United Nations Conference on the Human Environment (

7/28/2019 United Nations Conference on the Human Environment (

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• An international conference convened by the United

Nations in Stockholm, Sweden from June 5 – 16, 1972

• Also known as the Stockholm Conference, it was the first

major conference on international environmental issues• It also marked the beginning of modern political and

public awareness of global environmental problems and

international environmental politics

• Attended by the representatives of 113 countries, 19inter-governmental agencies, and more than 400 inter-

governmental and non-governmental organizations



• Precursor to the 1992 United Nations Earth Summit in

Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

• Purpose: Not to discuss scientific or technological

approaches to environmental problems but to

coordinate international policy.

• The remarkable lack of divisiveness among the

participants to the conference was manifested by the

fact that a number of resolutions were passed without a

dissenting vote.



• One of the important result of the conference was the

precedent it set for international cooperation in

addressing environmental degradation.

• The nations attending agreed that they shared

responsibility for the quality of the environment,

particularly the oceans and the atmosphere, and they

signed a declaration of principles, after extensive

negotiations, concerning their obligations.

• Considered the need for a common outlook and for

common principles to inspire and guide the peoples of

the world in the preservation and enhancement of the

human environment.



• Approval of an environmental fund and an action program, whichinvolved 200 specific recommendations for addressing such

problems as global climate change, marine pollution, population

growth, the dumping of toxic wastes, and the preservation of

biodiversity.• Paved the way for the creation of UNEP, a permanent

environmental unit that was established for coordinating these

and other international efforts on behalf of the environment;

UNEP was formally approved by the General Assembly later that

same year and its base established in Nairobi, Kenya.

• This organization has not only coordinated action but monitored

research, collecting and disseminating information, and it has

played an ongoing role in international negotiations about

environmental issues.



CRITICISMS

• Women were not fully represented in the conference

(only 11 out of the 114 nations have women

representatives)

• The official conference, though valuable, had failed to

address the subjects that were most important to solving

the current environmental crisis, particularly poverty and

the so-called "ecologically sound ways of producinggoods."





Man has the fundamental right to freedom, equality andadequate conditions of life, in an environment of a

quality that permits a life of dignity and well-being, andhe bears a solemn responsibility to protect and improvethe environment for present and future generations. Inthis respect, policies promoting or perpetuatingapartheid, racial segregation, discrimination, colonial and

other forms of oppression and foreign domination standcondemned and must be eliminated.



The natural resources of the earth, including theair, water, land, flora and fauna and especially

representative samples of natural ecosystems,must be safeguarded for the benefit of presentand future generations through careful planningor management, as appropriate. (Principle of intergenerational equity)



The capacity of the earth to produce vitalrenewable resources must be maintained and,

wherever practicable, restored or improved.



Man has a special responsibility to safeguard andwisely manage the heritage of wildlife and its

habitat, which are now gravely imperiled by acombination of adverse factors. Natureconservation, including wildlife, must thereforereceive importance in planning for economicdevelopment.



The non-renewable resources of the earth mustbe employed in such a way as to guard against thedanger of their future exhaustion and to ensurethat benefits from such employment are sharedby all mankind.



The discharge of toxic substances or of othersubstances and the release of heat, in such quantities

or concentrations as to exceed the capacity of theenvironment to render them harmless, must behalted in order to ensure that serious or irreversibledamage is not inflicted upon ecosystems. The juststruggle of the peoples of ill countries againstpollution should be supported.



States shall take all possible steps to prevent pollutionof the seas by substances that are liable to create

hazards to human health, to harm living resources andmarine life, to damage amenities or to interfere withother legitimate uses of the sea.



Economic and social development is essential forensuring a favorable living and workingenvironment for man and for creating conditionson earth that are necessary for the improvement

of the quality of life.



Environmental deficiencies generated by the conditionsof under-development and natural disasters pose graveproblems and can best be remedied by accelerateddevelopment through the transfer of substantial

quantities of financial and technological assistance as asupplement to the domestic effort of the developingcountries and such timely assistance as may be required.



For the developing countries, stability of prices andadequate earnings for primary commodities and rawmaterials are essential to environmental management,since economic factors as well as ecological processes

must be taken into account.



The environmental policies of all States should enhance andnot adversely affect the present or future developmentpotential of developing countries, nor should they hamperthe attainment of better living conditions for all, and

appropriate steps should be taken by States and internationalorganizations with a view to reaching agreement on meetingthe possible national and international economicconsequences resulting from the application of

environmental measures.



Resources should be made available to preserve and improvethe environment, taking into account the circumstances andparticular requirements of developing countries and any costswhich may emanate- from their incorporating environmental

safeguards into their development planning and the need formaking available to them, upon their request, additionalinternational technical and financial assistance for thispurpose.



In order to achieve a more rational management of resourcesand thus to improve the environment, States should adopt anintegrated and coordinated approach to their developmentplanning so as to ensure that development is compatible with

the need to protect and improve environment for the benefitof their population.



Rational planning constitutes an essential tool for reconcilingany conflict between the needs of development and the needto protect and improve the environment.



Planning must be applied to human settlements andurbanization with a view to avoiding adverse effects on the

environment and obtaining maximum social, economic andenvironmental benefits for all. In this respect projects whichare designed for colonialist and racist domination must beabandoned.



Demographic policies which are without prejudice to basichuman rights and which are deemed appropriate by

Governments concerned should be applied in those regionswhere the rate of population growth or excessive populationconcentrations are likely to have adverse effects on theenvironment of the human environment and impededevelopment.



Appropriate national institutions must be entrusted withthe task of planning, managing or controlling the 9environmental resources of States with a view toenhancing environmental quality.



Science and technology, as part of their contribution to

economic and social development, must be applied to theidentification, avoidance and control of environmental risksand the solution of environmental problems and for thecommon good of mankind.



Education in environmental matters, for the youngergeneration as well as adults, giving due consideration to theunderprivileged, is essential in order to broaden the basis for

an enlightened opinion and responsible conduct byindividuals, enterprises and communities in protecting andimproving the environment in its full human dimension. It isalso essential that mass media of communications avoid

contributing to the deterioration of the environment, but, onthe contrary, disseminates information of an educationalnature on the need to project and improve the environmentin order to enable man to develop in every respect.



Scientific research and development in the context of environmental problems, both national and multinational,must be promoted in all countries, especially the developingcountries. In this connection, the free flow of up-to-datescientific information and transfer of experience must besupported and assisted, to facilitate the solution of

environmental problems; environmental technologies shouldbe made available to developing countries on terms whichwould encourage their wide dissemination withoutconstituting an economic burden on the developing

countries.



States have, in accordance with the Charter of the UnitedNations and the principles of international law, the sovereignright to exploit their own resources pursuant to their own

environmental policies, and the responsibility to ensure thatactivities within their jurisdiction or control do not causedamage to the environment of other States or of areasbeyond the limits of national jurisdiction. (Also known as the

‘no harm’ principle)



States shall cooperate to develop further the international

law regarding liability and compensation for the victims of pollution and other environmental damage caused byactivities within the jurisdiction or control of such States toareas beyond their jurisdiction. (Principle of responsibility orliability for environmental damage)



Without prejudice to such criteria as may be agreed

upon by the international community, or to standardswhich will have to be determined nationally, it will beessential in all cases to consider the systems of valuesprevailing in each country, and the extent of theapplicability of standards which are valid for the mostadvanced countries but which may be inappropriate andof unwarranted social cost for the developing countries.



International matters concerning the protection andimprovement of the environment should be handled in a

cooperative spirit by all countries, big and small, on anequal footing. Cooperation through multilateral orbilateral arrangements or other appropriate means isessential to effectively control, prevent, reduce andeliminate adverse environmental effects resulting from

activities conducted in all spheres, in such a way that dueaccount is taken of the sovereignty and interests of allStates.



States shall ensure that international organizations playa coordinated, efficient and dynamic role for theprotection and improvement of the environment.



Man and his environment must be spared the effects of nuclear weapons and all other means of massdestruction. States must strive to reach promptagreement, in the relevant international organs, on the

elimination and complete destruction of such weapons

Documents

United Nations Conference on the Human Environment (