Side event: Unions Fighting Climate Change

At the second ITUC World Congress, held from June 21 -25, 2010 in Vancouver, Canada, affiliated organizations from all over the world held debates on proposals put forth from the world of work to overcome current crisis in order to choose a new direction, with an emphasis on advancing in the areas of decent work and development, climate change, and just transition.
Contributing to the discussions on climate change, Sustainlabour organized a side event “Unions Fighting Climate Change, Join us!” which Sharan Burrow, the newly elected President of the ITUC attended as a keynote speaker along with 45 other participants. The side event opened with the screening of the ITUC/Sustainlabour video Time to Tackle Climate Change, produced in the framework of the project.
View video here. Leer más...

UNEP-Sustainlabour project: After 3 fruitful years, looking ahead to more activity!

The month of June 2010 marked the closing of a three years joint UNEP- Sustainlabour project “Strengthening trade union participation in international environmental processes” as part of UNEP´s programme on Labour and the Environment, with the support of the Government of Spain. The project has proven to be an initiative of great importance, contributing not only to promoting trade union participation in international environmental processes, but also to develop a number of activities for strengthening Trade Union capacities at the local and national level.
The area of work on “Labour and Environment” that opened this programme in a pioneer manner, has acquired over time important political relevance, demonstrating the necessity to also include the world of production through workers´ organizations in the impulse of sustainability policies. Leer más...

Rio+20 Preparatory Meeting

The first preparatory meeting for Rio + 20 was also held in New York from May 17-19. Are we in a position to achieve important advances by 2012? Are we simply looking to organize just another conference? Will we be capable of elaborating integrated proposals that serve to advance each one of the sustainable development axis, or will we continue confronting economic, social and environmental interests without advancing in any of them? How can we organize ourselves from the side of the social movements so that governments understand that there is no other option in the long term, and that they will not have our support in the short term, if they do not demonstrate the necessary ambition in the form of an urgent change of the current model?
Read more on our website. Leer más...

CSD 18: Pushing for a sustainability revolution

The 18th cycle of UN´s Commission on Sustainable Development (CSD) takes place from May 3 – 14, 2010 in New York. The focus of this year´s review session is to identify and evaluate constraints in relation to the following thematic issues: Transport, Chemicals, Waste Management, Mining and the Ten-Year Framework of Programmes on Sustainable Consumption and Production Patterns. The Commission will serve as a platform to start discussions on the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development to be held in 2012 (Rio +20), preparations for which will take place immediately following the Commission’s session, from 17 to 19 May.
As in previous years, a trade union delegation coordinated by ITUC will be present. The objective for the two-week proceedings is that they be meaningful for people, for the environment and for the economy – the interrelated dimensions of sustainable development. Leer más...

Four years later: Advances and Challenges in Africa

Second Regional Trade Union African Conference on Labour and Environment – Nairobi, April 7-8, 2010.
The Second Conference we held four years after the first Conference in Johannesburg in 2006 as part of the joint UNEP-Sustainlabour Project on Labour and Environment, and hosted 45 trade union delegate participants from 19 different countries. Statements such as “…we Africans produce what we don’t eat and eat what we don’t produce” made in the first sessions of the Conference characterize the current reality in many African countries as well as the social and environmental challenges. The effects of the financial and economic crisis in Africa; informal work trends; the potential for the creation of green jobs in the continent; climate change and its effects in productive sectors – in particular agriculture; pesticides and chemical risk were some of the topics covered. This event provided a space for information-sharing on the initiatives carried out over the past four years and for analyzing the challenges for the labour movement in terms of advancing the agenda toward a socially fair and environmentally sustainable model with decent work. In addition it also served as a platform for defining steps toward strengthening trade unions´ work related to the environment at the national and regional level. Leer más...

National Training Session on Labour, Development and Environment (by the Youth group of the CTA)

The National Training Session will be taking place in Buenos Aires form 24th to 26th April, as part of the preparatory process for the National Youth Meeting. Around 30 young trade union delegates will take part from all over the country. This initiative benefits from the support of Sustainlabour. Leer más...

Accra – Training on Chemical Risk

In Africa as much as 50,000 tonnes of obsolete stockpiles of pesticides contaminate soil, water, air, and food both for domestic consumption and export (UNEP GEO 4, 2007). Statistics of poisonings cases (although usually grossly under reported) have estimated that between 46 and 84% of all poisonings in adults are attributable to occupation or the environment (WHO, 2006). While alarming, these figures reflect a reality for the African people in their workplace and daily lives. A group of 17 trade union representatives from 14 African countries (Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Burkina Faso, Senegal, Togo, Ivory Coast, Chad, Botswana, South Africa, Benin, Rwanda and Ghana) recently gathered to address the trade union agenda for the sound management of chemicals at a training event organized by ITUC Africa held in Accra from March 8-9, 2010, as part of the joint UNEP/Sustainlabour programme on Labour & Environment.
One of the objectives of this workshop was to form a regional network of unionists working in the area of chemical risk. During the training sessions of the workshop the health and environmental effects of chemical substances were outlined, relevant tools were reviewed for dealing with and reducing chemical risk at the workplace – from practical issues such as reading labels, to how to incorporate clauses and concrete measures in collective bargaining negotiations and agreements, as well as how to demand the right to information and the application of the precautionary principle in the workplace.
In addition this activity was geared toward improving knowledge of national legislations as well as international reference tools, ILO conventions, StockholmBasel and Rotterdam Conventions and SAICM (Strategic Approach to Chemicals Management). Leer más...

Preparing for Bali

The Eleventh Session of the Global Major Groups and Stakeholders Forum was held from 21-22 February 2010, prior to the 11th Special Session of the UNEP Governing Council/ Global Ministerial Environment Forum scheduled for 24-26 February 2010, in Bali, Indonesia. The forum provided a platform for civil society for exchange, consultation and strategy definition on key environmental issues to be addressed by the Member States during the governing council. The Forum was attended by some 1,000 participants from 130 countries, including nearly 100 Ministers of Environment, and the following topics were covered a) International Environmental Governance and Sustainable Development, b) The Green Economy, c) Biodiversity and Ecosystems. Leer más...

COP 15 in Copenhagen

The UNFCCC 15th Conference of the Parties on Climate Change was the biggest ever. More than 45,000 people applied to attend COP15, and even more went to Copenhagen to participate in parallel activities. It was fundamental for the international trade union movement to show its commitment to achieving a fair, ambitious and binding outcome and to raising the profile of the labour movement’s demands for a “Just Transition” when these decisions were taken.
More than 400 trade unionists attended the Conference.
Nevertheless, the Copenhagen summit has left the fight against climate change in a difficult situation. The wounds are deep and have left us with little time to think of strategies and regain strength after the defeat.
See our bulletin for more information and see here for the special post-COP issue of Outreach. Leer más...

Taking care of health and the environment at the workplace – training in Arusha

Arusha, Tanzania – Trade unionists from Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda came together to advance toward the sound management of chemicals. The event which took place from January 18 – 19, 2010 was organized by ITUC-Africa part of the joint UNEP-Sustainlabour programme on Labour and Environment.From March 8-9, 2010 in Accra, Ghana, a similar workshop will be held, this time for participants in francophone countries in Africa. Stay tuned for upcoming information.The workshop aimed to build a network of trade unionists in charge of management of chemical risk. The training session carried out focused on strengthening awareness of the health and environmental impacts of chemicals, and providing tools for addressing and reducing chemical risks at the workplace, ranging from practical information such as how to read a label, to how to include related provisions in collective agreements, or how to demand for the right to be informed and for the application of precautionary principle at the workplace.The seminar also aimed to improve knowledge on national legislations and references to international tools, ILO conventions, Stockholm, Basel and Rotterdam Conventions and SAICM (Strategic Approach to Chemicals Management). Leer más...