Declaration - A sustainable world is possible

"We, representatives from 40 countries gathered at the Rio+10 Preparatory Forum, state to all participants the importance of incorporating environmental sustainability in the discussions of the II World Social Forum. The world that excludes is the same that destroys the foundations of Life and Nature.

In 2002, it will be 10 years since the first parallel manifestation to a governmental meeting -the ECO 92- and the transformation of society and its relation with Nature continue to be a fundamental political task. In September, there will be the United Nations Summmit for Sustainable Development -Rio+10-in Johannesburg, with the double task of evaluating the agreements made in 92 and take positions on emergent themes (such as foreign trade, production and consumption of transgenic foods, and the ethical limits of Science), establishing a new agenda for future commitments.

Despite some advances, there are still difficulties for the effective incorporation of environmental issues in the development policies agendas around the world. The growing process of globalization under the neo-liberal hegemony and the non-implementation of the of the Climatic Changes Convention commitments are symbols of this context.

We defend the recovery of ethical values that affirm a culture of peace, dialogue and tolerance, and that restore fraternity, solidarity, and diversity as central elements in the social and environmental relations. The re-establishment of these values should be articulated with the political fight for democracy and new spaces and concrete mechanisms of inclusion and participation.

The environmental strategies are cannot be dissociated from the fight against the enormous inequalities and injustices in the relations between countries, human beings, and regions of the planet.

We defend the idea that the globalization process requires mechanisms of participation, transparency, and social control in order to build a planetary citizenship that may result in the improvement of the humanity´s life conditions , the reduction of social and regional inequalities, and the protection of the environment. We defend the recognition of the ecological, social, and cultural debts.

We reject the globalization that has at its center the search for profit. Nature is a fundamental value in itself and life and its protection should be above the international commercial agreements. We defend the sovereignty of peoples and nations over their genetic patrimony and the creation of sustainable strategies that may enable the livelihood of populations and the preservation of bio-diversity.

We reject the patenting and private appropriation of life, Nature, and people´s knowledge. The genetically modified foods the large corporations attempt to impose on us, put at risk the food safety of millions of people and threaten bio-diversity and human health.

The current models of urbanization and industrialization concentrate wealth and distribute poverty and environmental degradation. We defend the democratization of the access to water and land, in urban and rural areas, a renewable energy model and social control over its use. We defend a radical change in the production and consumption patterns and in the use of natural resources, and the implementation of Agenda 21 and all the other international agreements related to Rio 92 at all levels (local, regional, national, and international).

We reject the position of the United States government of not signing the Kyoto Protocol, putting its economic interests above the collective interests of all Humanity. We defend the application of the precaution principle and the reduction of carbon emissions and other pollutant substances that threaten people´s life and health of .

We call the participants of the II World Social Forum to move toward a collective action in order to guarantee that the commitments agenda of Rio+10 will be an agenda of all people and not only of governments. Our project for the future should have at its core the search of a fair humanity in a sustainable world.


Porto Alegre - January 31, 2002

Rio+10 Preparatory Forum - Challenges for a Planetary Sustainability.

Event organized by:

Rio Grande do Sul State Government, Brazilian Forums for NGOs, and Social Movements for the Environment and Development, Permanent Assembly of the Entities in Defense of the Environment in Rio Grande do Sul (Apedema), and Porto Alegre City Hall".




Source: Fórum Pré-Rio + 10