The UN has been losing its role as representative of the planet's needs.

By Marcos Bicudo

21 years ago, Rio 92 triggered a more sensitive look at the harmful effects of economic activity on planet Earth. The then “hole in the ozone layer” debuted in the midst of a society that was just waking up to the subject. The internet was still in its infancy, sustainable development was disjointed and was not even part of the global agenda.

The years passed, as well as dozens of events related to the theme. The pre-eminent issue addressed at these meetings, climate change, no longer has the same strength. It lost ground in the eradication of poverty and the needs for improvement and access to health and education, especially in emerging countries.

Global leadership in all spheres – political, private sector or even academia and civil society – are in check. The feeling is that the men and women who represent us continue to be absorbed by the dictatorship of egocentrism, intoxicated by reckless capitalism and its immediate short-term needs.

Time continues to press. The Millennium Development Goals (MDG), formulated to promote major changes in the panorama of the planet and its population, complete 13 years and are approaching their final deadline, in 2015. There are arguments and facts that prove some progress during this period of 2000 to 2013, such as the lifting of half a billion people from the poverty line of US$ 1.25 per day, the fall in the infant mortality rate by 30% with three million children saved each year, and the 25% reduction in the number of deaths caused by malaria. If we consider that with a small fraction of what governments invest in armaments, for example, we would have eradicated global hunger and poverty a long time ago.

The lack of interest and ambition to mitigate major global issues reflects the loss of legitimacy of the role of the United Nations (UN) as a representative of the planet's needs. The Organization is increasingly dissociated from the real dilemmas of sustainable development and the eminence of a new approach.

The first report from the high-level panel of notables responsible for establishing the Sustainable Development Goals continues to highlight the total eradication of poverty as the main priority, and establishes, amazingly, the year 2030 for the delivery of this objective. It can be noted that a sense of urgency is really not part of the menu of this select group of illustrious representatives of society. Unacceptable, poverty is the consequence of a failed model that lasts and lasts and lasts.

Why is there no real collaboration between society's actors to promote more significant advances in relation to sustainable development? What is the cause of this lack of interest? Is the UN the right induction body to facilitate such a paradigm shift? How can we explain the current lack of global governance of sustainable development? These are questions that worry us and awaken new reflections. We need to think and act differently, urgently.

The mobilization of society must be articulated in areas that are less complex and susceptible to the inertia of major interests. We must reduce the emphasis on “grandiose” global agendas and give a pragmatic and more localized focus. We must work within the everyday reality of our circle of influence. After all, if we consider that 70% of the planet's population will be concentrated in emerging countries and that 75% of this population will in turn be living in large urban centers, why do we need the UN and the “establishment” to promote important advances? A mayor of a large urban center located in an emerging country has much more power today to advance the sustainable development agenda than most countries that form the UN representation through time-shifted diplomacy.

During Rio+20, we launched Visão Brasil 2050 – a new agenda for companies. The document – created with companies, NGOs and governments – presents the current scenario in nine sustainability themes, the ideal scenario in 2050 and suggestions for ways to achieve it. However, despite being important, 2050 is a long way off and what's more: we will not reach the desired goals if we do not act today and in the next seven years to promote this transformation. For this reason, we are now developing an action plan to identify which objectives we should establish by 2020 to leverage the sustainable development agenda and respond to the immense challenges posed. These objectives must be clear, measurable and verifiable so that society as a whole can closely monitor this evolution, participate in decisions – as intelligent consumers, for example – and demand more commitment from all of us to achieve the country in which we want to live.

We already have the technology and knowledge to respond to society's main problems, but we need new paths and arrangements for innovative partnerships. Rio de Janeiro saw an interesting experience. On the Chapéu Mangueira and Babilônia hills, CEBDS brought together 12 companies, Rio's city hall and government, residents and civil society institutions to think about how to promote good businesses with great positive impact. The results were very positive, despite several setbacks. The reduced scope of action (just over a thousand homes) made it easier, but if we want to expand the scale, we have to think differently, find new partnership formats and put the public interest first.

These are just a few examples, but I'm sure there are thousands of alternatives available to promote this change. To do this, we need to direct our gaze towards the new, where the real possibility of transformation lies, and change the current direction, giving scale and speed to the necessary changes.

Marcos Bicudo is chairman of the Brazilian Business Council for Sustainable Development (CEBDS)

Source: Valor Econômico 01/11/2013