28 January 2011: Ahead of the second meeting of the UN Secretary-General’s High-level Panel on Global Sustainability (GSP 2), the three working groups have completed their reports.

GSP 2 will take place from 24-25 February 2011, in Cape Town, South Africa. The “sherpas” to the GSP members met in Braunwald, Switzerland, on 25 January 2011, to discuss progress by the three Working Groups – on “poverty,” “paradigms” and “markets” – established during GSP 1 (October 2010). The Working Groups will present their findings to the Panel at GSP 2. Also expected to be presented at GSP 2 is a Synthesis Paper by the Panel’s Secretariat.

Also in Switzerland, Members of the Panel present in Davos for the World Economic Forum (WEF) participated in a plenary led by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, on 28 January 2011, titled “Redefining Sustainable Development: How can sustainable development become a driver of inclusive growth?” The session addressed new growth paradigms, systemic approaches and the role of business. GSP co-Chair President Tarja Halonen (Finland) called for an approach that combined growth with social justice and environmental sustainability, referring to the three policy goals as “a modern trinity.” Panel member Jim Balsillie called for a fundamental rethinking of economics in order to “stop the runaway train,” and said, “we must be extraordinarily ambitious.”

In addition to the formal meetings of the Panel, its Secretariat, members, and advisers are conducting outreach to the Panel’s constituencies, including civil society. UN-NGLS will engage NGOs in a dialogue, requesting responses to a series of questions and compiling the input in a report to the Panel, ahead of GSP 3.

The remaining GSP meetings are scheduled to take place from 16-18 May 2011, in Helsinki, Finland (GSP 3), with the Panel moving to Stockholm, Sweden for a symposium with Nobel Laureates on 18 May; from 18-19 September 2011 in New York, US, on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly’s General Debate (GSP 4); and in late October 2011 at a date and place to be determined (GSP 5). The Panel’s final report is due at the end of 2011.

The GSP Secretariat has indicated that meetings in November 2011, such as the 3-4 November Summit of the G20, and the 14-15 November second informal intersessional meeting for the UN Conference on Sustainable Development (UNCSD, or Rio 2012), will provide an opportunity to share the Panel’s findings before publication of its final report.

Finally, two new members, Freundel Stuart, Prime Minister of Barbados, and Izabella Monica Vieira Teixeira, Minister of Environment of Brazil, have joined the Panel. They are expected to participate in GSP 2. [IISD RS Sources] [Website of Panel] [Publication: Summary of Discussion at Sherpas’ Meeting] [Video of WEF Session on Sustainable Development (sixth video from left, second row)] [Presentation of GSP Secretariat to UNCSD Bureau]