The environment in the news friday, 20 April 2007 unep and the Executive Director in the News
Bernama : Policymakers Lagging In Responses To Environment Issues - UNEP
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Bernama : Policymakers Lagging In Responses To Environment Issues - UNEPBy Jackson Sawatan SINGAPORE, April 19 (Bernama) -- The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) has ticked off policymakers who are "sometimes very slow" to translate scientific findings on the state of the environment into public policies. UNEP Executive Director Achim Steiner said there were cases of reports published by the UNEP -- despite carrying stark messages on the environment -- had not yielded in policy formulation to mitigate the problems. Steiner, here for the Global Business Summit for the Environment 2007, made the remarks at a news conference when asked about what the governments in the region could do to tackle the recurring haze woes. He said the UNEP had produced a report on the matter several years ago. "The remarkable thing is that the report, just like the one on climate change, has not led policymakers to begin drawing policy responses to it," he said. "We're heading for serious trouble," said Steiner, who is also UN under-secretary-general. Every year, thick smoke from forest and bush fires mainly from Indonesia's Sumatra and Kalimantan, send chocking haze around the region, engulfing Malaysia, Singapore, Brunei, part of Thailand and the two Indonesian provinces. Steiner said: "I have to say that I'm sometimes intrigued by the lack of understanding by public policymakers of what we have already know today." "Probably because there are many competing priorities and also lack of interest in taking the latest science and beginning to translate it into policy- making. "There is leadership factor...you have governments and ministers who essentially embrace their portfolio and their responsibility and they become innovative leaders. And then you have others who tend to have their focus elsewhere," he said. http://www.bernama.com.my/bernama/v3/news.php?id=257701 …………………………………. The News, Pakistan : Global corporations need to fight climate changeSINGAPORE: More global corporations need to get involved in fighting climate change, experts told a major conference in Singapore on Thursday, adding that many companies are already seeing the benefits of environmentally-friendly practices. International businesses have a major role in helping protect the environment, experts said at the start of the UN-backed Business for the Environment Summit. Achim Steiner, executive director of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), said climate change has gained increasing prominence, and companies that adopt environment-friendly policies and standards were likely to gain support from consumers. “If Asian companies are going to succeed as global players, they essentially have to address a global marketplace in which the issue of environmental sustainability is an increasingly important one,” he said. This will translate not only into ethical practices but “is real money in real markets with real consumers.” As an example, the market in Germany for organic food has grown to more than four billion euros a year in fewer than 10 years. Steiner also cited the booming market in energy-efficient light bulbs, and Toyota’s success with “hybrid” cars whose engines combine gasoline power with an electric motor. http://www.thenews.com.pk/print1.asp?id=52042 ……………………………….. Scoop : UN Agency Honours Seven ‘Champions Of The Earth’Friday, 20 April 2007, 10:01 am Press Release: United Nations UN Environment Agency Honours Seven ‘Champions Of The Earth’ The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) has recognized seven winners of its ‘Champions of the Earth Award’ at a ceremony in Singapore where the agency’s chief praised the activists’ efforts to fight for change. “If we are to shape a new partnership between human-kind and the natural environment upon which all life ultimately depends then we need leaders, we need champions – champions in public life, champions in business and champions in our communities,” said UNEP chief Achim Steiner, who presented the awards on Wednesday evening along with Shn Juay Shi Yan, the current ˜Miss Earth Singapore. “The seven winners honoured this evening are from different corners of the planet and drawn from different backgrounds and experiences. But they share a common sense of purpose and of values: namely, to reject the status quo, to persist when others may have failed and faltered and to deliberately seize the opportunities to promoteᾠmore intelligent ways of managing development, he said. Actress and environmental campaigner Daryl Hannah, famous for films like “Splash” and her support for renewable energies, received the regional North America Champions prize on behalf of Al Gore, the former United States Vice-President and climate change campaigner. Awards also went to Cherif Rahmani of Algeria, for his work on deserts and desertification; Elisea ‘Bebet’ Gillera Gozun of the Philippines for pushing forward the environmental agenda; Viveka Bohn of Sweden for leadership in chemical safety; Marina Silva of Brazil for protecting the rainforest; His Royal Highness Prince Hassan Bin Talal of Jordan for transboundary cooperation on environmental issues; and Jacques Rogge and the Έnternῡtional Olympic Committee for introducing stringent environmental requirements for cities bidding to host the Games. http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/WO0704/S00326.htm ............................................. Brisbane Times, Australia : Al Gore receives UN environmental awardApril 20, 2007 - 6:19AM The United Nations named former US vice-president Al Gore and Olympics chief Jacques Rogge as recipients of environmental awards on Thursday, and urged more action to stop global warming. Only two of the seven winners were present at the ceremony in Singapore to receive trophies made from recycled metal. Gore, a dedicated climate crusader who starred in his 2006 global warming documentary An Inconvenient Truth, was represented by actress and environmental activist Darryl Hannah. "It has taken too long for global leaders, especially in the United States, to wake up to this fact and respond, but I have hope," Gore said in a speech read by Hannah at the ceremony. Rogge, who was lauded for helping to enforce environmental standards at the Olympic Games, was also not present but told the audience through a video-recording that Beijing, host of the 2008 Olympics, has been asked to "place the bar very high" for environmental standards. "Much more must be done - we owe this to sport and future generations," he said. Achim Steiner, the UN Environment Program chief, criticised some governments for appearing ignorant about the effects of global warming. "I am sometimes intrigued by the level of lack of understanding, and some would almost call it ignorance of public policy makers of what we know today," Steiner told reporters before the ceremony, without naming specific governments. The other winners were the Brazilian and Algerian environment ministers, a Jordanian prince, Sweden's Viveka Bohn for leading negotiations on global chemical safety standards, and Elisea Gillera Gozun of Philippines for helping to implement pollution charges in the country. http://news.brisbanetimes.com.au/al-gore-receives-un-environmental-award/20072920-8jc.html .............................................. 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