The World Summit on Sustainable Development that will take place in Johannesburg in August-September 2002, is often referred to as "Rio +10" in recognition of the 10 years that have passed since the Earth Summit in Rio. But it could also be known as "Stockholm + 30" to acknowledge the three-decade anniversary of the United Nations Conference on the Human Environment, the first global event of its kind.

Stockholm was a watershed. It was the first thematic, two-week United Nations conference. It was the first high-profile international conference not dealing with war and peace. It was the first to connect environment and development.

In the wake of the successful writings of Rachel Carson, Margaret Mead, Barbara Ward and Barry Commoner, the conference generated considerable media interest. It also saw the emergence of civil society as a force for the first time at an international meeting. The Swedish organizers had thoughtfully provided an NGO site with an alternative program. By the end of the meeting, there were three other sites and the streets of the Swedish capital were full of antiwar, anti-whaling and anti-growth-at-all-costs demonstrators.

Ten years later, Canada called for the creation of a World Commission on Environment and Development. When the resulting Brundtland Commission presented its report in 1987, it pointed out that all of the main environmental and social indicators were heading in the wrong direction, pioneered the concept of sustainable development and called for another global conference in five years to review actions in response to its report.

Maurice Strong, the Secretary-General at Stockholm and founder of IISD, was called upon to lead the charge in 1992. He understood that there was an audience for these issues. Once again, civil society and the media swarmed a UN conference. By some estimates, more than 20,000

NGOs attended the Rio meeting. Some lobbied the formal conference, influenced the debates and advised governments on their positions. Others formulated their own "treaties" among themselves, held seminars and demonstrations, and "networked." The latest electronic technologies were employed as North-South NGO partnerships formed around specific issues.

Before and during Rio, civil society pressured governments to bring the negotiations on climate change and biodiversity to a successful conclusion. NGOs pushed the OECD governments to increase development spending as a condition of securing the support of the developing countries, and they involved themselves in the forestry discussions.

Civil society is now a major player in all international environmental negotiations. Quietly, but substantially, IISD has helped. The Institute's Earth Negotiations Bulletin has made these meetings far more transparent than any other set of international discussions, thus encouraging accountability and extensive public participation.

As of this writing, it looks as if the theme of partnerships will take centre stage in Johannesburg. This compelling direction can be attributed to government inaction in recent years and to the growing prominence of civil society in the sustainable development arena.

For IISD, the evolving focus on partnerships is an exciting development. Sharing, growing and learning with like-minded organizations has long been a cornerstone of our identity. Our emphasis on advanced information technology has helped develop active, working networks, particularly with organizations in developing countries.

Through the Trade Knowledge Network, for example, our trade team has been working with institutions in Central America, Argentina, South Africa, Pakistan, Vietnam, Bangladesh and China to build the capacity of these institutions to develop their own analyses of the trade and environment issue from their own national points of view and to communicate these analyses to governments and civil society. We are working with the "RING"--a global alliance of research and policy organizations seeking to promote sustainable development through collaborative research, dissemination and policy advocacy--to develop a Southern agenda on trade and the environment.

We have fostered the development of the Climate Change Knowledge Network with representatives from Western Europe and the developing world. The CCKN's work in training African negotiators on climate change and on developing a comprehensive compendium of resources has been complemented by our close partnership with India's Tata Energy Research Institute on the Clean Development Mechanism, green budget reform and the use of economic instruments.

Our Knowledge Communications program works with partnering institutions throughout the world to enhance the Sustainable Development Communications Network, now in its fifth year. This program also houses "Young Canadian Leaders for a Sustainable Future," a project that sends 30 or so young interns every year to work with leading sustainable development organizations around the world.

We are beginning to document and share our experience with knowledge networks. Heather Creech, Director of Knowledge Communications, and her colleague, Terri Willard, have recently published Strategic Intentions: Managing knowledge networks for sustainable development, which captures some of the lessons we've learned.

We are dealing with issues such as trade and development, and climate change--issues that are fundamentally important to the future of our world. We therefore require strong coalitions and partnerships.

More than ever, we need to share our work and our ideas and build on common strengths. Partnerships have enhanced our reach in the past; they are of strategic importance today.

Our challenge as Board and Staff is to enhance our influence and make a difference by doing good work and by working with others to achieve results.

David Runnalls - President and CEO
Jacques Gérin - Chair of the Board

Board of Directors

Jacques Gérin (Canada), Chair
David Runnalls (Canada), President
Jacqueline Aloisi de Larderel (France)
Edward S. Ayensu (Ghana)
James Bruce (Canada)
David Buzzelli (United States)
James Carr (Canada)
Eleanor Clitheroe (Canada)
Angela Cropper (Trinidad and Tobago)
Christian Friis Bach (Denmark)
Nicolas Imboden (Switzerland)
Aban Marker Kabraji (Pakistan)
Ashok Khosla (India)
Allan Kupcis (Canada)
Rosemarie Kuptana (Canada)
Huguette Labelle (Canada)
Elizabeth E. May (Canada)
Ken F. McCready (Canada)
Bob Page (Canada)
Edward Schreyer (Canada)

Advisory Participants

Norm Brandson, Deputy Minister, Manitoba Conservation
James Eldridge, Clerk of the Executive Council, Province of Manitoba
Len Good, President, Canadian International Development Agency
Alan Nymark, Deputy Minister, Environment Canada
Maureen O'Neil, President, International Development Research Centre

Friends of the Institute

Gro Harlem Brundtland
José Goldemberg
Sir Shridath Ramphal

Distinguished Fellows

Art Hanson, Senior Scientist
Jim MacNeill, Chair Emeritus
Maurice Strong

Founding Chair

Lloyd McGinnis