COUNCIL REPORT Agenda Item 5.13
27 November 2003 ICLEI WORLD CONGRESS 2003
Committee Environment, Sustainability and Indigenous Affairs
Presenter Cr Risstrom
Purpose
1. To report on the key outcomes for Council arising from the International Council for Local Environmental Initiatives World Congress held in Athens from 3-7 November 2003.
Recommendation
2. That Council note this report.
Council Report Attachment: 1. Environment, Sustainability and Indigenous Affairs Committee, Agenda Item 3.8, 20 November 2003 ENVIRONMENT, SUSTAINABILITY AND Agenda Item 3.8 INDIGENOUS AFFAIRS COMMITTEE REPORT
20 November 2003 ICLEI WORLD CONGRESS 2003
Division Sustainable Development & Strategy
Presenter Robyn Leeson, Manager Environmentally Sustainable Development
Purpose
1. To report on the key outcomes for Council arising from the International Council for Local Environmental Initiatives (ICLEI) World Congress held in Athens from 3 - 7 November 2003.
Background
1. The objectives of the World Congress are to:
1.1. exchange information on challenges experienced and successes achieved by local governments in the area of sustainable development;
1.2. evaluate strategies to accelerate local action in this area;
1.3. develop specific programs to advance such strategies and commitments; and
1.4. input into the development of the ICLEI Strategic Plan 2004 – 2009.
2. The World Congress is organised by ICLEI and attendance is by invitation only. Councillor Risstrom was invited in his capacities as:
2.1. a member of the ICLEI Executive and Management Committee; and
2.2. the leader of the ICLEI – Australia/New Zealand delegation.
3. Councillor Risstrom and Robyn Leeson attended the Congress on behalf of Council. Travel was endorsed by Council’s Travel Committee.
Issues
Invited contributions
4. Three presentations were delivered to the floor of the Congress on behalf of Council:
4.1. Letting the Sunshine In: Using Renewable Energy in Melbourne which outlined Council’s greenhouse gas reduction program and key renewable energy projects such as the Queen Victoria Market Photovoltaic Project and Council House 2. The paper was presented to a session on the Cities for Climate Protection program.
4.2. The Business of Local Government: Managing for Sustainability Using Triple Bottom Line was presented to a session on managing for sustainability. The paper featured Council’s planning model and business approach which uses triple bottom line.
1 4.3. Some Experiences from Sydney: Greening the Olympic Games 2000 which was presented to a session on Greening Events. The presentation outlined some of the lessons learned from the Sydney Olympics and preparations Melbourne is making for the Commonwealth Games in 2006.
5. Cr Risstrom was invited to contribute to a local government consultation of the Cardoso Panel which is the United Nations Secretary-General’s High Level Panel on Civil Society. The Panel emphasises an open, transparent and consultative process and seeks to improve the interaction between civil society and the United Nations. Cr Risstrom highlighted the need for a focus on global common goods, security through cooperation and the role local government can play as a conduit between communities and the United Nations.
6. Cr Risstrom was invited to present “The Athens Call” to a meeting of cities (including the Coalition of 21 Greek Cities) in the Chamber of the Athens Town Hall. The Athens Call was a key outcome of the Congress session on Greening Events which heard experiences and advice from cities involved in staging large events including the Olympic Games. The cities present endorsed the Athens Call.
Key strategic outcomes
7. Cr Risstrom was elected Vice-President of ICLEI and Asia-Pacific Regional Chair at the meeting of ICLEI’s Executive Committee. Such a level of representation will assist Council in progressing its environmental objectives and also increase the contribution to ICLEI from the region.
8. The Melbourne Principles featured in the keynote address by Dr. Klaus Topfer, Executive Director of the United Nations Environment Programme. The Principles (refer to Attachment 1) were presented by the Lord Mayor to the floor of the World Summit on Sustainable Development last year. The Principles were endorsed by the Summit and are reflected in Local Action 21, the working document for local government. The Principles were also the subject of a joint paper by Environment Canada and the Victorian EPA on the need for principles in the pursuit of sustainability by local governments. As a result, the City of Melbourne is involved in further discussions with the State Government, the Canadian Government, UNEP and ICLEI on the ongoing development of the Principles.
9. Robyn Leeson attended a briefing session for cities which have formally expressed interest in bidding to host the next ICLEI Congress in 2006. The criteria outlined by ICLEI place the City of Melbourne in a strong position to be successful in its bid. This was enhanced by a physical presence at the Congress and the ability to discuss and elaborate on Council’s environmental achievements as well as its unique ability to host a successful international meeting.
10. The City of Melbourne stall in the ICLEI “Market Place” was well attended and prompted a lot of interest from delegates. The stall was stocked with key publications and profiled both our key environmental projects as well as profiling the city as a destination.
11. In addition to the profiling opportunities afforded by pre-arranged presentations and discussions, attendance at the ICLEI World Congress offered a number of other opportunities to the City of Melbourne.
11.1. the Congress papers offered a unique opportunity to exchange best practices with other local governments and to learn from others (eg. Energy conservation programs in Copenhagen);
11.2. key contacts were made with other cities that may result in future partnerships (eg Vancouver’s Cities PLUS initiative); and
11.3. contact was made with staff from the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) regarding the public sector supplement. There is strong interest in Council making a contribution to the development of public sector sustainability reporting at an international level.
2 Finance
12. The cost of accommodation and conference registration for Councillor Risstrom was borne by the Congress organisers. The cost to the City of Melbourne of $6,800 included travel expenses for Dr. Leeson, exhibition space, preparation of publications and incidental expenses.
Legal
13. This report is for information only and no legal consequences arise.
Sustainability
Connected and Accessible City
14. There are no significant impacts arising from this report.
Inclusive and Engaging City
15. There are no significant impacts arising from this report.
Innovative and Vital Business City
16. Representation at the Congress may result in the success of Council’s bid to host the Congress in 2006. If this is the case, the city’s businesses will benefit from the event through increased patronage by delegates. (eg most directly hotels, conference venues, restaurants and translation services)
Environmentally Responsible City
17. Travel to the Congress resulted in greenhouse gas emissions.
Recommendation
18. That the Environment, Sustainability and Indigenous Affairs Committee receive this report.
Attachment: 1. The Melbourne Principles for Sustainable Cities 3 Attachment 1 Agenda Item 3.8 Environment, Sustainability and Indigenous Affairs Committee 20 November 2003
THE MELBOURNE PRINCIPLES FOR SUSTAINABLE CITIES
Principle 1
Provide a long term vision for cities based on sustainability.
Clarification of Principle 1
A farsighted vision that addresses the sustainability is the starting point for catalysing long term change towards this outcome.
The vision should express the shared aspirations of cities that wish to become more sustainable.
A sustainability vision will help align and motivate communities, governments, businesses and others around a common purpose, and provide a basis for developing a strategy, action program and processes to achieve that vision.
Principle 2
Empower people and foster participation and inter-generational equity.
Clarification of Principle 2
People have a right to be involved in the decisions that affect them, and they add value to the final outcome.
The journey towards sustainability needs the support of all, and attention needs to be given to empowering those whose voices are not always heard, such as the poor.
This approach also allow for the mobilisation of local resources as well as the early and active participation of all in long term planning and implementation.
Empowering people will provide access to local knowledge, which is important in identifying issues and yielding solutions.
Equity means equal opportunity in accessing both natural and human services, and ensuring that natural and human capital is not degraded for future generations.
Principle 3
Recognise and build on the characteristics of cities including their human, cultural, historic and natural systems.
Clarification of Principle 3
Cities have specific human, cultural, historic and natural characteristic that provide insights on compatible and acceptable pathways to sustainability.
Building on existing characteristics facilities the motivation and mobilisation of human and physical resources of cities to achieve sustainable development and regeneration.
1 Principle 4
Build on the characteristics of ecosystems.
Clarification of Principle 4
Adopting features of natural ecosystems as a model for urban processes can assist cities become more sustainable.
The characteristics of ecosystems include diversity, adaptiveness, interconnectedness, resiliency, regenerative capacity and symbiosis.
Principle 5
Achieve long term economic and social security.
Clarification of Principle 5
Long term economic and social security are pre-requisites for change, and are part of triple bottom line sustainability.
Unless ecological sustainable development is actively pursued, prosperity and social stability will be undermined.
Principle 6
Expand and enable cooperative networks to work towards a common sustainable future.
Clarification of Principle 6
Strengthening existing networks, and the establishment of new cooperative networks both within cities and between cities will facilitate the transfer of knowledge and facilitate continual environmental improvement.
Inhabitants of cities are the key drivers to transforming them towards sustainability. This can be achieved effectively if the inhabitants of cities are well informed, can easily access knowledge and share learning.
There is also value in cities sharing with others their learning, pooling resources to develop sustainability tools and supporting and mentoring one another through inter-city and regional networks. These will provide a vehicle for information exchange and collective effort.
Principle 7
Enable communities to minimise their ecological footprint.
Clarification of Principle 7
Cities draw in a significant quantity of resources and have a significant impact on the environment, well beyond what they can handle within their borders. These unsustainable trends need to be substantially curbed and eventually reversed.
A convenient way to represent the impact of a city is to measure its ecological footprint. The ecological footprint of a city is a measure of the 'load' imposed by its population on nature. It represents the land area necessary to sustain current levels of resource consumption and waste discharged by that population.
2 Decisions, based on an understanding of their consequences on a city’s ecological footprint, should aim to reduce it wherever practical, both within and outside its boundaries. This requires new ways of thinking and dealing with the metabolism of cities.
Principle 8
Enable continual improvement, accountability and transparency.
Clarification of Principle 8
Good urban governance needs to be based on robust processes directed to achieving the transformation of cities to sustainability through continual improvement.
To manage the continual improvement cycle it is necessary to use relevant indicators to provide baselines allowing progress against milestones to be monitored and cities to benchmark themselves against one another. This facilities accountability, and ensures effective implementation.
Transparency and openness to scrutiny are part of good environmental governance.
Principle 9
Require effective demand management and appropriate use of environmentally sound technologies for cities.
Clarification of Principle 9
A range of approaches and tools can be used to assist cities adopt sustainable practices.
Demand management is a valuable strategy to support sustainable consumption. Part of this approach is to ensure that natural resources are accurately valued, so that the market can make rational economic and environmental decisions.
The adoptions and use of environmentally sound technologies has the potential to significantly improve environmental performance. These technologies protect the environment, are less polluting, use resources in a sustainable manner, recycle more of their wastes and products, and handle all residual wastes in a more environmentally acceptable way than the technologies for which they are substitutes.
Evaluation tools like life cycle assessment can be used to inform decisions, drive reduced impacts over the whole value chain and support businesses embracing product stewardship.
Principle 10
Recognise the intrinsic value of biodiversity and natural ecosystems and their protection and restoration.
Clarification of Principle 10
Nature is something more than a commodity for the benefit of humans. We share the Earth with many other life-forms that have their own intrinsic value. They warrant our respect, whether or not they are of immediate benefit to us.
Just as humans have the ability to alter the habitat and threaten the viability of other species we can also protect biodiversity. Therefore we have a responsibility to act as custodians for nature.
3 Agenda Item 3.8 Environment, Sustainability and Indigenous Affairs Committee 20 November 2003
FINANCE ATTACHMENT
ICLEI WORLD CONGRESS 2003
Funding of $34,400 has been provided in the 2003/04 Budget for administration expenses in Environmentally Sustainable Development Branch to cover conferences, travel and general administration expenditure.
Joe Groher Manager Financial Services Agenda Item 3.8 Environment, Sustainability and Indigenous Affairs Committee 20 November 2003
LEGAL ATTACHMENT
ICLEI WORLD CONGRESS 2003
The report is for the Committee’s information only. Under Schedule 1 of the Local Government Act 1989 ("the Act") Council functions include:
" 7. Any other functions relating to the peace, order and good government of the municipal
district including -
(7) Encouragement of commerce, industry and agriculture;
(8) Environment control, protection and conservation;"
The work of the Council in relation to the ICLEI is consistent with Council’s powers, duties and functions.
Brigid Ryan Acting Manager Governance Services