Check against delivery
Thank you for the invitation to speak at the 21st Global Major Groups and Stakeholders Forum, and to co-chairs Dalia Mrquez and Frankie Orona for their leadership.
This is an essential and inclusive gathering of global voices. A gathering that is of critical importance to both UNEP and the United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA). This constituency grows every year, now with over 1,300 accredited major groups and stakeholder organizations. Your voices are more numerous, they are louder and I assure you that they are heard.
UNEA-7 is convening at the end of a year that has delivered some tentative progress on the environmental challenges facing the world including the entry into force of the BBNJ Agreement on the sustainable use of marine biodiversity in areas beyond national jurisdiction and the new science-policy panel on chemicals, waste and pollution prevention that was gavelled earlier this year in Uruguay a historic moment that major groups supported and witnessed in Punta del Este.
But, against a challenging political backdrop, this year has not delivered enough. The rise in average global temperatures will likely exceed 1.5C within the next decade. Ecosystems are disappearing and land is degrading. Toxins continue to pollute our air, water and land and here I acknowledge the frustration many of you feel at the talks on an instrument to end plastic pollution not concluding this year. Countries remain at the table, and our work continues. I count on your ongoing strong presence in this process so that, together, we can deliver on our promise to beat plastic pollution, once and for all.
You, more than most, understand the impacts. The lives and livelihoods lost from floods, storms and droughts. The destruction of lands and forests that hold huge economic and cultural importance. The injustice and inequity. Many of you are here to speak on behalf of the people who have suffered. We know that we owe it to these people to deliver on the UNEA-7 theme of Advancing sustainable solutions for a resilient planet.
These solutions do exist and many of them are presented in UNEPs Seventh Global Environment Outlook, which you will review at this gathering ahead of its release next week. Many of these solutions have also been under consideration at Open-Ended Committee of Permanent Representatives this week, with 18 draft decisions and resolutions going forward to UNEA-7 including on AI, on minerals and metals, and on issues related to the hydrological cycle. We all look forward to hearing your valuable input on these resolutions.
However, UNEA-7 is more than just a set of resolutions. It is about sustainability. Intergenerational rights. Justice. Gender equality. Respecting Indigenous Peoples as rights holders.
This Assembly is also taking place as we look, including in the context of UN80, at how to improve inclusive multilateralism and how to increase coordination, efficiencies and synergies to strengthen the implementation of Multilateral Environmental Agreements (MEAs) with the second dedicated day on MEAs taking place next week.
A chief goal of this reform is to better meet the rising global demand for solutions that are equitable and resilient. To put the needs of those communities and ecosystems most exposed to risk front at centre. To ensure a truly just transition. You have spoken loud and clear on these issues, and I assure you that we are absolutely aligned: for the UN and multilateralism to move forward, we need to take a whole-of society approach.
We need diverse perspectives. From business and industry. Children and youth. Farmers. Indigenous Peoples and their communities. Local Authorities. Non-governmental organizations. The scientific and technological community. Women. Workers and Trade Unions. In short, we need you all. Not just to shape decisions and solutions. But to take these solutions out into the real world and implement them. Rest assured that UNEP remains steadfast in its commitment to safeguarding and advancing civic space so that all your voices can be heard.
Friends,
As UNEA-7 convenes, the contributions of Major Groups and Stakeholders will be pivotal in translating high-level commitments into concrete, equitable and lasting environmental action. The Joint Global Statement is a cornerstone contribution reflecting your priorities, highlighting your concerns, and communicating your expectations.
UNEP and UNEA would not be the same without you. So, I thank you again for all your contributions past, present and future and look forward to working with you to ensure that the voices of those who shoulder the heaviest burdens of environmental harm remain visible, respected and influential throughout UNEA-7 and other international processes.
