Center 1

To craft a people’s agreement on a statement of ethical principles to guide the conduct of people and nations towards each other and the Earth to ensure a sustainable future.

Background

Efforts to develop a set of principles for ecological security were intensified at the United Nations Stockholm Conference on the Human Environment in 1972. Since then, many groups and coalitions have made valuable contributions to the articulation of principles and values needed for sustainable development. In 1987, the Brundtland Commission called for a new charter “to consolidate and extend relevant legal principles to guide State behavior in the transition to sustainable development”.

The Earth Charter was one of the expected outcomes of the Earth Summit, held in Rio de Janeiro in 1992. The intention was to craft an agreement on a statement of ethical principles to guide the conduct of people and nations towards each other and the earth so as to ensure a sustainable future, building on the various declarations and charters which emerged since the Stockholm conference. The call for such a charter caught the imagination of individuals and organizations around the world, as well as some governments. During the two years leading up to and including the Earth Summit, NGO and government delegations from around the world worked on elements of the Charter. Still, governments could not reach agreement on an Earth Charter. Instead, they adopted the Rio Declaration on Environment and Development, which, though valuable in itself, did not meet the expectations of a “people’s” Earth Charter.

Following the Earth Summit, two international NGOs, the Earth Council and Green Cross International, with the support of the Dutch Government, joined forces with others to pursue the development of an Earth Charter. In May 1995, they co-sponsored a meeting in The Hague, where some 60 representatives from various groups met and proposed a broad consultation process, which would lead to a universally acceptable Charter. Over a two-year period, consultations were held worldwide among some international organizations. At the same time, an overview of principles of environmental conservation and sustainable development, as articulated in international law documents and related reports, was compiled in a working paper called Principles of Environmental Conservation and Sustainable Development: Summary and Survey. It formed a guide for this phase of the consultation process.

In early 1997, an Earth Charter Commission composed of 23 distinguished individuals, from every continent, was formed to oversee the drafting and consultation process. During the Rio+5 Forum in March 1997, the Commission proposed a “Benchmark Draft”, based on the initial consultation and review of the previous efforts since 1972, to serve as a guide for further consultation to develop a “People’s Earth Charter”.

Since the creation of the Earth Charter Commission, the Earth Council Secretariat initiated a consultation and valuing processes in some 25 countries (annex 1), primarily by initiating national Earth Charter committees which would pursue the objectives described in section 2.1. These committees continue to expand participation and conduct Earth Charter workshops using the Benchmark Draft in diverse ways according to their cultural context and specific critical issues of concern. The Benchmark Draft is used as a tool of analysis, as an instrument for invoking personal and social values and as a document in process to be evaluated and validated.

The learning from the initial phase of the campaign highlight four orientations that go beyond drafting a document: first, the process necessitates an integration of personal and social values into a coherent inner and outer “ecology of values”. Second, the values must be translated into initiatives that addresses the current crisis that affect people’s lives. Third, that “political will” rest on people’s personal and organizational commitments as foundations for government action. Fourth, that the campaign’s driving force comes from civil society’s normative function of articulating public interest and the common good and from within the individual’s deep personal spiritual motivations and resources.

The Millennium Campaign

The transition to sustainable development will require basic changes in the values, behavior and attitudes of civil society, the private economic society and governments. Ultimately, sustainability will depend on the decisions citizen will make on what to produce, consume, waste and the lifestyles they will pursue.

The Earth Charter Millennium Campaign seeks to catalyze change in the above mentioned areas.

A. Campaign Objectives

To conduct a series of national workshops to facilitate the articulation of a new people’s vision, rooted in shared ethical and spiritual values, that integrates humanity’s social, economic and environmental goals and express it in an Earth Charter Document;

To promote the Earth Charter as an ethical framework for sustainable development, particularly through National Councils for Sustainable Development, to address the crisis of growing poverty, destruction of environmental life support systems, social violence and personal alienation from nature and society;

To involve various sectors of society to translate Earth Charter principles into professional and organizational work ethics, educational curriculum, religious ministries, development plans and personal commitments on sustainable consumption and lifestyles;

To contribute to the Earth Charter drafting process and the creation of educational materials;
To participate in regional and global fora and to promote the Earth Charter values in inter-governmental negotiations and agreements as well as activities of transnational organizations;

To organize a People’s Earth Charter Millennium Assembly in the year 2000 to agree on a final draft of the Earth Charter and present it to the People’s Millennium Assembly at the United Nations.

To have Governments at the United Nations adopt the Earth Charter in the year 2002, during the UN Rio+10 Assembly.
B. The Campaign Activities

The Campaign activities fall into two main areas: the drafting process and the consultation valuing process.

1. Earth Charter Drafting Activities

A drafting team, led by Professor Steven Rockefeller, is pursuing the on-going process of refining the Earth Charter Benchmark Draft by:

Reviewing and integrating the results of all consultations and contributions, and ensuring a dynamic and culturally appropriate translation of the Benchmark Draft in all major languages;

Presenting to the Earth Charter Commission in January 1999 a Benchmark Draft II together with a brief introduction to the structure and organization of the revised document;

Conducting workshops and seeking input from expert groups in such areas as culture, science and economics to ensure that these value spheres are integrated into the ethical framework of the Earth Charter;

Designing and publishing educational and training tools to support the Earth Charter process;

Preparing a working paper that identifies what needs to be done and best practices to implement the Earth Charter principles. This paper will identify specific goals for each principle and measures for determining to what degree the goals are being achieved;

Publishing in the year 2000, a book of essays on the ethical, legal, scientific, and other foundations of the Earth Charter. The author of these essays will reflect diverse cultural perspectives.
2. Consultation and Valuing Activities

2.1. National Valuing and promoting Workshops
National campaigns have been launched by the Earth Council and are being managed by national Earth Charter Committees. These are composed of representatives of partner organizations, National Councils for Sustainable Development (NCSDs) or similar entities, and of diverse professional, social, economic and spiritual groups. All are invited to involve their constituencies in translating Earth Charter values into operational terms and in contributing to the Earth Charter Draft. The specific objectives of these national campaigns are:

To use the principles in the Earth Charter Benchmark Draft as a tool to initiate a process of internal reflection and elicit people’s personal values.

To promote the Earth Charter principles to become the values framework for National Sustainability Plans. This work will involve over 70 NCSDs that participated in the Rio+5 process and Forum. This will involve accessing the values underlying management practices such as: sustainable agriculture and coastal area management, biodiversity, energy and financial systems, which are priority areas of major foundation grants.

To translate the Earth Charter principles into professional work ethics and code of conduct of professional associations such as: doctors, lawyers, engineers financial managers, etc.

To translate the Earth Charter principles into values’ curriculum and training pedagogy of both formal and informal educational institutions such as schools, scouting movement, formation groups, etc.

To make the Earth Charter principles part of the teachings and instructions of religious and spiritual groups.

To adopt the Earth Charter principles as specific public interest advocacy of NGOs and community based networks.

To disseminate the Earth Charter principles as part of popular culture through mass media and communication.
2.2. Regional activities

Organizing Regional Workshops - presided over by Regional Chairs of the Earth Charter Commission (See annex 5)

To consolidate national results.

To coordinate with Regional NCSD consultations (PrepComs) and integrate Earth Charter values into regional positions, policies and action programs in regional economic, social and environmental fora.

To select representatives for the Millennium Earth Charter Assembly.

Supporting the creation of Regional Earth Charter Committees to be chaired by the regional chairs of the Earth Charter Commission to address the culture specific needs of each region and to coordinate national campaigns in the region. These committees will also be important mechanisms for tapping regional resources for the campaign.

3. Global Activities

Advocating Earth Charter values in inter-governmental fora, led by partner organizations which are involved in the specific themes of each forum.

Conducting an open consultation through a special Earth Charter web site http://www.earthcharterinaction.org/ managed by the Earth Council Secretariat that will ensure transparency and participation. This site will provide information on the various consultation processes, and solicit inputs from all interested parties.

Organizing a Millennium Earth Charter Assembly - presided by the Earth Charter Commission.

drafting and valuing activities are to culminate in the Millennium Earth Charter Assembly to be held in the year 2000 (date to be determinate) where 200 representatives selected through regional workshops and the Earth Charter commissioners will have a final workshop to:

Craft and agree on the final document for a People’s Earth Charter.
Present it to the United Nations Peoples assembly in the year 2000.
Forming an international Resource Team to help support the campaign. Initially, this team will be composed of the key active partner organizations involved in the campaign. (attached list, annex 2)
Strengthening the coordinating secretariat at the Earth Council in San José, Costa Rica.
Establishing a small UN liaison and northern coordinating office in New York for the duration of the Campaign..
Organizing an Earth Charter Commission meeting in January 1999 to release a Benchmark Draft II.
Post Millennium Assembly activities

Presentation of the final document to national governments through NCSDs and Earth Charter committees for formal adaptation during the 10th anniversary of the Earth Summit in the year 2002.

Promoting the adaptation of a covenant for sustainable development at the UN based on the Earth Charter and IUCN’s work
Expected Results

An adopted “Peoples” Earth Charter with a global constituency by the year 2000.

Adaptation of Earth Charter values by professional organizations and association.

Earth Charter principles and values as part of curriculum of formal and non-formal educational institutions.

Earth Charter endorsed and taught by religious and spiritual groups.

Earth Charter principles as well as processes discussed in popular media.

Earth Charter values and principles form a framework for countries National Sustainable Development plans and programs.

Earth Charter values and principles become major considerations in inter-governmental negotiations and activities of transnational organizations.

The Earth Charter will have enough constituencies to be adopted by countries at the United Nations as a basis for a covenant on sustainable development by the year 2002.
Participating Organizations

While the Earth Council Secretariat is the coordinating organization for this campaign under the Earth Charter Commission it relies on partner organizations which form the Drafting Team, the International Resource Team (annex 2) and the organizations forming the National and Regional committees for implementing the program.

Project Secretariat

The Earth Council is a non-governmental organization that derives its legal status from the Earth Council Foundation, an international non-profit organization. Its secretariat was established in San José, Costa Rica in September 1992 at the invitation of the Costa Rican government.

Organized by its chairman Mr. Maurice Strong after the Earth Summit of 1992, the Earth Council’s mission is:

To support and empower people in building a more secure, equitable and sustainable future.
and its’ mandate is:

To operationalize the Earth Summit Agreements and sustainable development through the empowerment of civil society.
To achieve its mission, the Earth Council has developed a strategic program called “Making Sustainability work”, which integrates the elements of: participatory mechanisms such as National Councils, legislative agendas for sustainable development, Knowledge Resource Facilities for informed participation of civil society, Capital Investment Collaborative for supporting local sustainability investment plans; and underlying all the programs is the Earth Charter to provide the Values Framework for sustainable development. (see diagram of work programme – annex 3)

In its’ work the Earth Council has developed a network of partner institutes, NGOs, National Councils for Sustainable Development (NCSDs) which it intends to mobilize for the campaign (attach matrix annex 4)