Inter-linkages between the Ozone and Climate Change

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Conventions: Part I - Inter-linkages between the Montreal and

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Kyoto Protocols

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United Nations Environment Programme

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Introduction

In May 2000, delegates at the 8th Meeting of the Commission on Sustainable Development agreed

on a draft decision on “Preparations for the10-year review of progress achieved in the

implementation of the outcome of the United Nations Conference on Environment and

Development (UNCED)”.

This decision identifies the ten-year review as an opportunity to mobilize political support for the

further implementation of Agenda 21, the action plan that was agreed on at UNCED in 1992. It also

argues that Agenda 21 should not be re-negotiated but constitute the framework within which other

outcomes of UNCED can be reviewed, assessed, and implemented. The document clearly

indicates the international community’s commitment to support coordinated international actions

through the range of agreements reached at UNCED, known as the Rio Accords.

The ten-year review of UNCED (known as the World Summit for Sustainable Development, or

WSSD) is an important milestone as we enter the twenty-first century; it calls for new and creative

modes for supporting the progress achieved so far in transitions toward sustainability and effective

environmental management.

Seizing this opportunity to contribute to the WSSD, the United Nations University (UNU) and United

Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), working with the Massachusetts Institute of

Technology’s (MIT) Program on Global Accords and the Alliance for Global Sustainability / Value of

Knowledge Project, proposed a set of initiatives to develop coherent and robust measures for

supporting progress during the implementation of international conventions.

The approach envisioned is designed to bridge the gaps between science, technological knowledge,

and policy.

Focusing initially on two major multilateral environmental conventions, this initiative is motivated by

the conviction that knowledge-driven strategies must be accompanied by effective on-the-ground

measures, and that the interests of states and all other stakeholders involved must be taken into

account.

Starting with an expert workshop, the initiative was designed to provide a framework and guidelines

for its overall efforts well as its specific contributions to the WSSD. Central to the success of this

first step were (a) a robust conceptual tone, (b) informative background papers, and (c) the active

participation of experts who are recognized as leaders in their fields. The expert workshop was held

2-3 November 2000 at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge, MA. It was jointly

hosted by MIT’s Global Accords Program and the Alliance for Global Sustainability / Value of

Knowledge Project.

Initial approach and proposed methodology The UN Secretary-General’s 1997 report, Renewing the

United Nations: A Programme for Reform, identified the concept of “issue management” as a

useful means of addressing the needs for coordination of activities that require an integrated,

systematic approach to issues under the responsibility of different UN governing bodies. The

approach is also aimed at involving intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations, and

brings stakeholders together to address problems that have been identified and to jointly develop

solutions.

This broad approach is relevant to a wide range of UN initiatives. Our purpose here is both to “test”

the effectiveness of the approach in the context of UN multilateral environmental conventions, and

to identify its practical as well as strategic implications. In this context, we propose to examine the

inter-linkages between two major global conventions: the Vienna Convention for the Protection of

the Ozone Layer and the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change.