The Rio+20 Earth Summit

In June 2012, more than 150 presidents and prime ministers and thousands of other top leaders are expected to come to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil for the UN Conference on Sustainable Development. The gathering will mark the 20th anniversary of the first historic Rio Earth Summit where governments pledged to take actions to protect the planet while addressing poverty and equity. Yet a generation later, the pressures on the planet continue to grow as do human numbers and needs.

The UN Secretary General has warned that we are running out of time. We do not need any more ineffective treaties and abstract plans of action. The NRDC has challenged the UN instead to make the Rio+20 Earth Summit different, indeed transformative. We want our leaders to come to ready to take action to speed the transition to a low-carbon green economy.