On May 8th, UNEP Executive Director Achim Steiner delivered a lecture entitled “Sustainable Development Post Rio+20: In search of a shared paradigm in a divided world”,  at the Graduate Institute, in the Geneva Dialogues series organised by the Centre for International Environmental Studies. Mr Steiner reflected on developments in international environmental affairs since the Rio+20 conference of 2012, placing this in a longer term perspective and highlighting the triple helix as a conceptual tool for tying together the economic, social and environmental dimensions of sustainable development.

Elaborating on the challenge of transforming the global economy onto a sustainable path, Mr Steiner emphasised the progress made in recent decades. Discussions and negotiations concerning climate change have been critical to the process of introspection and rethinking among the global community, leading to an increased awareness of the lack of understanding of how our planet’s natural systems function.

Mr Steiner spoke of the achievements of Rio+20, which was given an impulse by the financial and economic crisis of 2007-8. Multilateralism has come under challenge in both sustainable development and other areas, and there is a need to build public confidence in this process, which is essential for ensuring sustainability, according to Mr Steiner. Many environmental challenges, such as climate change, have impacts on all countries who therefore need to be at the table.

Achim Steiner is the United Nations Under-Secretary General and Executive Director of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).

By Derek Eaton, Executive Director of the Graduate Institute Centre for International Environmental Studies

Watch an extract of the event