GLOBAL ENERGY CHARTER FOR SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT


Preamble

The World Sustainable Energy Coalition,

Considering the crucial role which energy plays in world-wide economic and social development;

Taking into account the necessity to increase energy services, particularly in developing countries;

Recognizing that sound energy policy is essential to sustainable, affordable economic and social development;

Wishing to mitigate and prevent adverse local and global impacts of energy generation, transmission and use on human health and the environment, including all living species;

Noting especially the climate implications of increased atmospheric concentrations of greenhouse gases, as established by UNEP, WMO/IPCC and WHO;

Proposes that the principles in the Global Energy Charter for Sustainable Energy Development be adopted by the United Nations as the basis for either an international Convention, or as a Protocol to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, or as an international declaration;

Proposes further that the principles in the Global Energy Charter be adopted by national governments in domestic legislation.


Objectives
  1. To act as a framework for a world energy strategy aimed at concerted international, regional and national programs for harmonious and sustainable economic and social development, in order to ensure the survival of living species;
  2. To urge governments to give the rational use of energy, energy efficiency and renewable, clean, safe and sustainable energy technologies the highest priority in national, regional and international development and implementation programs on a scale comparable to the former United States’ Apollo and Manhattan projects;
  3. To promote a plan of action to ensure that the services which energy can supply are available in sufficient quantity to all human beings to satisfy their development needs;
  4. To propose the establishment of an international energy organisation dedicated to the achievement of the Charter's objectives, through amongst other measures, research, development and commercialisation of relevant technologies, information exchange, training, consultancy, program monitoring and mobilisation of adequate financial resources.

Principles
  1. The establishment of targets, programs and other action to reduce energy-related atmospheric emissions, and the enactment by legislation of performance standards and labelling for energy services and systems, based on international best practice.
  2. The establishment of guidelines and internationally standardised methods of evaluation for determining the external effects and total lifecycle costs and risks for all energy systems, taking into account the environmental, health and other damage caused by energy-related activities.
  3. The creation of international, regional, national and local programs for energy efficiency improvements, safety controls, waste management and emissions reductions in the production, storage, transportation and consumption of all types of energy.
  4. The creation of international, regional, national and local programs for the substitution of non-renewable energy resources by environmentally benign sustainable energy technologies.
  5. Based on the guidelines established under Principle 2, the provision of a system of full-cost pricing to reflect accurately the total life-cycle social and environmental costs of energy production & consumption.
  6. The establishment by the United Nations of a sustainable energy fund to finance the use of energy efficiency improvements and the best available environmentally sound energy technologies, with special allocations set aside for developing nations.
  7. The promotion and monitoring of the principles and implementation strategies under the Global Energy Charter for Sustainable Energy Development and the development of new financial instruments and investment mechanisms, involving both the private and public sectors.
  8. The promotion of worldwide cooperation and exchange of technology, expertise, education, training programs, information and statistics on the best available environmentally sound energy technologies, energy efficiency, performance standards, safety codes, methods of energy costing and means of internalizing external costs.


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For comments, suggestions and enquiries about the Global Energy Charter for Sustainable Energy Development and the World Sustainable Energy Coalition, please contact the Central Secretariat of:

 

Cercle mondial du consensus, World Circle of the Consensus, Weltkreis des Konsens

CMDC, POB 200, CH 1211 Geneva 20, Switzerland
Phone: +41-22-910-3006, Fax: +41-22-910-3014, e-mail: info@cmdc.net