Rachel Mash is the Environmental Coordinator of the Anglican Church of Southern Africa. This week, she’s been representing Anglican voices at the UN Environmental Assembly (UNEA6) meeting in Nairobi, Kenya.
UNEA discusses the triple planetary crisis of climate change, biodiversity loss and pollution. The United Nations Environment Assembly is the only forum in which the world’s countries discuss the environmental crisis as a whole.
At the end of the UNEA6 meeting in Nairobi, she shared how the UNEA works and how Anglicans are able to influence discussions.
What is it like to take part in a UNEA meeting and how does it work?
When I first attended the UN environmental assembly in Nairobi, I was completely confused! It feels like you are swimming in alphabet soup – there’s a COW (Council of the Whole), there’s the MGS (Major Groups and Stakeholders) and a whole host of acronyms which flow off everyone’s tongues! But after a while you begin to understand a bit more about how the process works.
How are decisions made?
Imagine a very large Synod or Parliament made up of 193 members, some of which are literally at war with each other, who come together to pass resolutions. Now the difference between the UN and a Synod or Parliament is that decisions are made by consensus, not by majority, which means that all Member States must agree.
How do resolutions by consensus work?
When you adopt resolutions by a vote, you can divide the global community into two sides. With resolutions by consensus, you have to take into account the viewpoint of everyone. When you adopt resolutions by a vote, you only need to get a majority to agree on the text of a resolution. You do not need to care about or try to understand the perspectives of the minority who disagree. This process could end up dividing an already divided world further along fault lines. Of course, the danger is that anything contentious gets removed and a powerful resolution may get watered right down.
How are resolutions developed?
Member States propose resolutions and there is a long process of negotiating and trying to get the nations who disagree to come to the table. The majority of the work on the wording of the resolutions takes place months in advance – and in particular during what is called the Open Ended Committee of Permanent Representatives. Member states also contribute online and work on the wording of the resolutions before they are tabled at the Assembly.
What’s it like when a resolution gets passed?
Getting consensus on the resolutions is an exhausting process where negotiators work late into the night – and discussions often seem to be going in circles.
After months of hard work there are those moments of absolute excitement in the room when important resolutions are finally passed.
This happened at the last Assembly (UNEA-5), when a legally binding International Resolution was made on Plastic Pollution. It was a lifetime opportunity to really make a huge difference on how we produce and manage plastic waste.
During UNEA6, you have been representing Anglican voices and the role of Civil Society in environmental change. What has that involved and how do you influence the discussions?
The Anglican Consultative Council form part of the NGOs Major Group. Within that group there are 93 registered faith-based organisations. During UNEA6, this group has been part of the Civil Society contribution to the Assembly.
The role of Civil society is much more clearly recognised in the Assembly than in many other of the other UN processes. Civil society participation is managed through the ‘Major Groups and Stakeholders’ which include NGOS, Women’s groups, Indigenous groups, Youth and Children etc. Over one thousand organisations are registered members now.
The Major groups are allowed to sit in the negotiating rooms and have some opportunities to raise their points. They are not allowed to suggest changes to texts, but can speak on the side to countries (Member States) and ask them to put in text change suggestions.
What changes have you seen and why is participation important?
At the last UNEA, the Christian charity Tearfund asked a Member State to include a mention of “waste pickers” (people who collect and manage our waste and are so often forgotten in our discussions about the environment) in one of the resolutions. The Member State accepted and the recognition of waste pickers remains. Major Groups also make formal statements to the whole Assembly.
This year we were able to influence the wording of the statement made by the Major Groups and Stakeholders to address the root causes of the Triple Planetary crisis to include a focus on overconsumption, materialism, greed, and a “throw away” culture, but also the hope that we can rethink our relationship to the multiple interconnected strands that weave the web of our natural environment, and leave succeeding generations with a healthy, clean planet that can meet their needs. We included a quotation from Anglican Māori and Pacific leaders and drew attention to issues affecting our Anglican communities worldwide, including the need to reduce plastic production (not simply manage plastic waste better), to pay more attention to the hazardous impact of ‘nurdles’ (tiny building blocks for plastic products often transported loosely and ending up in our waterways), and the damage done to old forests (major natural stores of carbon that limit global warming) in order to produce pellets for fuel. Read the full statement of the Major Groups and Stakeholders.
We support the work towards a Plastic Treaty but note the lack of progress and also the concern that the trajectory for plastic is an increase in use as the petroleum industries seek new outlets for oil production. We reject the concept that the life cycle of plastic begins when they are discarded, in fact, the life cycle of plastic begins with the oil from which they are made. Therefore, the focus on limiting production should be strengthened, to thus reduce the plastic in circulation. We need to address the lifecycle from production to disposal - within the circular economy framework. We note the danger of nurdles – they should be listed as hazardous during transportation.
As well as the formal negotiations about resolutions, there is a lot going on with over 5000 people present. UNEA is an opportunity for civil society to learn, network and share knowledge and potential solutions. It is an event for inspirational talks and knowledge exchange about scientific policy. There is a huge and somewhat overwhelming number of different side events to choose from and it is a wonderful opportunity to develop relationships with others.
I also presented at a side event organised by the Catholic Youth Network for Sustainability in Africa, drawing attention to the power of global networks of faith in sharing with leaders at events like UNEA the experiences of communities in some of the hardest-to-reach places, in displacement camps and in rural villages. I spoke about the Christian faith giving hope of a renewal of this earth about the importance of women in the environmental movement. It is often women, particularly in rural areas, who suffer disproportionately from the impact of climate change, pollution and environmental degradation, and as it is often women who have a creative vision for nurturing and life-giving potential of nature.
How can Anglicans get involved?
Now that most events are hybrid you can watch recordings of the high level events online with UN Web TV.
The Anglican Communion advocacy on environmental issues is championed by a number of teams. Sign up to receive the Anglican Communion Environment Network’s monthly digest.
The Anglican Communion’s UN Team represent Anglican voices in a number of UN discussions. The Anglican Communion Environmental Network is also active on ongoing environmental campaigning and activism. Sign up to receive the UN newsletter.