Organized by the UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), this briefing session will outline the objectives, possible structure, suitable commodity focus, and main activities of the future UN Forum on Sustainability Standards (UNFSS), as well as the main clusters of stakeholders to be represented therein. Created by UNCTAD in collaboration with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO), UN Environment Programme (UNEP), UN Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) and the International Trade Centre, UNFSS will be a platform providing information, analysis and capacity-building assistance on these standards, with a particular focus on their potential value as tools for developing countries to achieve specific sustainable development goals. It will also address potential trade or development obstacles that these standards may create, with a particular emphasis on their impact on small-scale producers and less developed countries. The briefing session will be an opportunity for delegates to provide guidance on the key substantive issues, commodity groups and main target stakeholders for future Forum activities.  

date: 5 June 2012   venue: Palais des Nations, Room XXII, 8-14, Av. de la Paix, 1211 Geneva 10, Switzerland   location: Geneva, Switzerland   contact: UNCTAD Secretariat   phone: +41 (0) 22 917 5780   e-mail: ulrich.hoffmann@unctad.org   www: http://unctad.org/en/Pages/MeetingDetails.aspx?meetingid=89