Working Towards a Balanced and Inclusive Green Economy: A United Nations System-wide Perspective

This report builds on the statement of June 2009 by United Nations entities on the “Green Economy: A Transformation to Address Multiple Crises” and provides a common reference for United Nations agencies on the meaning and implications of a green economy approach including the possibilities such an approach brings in terms of improved public-private collaboration. It highlights key messages from our evolving understanding of what is required to meet current economic and resource challenges. This includes the message that a green economy has to be a people-centered economy. The sustainable use of our natural resource base is inherently about improving the daily lives of billions of people, including those living in poverty, those who are unemployed, the working poor and youth.Conserving and reinvesting in the world’s ecological infrastructure is not simply a goal in itself. It is about the pragmatic realization that our current models are undermining the very resource base of our societies. There is ample evidence today that business as usual is simply not an option for the decades and generations to come.The report also highlights the fact that policies and policy mixes need to be reoriented and implemented better. The need for regulatory reform is evident, ensuring that market signals are better aligned with the sustainability imperative.