate education, training, capacity building and access to information; the importance for their governments to unlock and promote green jobs, green businesses and youth innovations; and the need for increased and consolidated international and national funding flows for the accelerated implementation of environmental and climate action.
- Finally, the countries are looking forward to Stockholm+50 for result oriented recommendations and commitments, which could be translated into bold transformative follow-up action through fair and effective multilateralism.
In the Latin America and Caribbean the Stockholm+50 national consultations have been hosted by Argentina, Barbados, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Ecuador, Guatemala, Peru, Mexico, Trinidad & Tobago, and Uruguay. A few highlights from the consultations:
- Argentina had a successful kick-off event for the Stockholm+ 50 National Consultation on 21 March followed with a series of consultation events in April-May including dialogues with senate, private sector, trade unions, faith-based organizations and CSOs, indigenous people, youth and media. Please follow the Argentina’s consultation on Stockholm+50 SparkBlue . You can also explore articles on gender, climate, biodiversity and more .
- Colombia was the first country to launch its Stockholm+50 national consultation on 24 February, and since then conducted over a dozen of sectoral and provincial dialogues on the Stockholm+50 agenda. Please explore the consultation materials and follow the blogs and stories from Colombia on SparkBlue .
- On 28 March Costa Rica launched the inclusive consultation process which included a strong focus on vulnerable groups including women, LGBTIQ+, indigenous and ethnic communities while also covering academia and private sector. Presentation of the national consultation results is planned for 31 May. Follow the Costa Rica SparkBlue Page for videos and blogs.
- A series of consultation events in Cuba were concluded with the final national event on 12 May . Cuban consultations were accompanied with an active on-line SparkBlue discussions.
- Following the official launch of the national consultation on 18 March, Ecuador offered its national stakeholders multiple ways to engage in the consultation ranging from targeted interviews to an Online survey, three virtual workshops, three provincial meetings, and discussions on the UNDP Sparkblue platform.
- Following the successful launch on 11 April , Mexico has planned a series of five national consultation events. The first national consultation focused on youth voices, the second event on 26 April looked at the roles of national and subnational governments. Mexico’s consultations also cover private sector, labor unions, civil society and academia, have a strong representation of women voices, and will be aligned with the national consultations towards the World Urban Forum.
In Africa and Arab States the national consultations are supported in Algeria, Angola, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, CAR, Cote D’Ivoire, Ethiopia, Iraq, Guinea, Jordan, Kenya, Liberia, Mali, Mauritius, Morocco, Mozambique, Namibia, Nigeria, Rwanda, Sierra Leone, Somalia, State of Palestine, Sudan, Uganda, and Zimbabwe.
- Between 21 and 28 April, Angola conducted five Stockholm+50 national consultation events with local communities, students and youth. Following these preparatory events, the high level consultation session on 4 May brought together multiple stakeholders, members of the government and civil society, academia, private sector, the minority groups and many more.
- The first national consultation event in Cameroon was held on 9 May and explored the themes of the Stockholm+50 Leadership Dialogue 1.
- The first Stockholm+50 discussion with Youth in Central African Republic took place on 5 April, followed on 14 April with a local consultation in the North West region with nearly a hundred development actors - administrators, businesses, women, young people and the Muslim community – getting together to formulate recommendations related to the Stockholm+50 agenda.
- In Cote d’Ivoire the Stockholm+50 consultation was launched on 17 March and has been closely aligned and coordinated with the preparatory consultations in the lead to UNCCD COP15 hosted by the country in May and with the consultations on the NY Declaration on Forests.
- Ethiopia organized two national face-to-face consultation events in the capital on 11-12 April and on 12-13 May to discuss the Leadership Dialogue themes and the national priorities. The events were also accessible by zoom and through livestreaming.
- Guinea has completed an impressive series of nine consultations launched on 13 April. Through a mixture of in-person, hybrid and on-line events the Stockholm+50 consultation outreached women groups and women entrepreneurs; students and youth; NGO community; and the national ministries of environment, agriculture and livestock, women, youth and vulnerable people empowerment, and the ministry of energy, hydraulics and hydrocarbons.
- Jordan launched its first national consultation in Amman on 28 March devoted to Stockholm+50 themes and hosting 85 participants from private sector, academia, members of government and press. The second Stockholm+50 consultation in Northern Jordan (19 April) hosted local communities, and civil society actors. The third event on 11 May targeted stakeholders in the Southern Jordan. The last event on 12 May provided venue for the voices of women, youth and people with disabilities. Please follow the events in Jordan on SparkBlue.
- Following the successful launch on 7 March, Liberia has conducted a series of regional (provincial) consultations. The first provincial consultation for the Grand Bassa County led by the Liberia's Environment Protection Agency and a series of student consultations at Harbel College and Bassa High School took place on 23-25 March. The second provincial consultation in the Nimba County was held from March 30 to April 1. The regional dialogues covered a broad spectrum of stakeholder groups who have highlighted the urgency of concrete actions to achieve a healthy planet and prosperity of all. The final national consultation event was conducted on 4 May. All Liberian national events could be followed on the Liberia Stockholm+50 SparkBlue page .
- Mali consultations were conducted on 26-27 April in-person following a series of preparatory events. Live streaming is available on Mali SparkBlue page .
- Mauritius completed its in-person Stockholm+50 National Consultation on 28 April following a series of preparatory consultations with various stakeholder groups including university students, youth and people with disabilities, women and elderlies, and service clubs. All consultation materials can be accessed on the Mauritius SparkBlue page.
- Morocco launched its national consultation process on 11 May. Consultations include three virtual events focusing on the Stockholm+50 Leadership Dialogue themes over 11-13 May.
- Mozambique Stockholm+50 consultation process was initiated on 22 April and was supported with the national opinion survey. A series of local community consultations with women and youth have been supported. The final event in Maputo is scheduled for 18 May. Please follow Mozambique consultation on SparkBlue .
- Namibia has launched its Stockholm+50 National Consultation on 25 April. The launch was followed with the consultation with the private sector, CSOs and academia on 5 May, local consultations with coastal towns on 9 May, consultations in the South of the country on 10 May, and in the Northern regions on 13 May. All consultations were live streamed on facebook.
- Nigeria launches its consultation process on 12 May in the capital city. Following the official launch, a series of consultation events are planned between 13th and 25 th May, including dialogues with youth, women, people with disabilities, indigenous people, NGOs, environmental activists, private sector including SMEs, and the UN team.
- Rwanda carried out a series of three in-person consultation events , including local consultations in Gicumbi District on 26 April where residents including young people, women and local communities shared their recommendations and expectations for Stockholm+50; and a consultation with people living with disabilities (5 May). On May 6 Rwanda held its National Stockholm+50 Consultation in Kigali attended by representatives of the government agencies, development partners, young people and other stakeholders.
- Somalia conducted a 2-day national consultation on 27-28 March covering a broad range of sectors and topics including energy and infrastructure, water and disaster management, nature-based solutions, urban resilience and food security.
- The Environment Quality Authority of the State of Palestine announced the launch of the Palestinian national consultations on 17 March. Several provincial consultation workshops were organized in March throughout the West Bank and Gaza, bringing together the governmental sector, private sector, civil society, NGOs, technical experts, youth, women, and persons with disabilities. The final national consultation event was held on 10 May. The public opinion survey on Stockholm+50 agenda has been supported. Consultations are organized in partnership with the General Consulate of Sweden in east Jerusalem and other international partners.
- On 26 April Sudan launched its first Stockholm+50 national consultation with a thematic focus on mercury pollution. The second national workshop on 15 May focuses on climate resilient and low emission development.
- Following a high-level preparatory meeting between the Government, Ambassador of Sweden, the UN Resident Coordinator and UNDP on 31 March, Uganda launched its Stockholm+50 national consultation on 22 April. During 25-29 April, a series of dialogues have been conducted including 4 regional consultations and events targeting women organizations, civil society and private sector. Please explore the results of the consultations on Uganda SparkBlue .
- Following a successful launch on 14 March , Zimbabwe had its first national consultation event for Women, Youth and People with Disabilities on 4 April, followed with an event targeting NGOs, CSOs and grassroot organizations on 13 April, and a consultation with businesses and academia on 28 April. All events can be followed on Zimbabwe Stockholm+50 SparkBlue page . UNDP Zimbabwe SparkBlue digital discussion rooms have been hosting active on-line consultations on Stockholm+50 Leadership Dialogue themes.
In Asia and the Pacific region Stockholm+50 consultations have been organized in Bhutan, China, Fiji, Indonesia, Maldives, FSM, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Samoa, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Timor Leste, Viet Nam, and Vanuatu.
- Following the launch of the National Consultation on 29 March, Bhutan conducted a series of four national consultation events covering different stakeholder groups and sectors and an Earth Day Special Event led by youth. You may want to follow a “Walk the Talk” vlog with Bhutan’s environmentalist and explore the national discussions on Bhutan SparkBlue space .
- China conducted a series of three Stockholm+50 national consultation events on 26-28 April, including a business roundtable, youth consultation, and a two-day high-level policy dialogue. The events had a strong focus on promoting climate action under the Paris Agreement while also raising the understanding and capitalizing on the nexus between climate, biodiversity, and prosperity in support of China’s climate goals and SDGs.
- Indonesia launched its Stockholm+50 National Consultation process on 17 March (follow the launch here) and ran two introductory Stockholm+50 webinars targeting academia and civil society organizations . The 1st Public Dialogue “Rediscovering the balance of human-nature relationships ” was conducted on 22 April. Please refer to the joint Op-Ed on Stockholm+50 by the Ambassador f Sweden and UNDP Resident Representative.
- Philippines conducted a pre-assessment workshop for the Stockholm+50 national consultations on 5 April and launched the consultation on 6 May. Five thematic national consultations are conducted on 12-15 May looking at: adaptation and resilience to climate change, climate change mitigation, finance, sustainable consumption and production, and youth dialogue.
- Following the launch in Colombo on 20 April, Sri Lanka held a series of 10 thematic Stockholm+50 consultations targeting various stakeholder groups, including the national and provincial governments, youth, finance sector, civil society, academia, private sector and professional associations.
- Thailand launched its national consultation on 5 April. On 29 April a dialogue focusing on green and resilient transition took place in the Norther region of Chiang Mai. On 12 May the Stockholm+50 provincial consultation is hosted by a Southern region (Phang-nga). The final consultation event will be held in Bangkok. Please follow Thailand SparkBlue space for details on the past and future events.
- Vietnam conducted their Stockholm+50 kick-off event on 13 April and carried out a targetedyouth survey.
- Following the initial delays due to the COVID-90 lockdowns, the Pacific SIDS started to pick up on the consultations planning and implementation with their governments. Samoa organized a series of consultation events launched on 3 May and followed on 5-11 May with on-line consultation sessions with the private sector, CBOs, women groups, youth, and government stakeholders. A concluding in-person event “Samoa-Talanoa for a Healthy Planet” is held on 13 May, please follow the life streaming on SparkBu e. National consultation events have been carried out in Timor-L’Este and the Federal States of Micronesia , and scheduled in Fiji (17 May).
Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic, Serbia, Turkey and Uzbekistan have been selected in the Eastern Europe and Central Asia region to host the Stockholm+50 consultations.
- Georgia conducted three in-person consultations during the month of April in the cities of Telavi, Batumi and Tbilisi . The national dialogues were set around the Stockholm+50 Leadership Dialogue themes. The first discussion was conducted in the context of the human rights for healthy environment and looked at best practices for ecosystems restoration. The discussions which followed focused on post pandemic recovery and on partnerships and inclusivity for the accelerated achievement of Agenda 2030.
- Kazakhstan conducted the official launch and the first Stockholm+50 consultation in Kyzylorda (South Kazakhstan) on 29 March with 60 participants. The Stockholm+50 consultation process in Kazakhstan included a series of in-person and hybrid regional events covering all main provincial centres leading to the final national event in Nur-Sultan on 17-18 May.
- In Kyrgyz Republic the national consultation was preceded with a national Stockholm+50 survey which helped to identify priority themes and sectors under each of the Stockholm+50 Leadership Dialogues. The consultation was then launched on 14 April followed by 9 focus group discussions with different stakeholder groups, regional events in all 7 provinces, multiple youth events , and the final national validation workshop. Kyrgyz consultations had a strong emphasis on green and sustainable event practices.
- Serbia launched its Stockholm+50 national consultation with a high-level event at the Palace of Serbia on 13 April. On May 9th another event focused on the environment-health nexus ; youth consultation was conducted on May 10th; the forth consultation meeting on 12 May engaged civil society organizations. The concluding national event "Green Society - Sustainable Lifestyle" will be conducted on 20 May, please follow the event on Serbian SparkBlue.
- Turkey initiated their consultation on 10th May and will run a series of technical events and a national survey in partnership with the Climate Presidency within the Ministry of Environment, Urbanization and Climate Change. The first in-person event is hosted by the Swedish Consulate in Istanbul on 17 May. The national consultation will be supported by the national Climate Council.
- The Government of Uzbekistan aligned the Stockholm+50 national consultation themes with their national priorities by conducting 4 thematic events addressing: (i) a discussion on the Strategic Framework for Green Transition and the launch of the national Green Hub (April 29, Tashkent); (ii) a dialogue on enhancing sustainable and resilient development of the Aral Sea Region (May 6, Nukus/Karakalpakstan); (iii) consultations on the NDC implementation roadmap and climate change adaptation (May 11, Tashkent); and (iv) a consultation exploring solutions for biodiversity conservation and public participation in natural resource management (May 12, Tashkent).
Youth consultations :
Youth and young environmental leaders across 57 countries have been among the key stakeholders of the Stockholm+50 national consultations. A great variety of events and engagements have been offered to children and youth, including schools- and university-based dialogues, national youth forums, art competitions and blogs opportunities, youth “caravans” and green actions.
- In the Kyrgyz Republic Stockholm+50 engaged young people from across the country through “youth caravans” which run through 13 cities in all 7 provinces, “live” broadcasts with young leaders, tree planting events and nature hikes.
- An excellent example of youth engagement in Zimbabwe resulted in a comprehensive Zimbabwean Youth Statement , while children’s voices were collected through a call for essays and art pieces .
- Trinidad and Tobago on-line Stockholm+50 Youth Forum came up with a number of recommendations echoing Zimbabwe’s youth on the need for enhanced environment and climate education and awareness, support to youth green projects and innovations, and partnerships.
- Following a series of three on-line consultations on the Stockholm+50 Leadership Dialogue themes (25-27 April), Barbados focussed its final national event conducted on 3d May on youth.
- You can listen to youth voices from Bhutan HERE and join the forthcoming youth focused national consultation in Uruguay on 17 May.
- Nigeria will conduct a Youth pre-conference information session on 25 May engaging the Swedish Embassy, UNDP, Federal Ministry of Environment, youths and women groups, and CSOs in the pre-conference consultation and awareness raising.
More information on the national consultations is available here: https://www.stockholm50.global/processes/national-consultations-0