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World Environment Situation

Document type
Decision
Reference number
UNEP/GC.26/2
Date
Nov 1, 2016
Source
UNEP, InforMEA
Status
Active
Meeting
The 26th session of the Governing Council / Global Ministerial Environment Forum (GC/GMEF) of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP)
Website
www.informea.org
Abstract
The Governing Council, Pursuing its functions and responsibilities as outlined in General Assembly resolution 2997 (XXVII) of 15 December 1972, including to keep under review the world environmental situation in order to ensure that emerging environmental problems of wide international significance are prioritized and receive appropriate and adequate consideration by Governments, and to promote the contribution of the relevant international scientific and other professional communities to the acquisition, assessment and exchange of environmental knowledge and information, Recalling its decisions 22/1 of 7 February 2003 on early warning, assessment and monitoring, 23/6 of 25 February 2005 on keeping the world environmental situation under review, SS.X/5 of 22 February 2008 on the Global Environment Outlook: environment for development, and 25/2 of 20 February 2009 on the world environmental situation, Noting the findings contained in a number of environmental assessment reports and publications released since the twenty-fifth session of the Governing Council/Global Ministerial Environment Forum, in particular those prepared by the United Nations Environment Programme in cooperation with partners and presented in the report of the Executive Director on the state of the environment and the contribution of the United Nations Environment Programme to addressing substantive environmental challenges,5 Noting also the findings of scientific environmental assessments conducted between 2009 and 2011,6 including the findings of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change in that period and earlier, Expressing concern that the documented environmental degradation and widespread changes resulting from human activity together with natural processes and the loss of ecosystem services are barriers to the attainment of internationally agreed sustainable development goals, Welcoming with appreciation efforts by the United Nations Environment Programme to increase the impact of its scientific assessments by improving their coherence and scientific rigour and to build regional and national capacities for environmental data collection, information and assessment, performed in cooperation with other United Nations entities, national Governments, non-governmental organizations and other partners, Recognizing that a core mandate of the United Nations Environment Programme is to keep under review the world environmental situation and provide policy-relevant guidance in addressing emerging environmental problems in response to the findings of key scientific assessments, and that the United Nations Environment Programme, through the Scientific and Technical Advisory Panel of the Global Environment Facility, in addition to its mandate for providing scientific and technological advice to the Global Environment Facility as a financial mechanism of global conventions, is responsible for identifying emerging environmental issues, Recalling section III of its decision 25/2, by which it called for a set of requirements for a migration to targeted assessments on thematic priority areas supported by a UNEP-Live enabling framework, section II of its decision 25/2 on improvements to the international environmental assessment landscape and section I A of its decision 22/1 on strengthening the scientific base of the United Nations Environment Programme, Mindful of the needs articulated in the Bali Strategic Plan for Technology Support and Capacity-building, such as capacity-building in developing countries and countries with economies in transition to improve the management of environmental data and information for environmental assessment, reporting and early warning, Welcoming the report submitted by the Executive Director in response to section III of decision 25/2,7