The UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) has convened two special sessions, the first to discuss climate change and the second to discuss the global food crisis.

The Special Event on Climate Change and Development, “Achieving the MDGs and coping with the challenges of climate change,” took place on 2 May 2008, at UN headquarters in New York, US. The event, which was funded by the Government of Italy, included panel discussions on “learning to cope with climate change” and “reducing the world’s carbon footprint.” The outcomes of the event are expected to serve as input to the forthcoming ECOSOC Annual Ministerial Review in July 2008, which will focus on sustainable development.
The 20 May 2008 session, which extended into 22 May 2008 due to the large number of UN member states wishing to take the floor, convened at UN headquarters in New York, US. Léo Mérorès, President of ECOSOC, emphasized that “agriculture has to be put back in the center of the development agenda,” adding that “we need to concentrate efforts on minimizing greenhouse emissions, deforestation and global warming, while finding ways to promote investments in agriculture [and] maximize the use of agro-science and technology, with the aim of reducing the costs of production and substantially increasing the productivity and output of every hectare of arable land.” UN General Assembly President Srgjan Kerim also emphasized the need for greater investment in agriculture, calling for the “best science, tools and technologies to optimize efficiency and boost production,…[and] policies that support land and resource ownership.” Kerim also drew attention to the role that high oil prices have played in rising food prices, and emphasized that “A sustainable solution to the crisis must therefore be linked to oil price stability and our efforts to tackle climate change.”
Links to further information
IISDRS coverage of Special Event on Climate Change and Development
Special Session on global food crisis website
Statements