The trade unions make themselves heard during the CSD

Sustainlabour actively participated in the 17thssion of the United Nations Commission on Sustainable Development (CSD) which took place in New York City from the 4th the 15th of may. During this session, the focus was on Africa, agriculture, droughts and desertification, among others. The trade union movement, with 24 delegates from 14 countries, insisted on the need to include key issues into the debate: the need to protect and give a voice to agriculture workers, the need for a right to food, or the urgency to promote social protection and decent work in rural areas in order to advance towards a more sustainable agriculture.
Sustainlabour and the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) organized an event on the 11th May entitled “In the context of a multiple crisis (food, labor, financial, climatic): a new global compromise on agriculture?”. 40 delegates, of which a number of governmental representatives, took part in the workshop. Speakers included Danila Boneba, the United Nations rapporteur on the right to Food, and Katishi Masemole, general secretary of COSATU, among others. The director of Sustainlabour, Laura Martin (who also made a presentation) and Anabella Rosemberg of the ITUC were present at the meeting.