The United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development (UNCSD) opened in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, against a background of distressing data published by the UN, according to which the demand for food in the world is to double by 2030, and the demand for energy is to skyrocket by 45%, which would severely strain resources. World leaders and Heads of State will be preparing a document at the conference to establish guidelines for sustainable development of the planet and its resources in the future. The President of Brazil, Dilma Rousseff, who opened the conference this week, called upon all the nations of the world to commit to reaching an accord on the pressing issues.
The Rio +20 Conference marks twenty years since the 1992 UN Conference on Environment and Development , which also took place in Rio, and at which some of the most important international agreements for environmental protection were approved, foremost of them the accords on global warming prevention and on biodiversity protection. The UN has defined the main goal of Rio +20 as the formation of a strategy for “a green economy in the context of sustainable development and poverty eradication.”
KKL-JNF at the Israel Booth at Rio +20 Conference
For the opening of the conference, the government of Brazil scheduled four days of panels and presentations focused on specific topics, as well as open forums on sustainable development. The delegation from Israel is already at the conference and includes a KKL-JNF delegation that is participating in the principal discussions and manning the Israel – KKL-JNF booth, which is located in the Athletes Park area and will be operating from June 13 to 24.
The Israel – KKL-JNF booth at the UNCSD presents Israel’s contribution to sustainable development, including KKL-JNF projects involving issues on the conference agenda. The booth has received many guests, including government representatives, NGO representatives and citizens of Brazil.
Among the visitors was Kgomotso Abi, Secretary of the Botswana Ministry of Minerals, Energy and Water, who expressed a great deal of interest in KKL-JNF projects that are related to the water issue. The Secretary also proposed the possibility of future cooperation with KKL-JNF. People from Corsan also displayed interest in KKL-JNF's water works. Corsan is a Brazilian company that works with the local government of Rio Grande del Sur for the benefit of more than seven million Brazilian gauchos.
KKL-JNF Promotes Care for the Environment
KKL-JNF's participation at Rio+20 is consistent with its policy and that of its offices worldwide of displaying its environmental achievements at international conferences and showcasing a face of Israel very different from that usually portrayed in the media. As part of this effort, JNF USA focuses on showing how Israel is changing the world for the better. It promotes Israel's status as a global leader in renewable energy and agricultural innovation that improve quality of life all over the world.
Examples of Israel's cutting-edge technology include the invention of drip irrigation, which accounts for significant water conservation all over the world, and astounding hydrological methods that enable crops to grow in the most arid areas, an achievement spearheaded by KKL-JNF.
