History of Dialogue Related to

history of Dialogue Related to
U.S. Government Commitment to Sustainable Forest / Resource Management

(Updated October 2002 by Ruth McWilliams of the USDA-Forest Service)

1968 International Conference for Rational Use and Conservation of the Biosphere (Paris, France)
United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) held pioneering event for discussing ecologically sustainable development.

1972 United Nations Conference on the Human Environment (Stockholm, Sweden; known as Stockholm Conference)
Addressed economic and environmental issues.  
Led to United Nations Environment Program (UNEP)—mission is “to provide leadership and encourage partnership in caring for the environment by inspiring, informing, and enabling nations and peoples to improve their quality of life without compromising that of future generations.”

1983 World Commission on Environment and Development (known as Brundtland Commission)
Prime Minister of Norway (Gro Harlem Brundtland) asked by Secretary General of United Nations to lead a special commission.
Addressed how the world community could:
• Develop a long-term environmental strategy for achieving sustainable development by the year 2000 and beyond.
• Define a shared perception of long-term environmental issues and appropriate efforts to deal with them effectively.

1984 International Conference on Environment and Economics (OECD)
Concluded that environment and economics should be mutually reinforcing.   Helped shape Our Common Future (see below).

1987 Our Common Future (also known as Brundtland Report)
Published report of the World Commission on Environment and Development popularized term ‘sustainable development.’
Defined ‘sustainable development’ as “…development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.”

1992 United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; known as Earth Summit)... [continues]

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