The UN Environment Programme (UNEP) launched the Consumer Information Programme (CIP), as part of the 10-Year Framework of Programmes on Sustainable Consumption and Production (10YFP) mandated by the UN Conference on Sustainable Development (UNCSD, or Rio+20).
1 July 2014: The UN Environment Programme (UNEP) launched the Consumer Information Programme (CIP), as part of the 10-Year Framework of Programmes on Sustainable Consumption and Production (10YFP) mandated by the UN Conference on Sustainable Development (UNCSD, or Rio+20).
The launch event took place on 1 July 2014, in New York, US, during the second meeting of the High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (HLPF).
According to UNEP, the CIP will be a global platform aimed to: improve availability, accessibility and quality of consumer information to create a basis for the provision of credible information; drive change in government and business to ensure that the framework conditions are provided to support best practices in relation to consumer information; and enhance communication to drive behavioral change and ensure the transition from being informed to taking action. The CIP will review existing information tools and systems, such as voluntary standards, eco-labels and marketing claims, to enhance their effectiveness by harmonizing data and criteria. It will look at products along their whole life cycles, from resource extraction to end-of-life disposal.
The Programme will be co-led by the Governments of Germany and Indonesia along with Consumers International, with the support of UNEP, which hosts the 10YFP Secretariat. The CIP will assist governments, standards organizations, businesses and NGOs in their efforts to provide information about a product’s impact on the planet and society.
During the launch event, Heiko Thoms, Permanent Mission of Germany to the UN, noted that 10YFP is one of the most tangible outcomes of the Rio+20 Conference and expressed confidence regarding the integration of sustainable consumption and production (SCP) into the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Henry Bastaman, Indonesia’s Environment Ministry, underlined that consumer information is a key element in empowering society to make the shift to SCP, while Justin MacMullan, Consumer International, emphasized that, in order to efficiently disseminate information, governments, companies and NGOs need to: make it easy; reduce and clarify schemes; tackle misleading claims; embrace consumer forums; and “mainstream instead of messaging.” [UNEP Press Release] [Launch Event Flyer] [CIP Webpage] [IISD RS Sources]