Underscoring the need to accelerate and scale-up activities, Nuttal said preparatory discussions for the UN Conference on Sustainable Development (UNCSD or Rio+20) were considering “big ticket” issues, including public purchasing.
30 August 2011: The UN Environment Programme (UNEP) addressed the launch of the Government of Norway’s Climate Neutral Project and highlighted a proposal for green public procurement policies as an option for the Rio+20 outcome.
At the launch, Nick Nuttall, UNEP, on behalf of UNEP Executive Director Achim Steiner, praised Norway’s continued environmental leadership. Underscoring the need to accelerate and scale-up activities, Nuttal said preparatory discussions for the UN Conference on Sustainable Development (UNCSD or Rio+20) were considering “big ticket” issues, including public purchasing. He said public purchasing accounts for an average of 23% of GDP worldwide, and that governments could pledge to introduce sustainability criteria in their purchasing at Rio+20, stating that standards on green energy, forest products and organic food are ready for action. [UNEP Press Release]