January 2013: The latest issue of the newsletter of the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA) highlights the agreements of the UN General Assembly’s (UNGA) Second Committee, following up on various outcomes of the UN Conference on Sustainable Development (UNCSD, or Rio+20).

Highlighted decisions address the High-level Political Forum (HLPF) and conclusion of the Commission on Sustainable Development (CSD), adoption of the Ten-Year Framework of Programmes (10YFP) on Sustainable Consumption and Production (SCP), the Open Working Group (OWG) on Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and small island developing States (SIDS).

The newsletter notes that in addition to the processes mandated by these agreements, DESA will produce a synthesis report with views of Member States on the SDGs, and that a Secretary-General’s report is being requested on lessons learned from the CSD, to inform negotiations on the HLPF. It also highlights the mandate from Rio+20 to DESA to establish and maintain a comprehensive registry of voluntary initiatives for sustainable development. The registry, “SD in Action,” is available on the UN Sustainable Development Knowledge Platform (SDKP).

This issue of “DESA News” also highlights the upcoming second meeting of the Open-Ended Intergovernmental Ad Hoc Expert Group on Forest Financing (AHEG2), taking place from 14-18 January 2013, in Vienna, Austria. [Publication: DESA News, Vol. 17, No. 1]