Much of the preparatory work for next year's World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD) has focused on the political, technical, and financial details of bringing the world into better compliance with the vision of environmentally sound economic prosperity outlined at the 1992 Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro.

With widespread agreement that the goals set in 1992 have not been met, the discussion now at the United Nations and among its various partners is mainly about things like “time-bound actions,” “tangible results,” and “concrete measures” as they zero in on specific issues like debt relief, trade, technology transfer, freshwater resources, nuclear energy, climate change, desertification, consumption patterns, and poverty eradication.

In October, however, a small group of environmental specialists took a decidedly different tack in analysing how to help humanity change its unsustainable ways. Their emphasis was on how the rather more “soft” topics of “knowledge, values and education” relate to creating the commitment and action necessary to implement the sustainable development agenda at local, national and global levels.

The group, the International Environment Forum, is a non- governmental organisation composed mainly of Bahá’ís from around the world who have a special expertise or interest in sustainable development. Founded five years ago, the IEF explores not only the technical and scientific solutions to environmental problems but also the potential benefit of new social, cultural and spiritual insights.

The IEF's recently held its fifth international conference at the Townshend Bahá’í International School in the Czech Republic. The theme of the conference was “Knowledge, Values and Education for Sustainable Development.”

“While much progress has been made to implement the Rio agreements and Agenda 21, at least in some regions, it is clear that the governments and peoples of the world have not shown sufficient commitment to make firm steps on the path to sustainability,” said Arthur Dahl, president of the IEF and one of the founders of the United Nations Environment Program.

“There has been a lack of political will at a governmental level, lack of incentives in the private sector, and lack of sufficient willingness to change individual behavior,” said Dr Dahl. “Since motivation is intimately linked to values, it is worth examining what role values can play in achieving more sustainability.

“Values, or the application of spiritual principles, have been the missing ingredient in most past approaches to sustainable development,” Dr. Dahl said. “Grand declarations and detailed action plans, even when approved by all the governments, do not go far if people are not motivated to implement them in their own lives, and if institutions are not made responsible to carry them out.”

The three-day program included a speech by Professor Bedrich Moldan of Charles University, who is the former Czech Minister of Environment. His keynote address raised the idea of promoting or establishing a kind of “global moral minimum” system of values for the environment.

“Sustainable development is many things to many people and that is the problem,” said Prof Moldan, who chaired the United Nations Commission on Sustainable Development last spring. “One way to overcome this difficulty is to extract some ideas which could be shared by all peoples, whether they are bankers from Switzerland or islanders from Tonga.”

Much time during the conference was devoted to a general discussion of the themes as they were presented, with the idea that the real strength of the IEF is its capacity for networking and the interchange of ideas.

Participants included researchers, teachers, students, and professionals from a wide range of disciplines, and practitioners in the field of environment and sustainable development.

BWN