7 May 2013: Participants at the Third Global Meeting of the International Dialogue on Peacebuilding and Statebuilding (IDPS) have issued 'The Washington Communique,' appealing to the UN High-level Panel on the Post-2015 Development Agenda (HLP) to tackle conflict and fragility.
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The Russian Federation has set as the objective of its 2013 Presidency of the Group of 20 (G20): developing a set of measures aimed at boosting sustainable, inclusive and balanced growth and jobs creation around the world. The G20 will look at eight areas in particular in 2013: framework for strong, sustainable and balanced growth; jobs and employment; international financial architecture reform; strengthening financial regulation; energy sustainability; development for all; enhancing multilateral trade; and fighting corruption. The G20 brings together finance ministers and central bank governors from 19 countries - Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Turkey, the UK and the US - plus the EU. The G20 Leaders Summit in September 2013 is preceded by a series of outreach events organized in five streams: think tanks; business; labour; civil society and youth.
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8 May 2013: The SEED Initiative has launched its 2013 SEED Awards, calling for entries from start-up entrepreneurs that aim to generate environmental, social and economic benefits at the local level, including climate change mitigation and adaptation, in developing countries, least developed countries (LDCs), or emerging economies.
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10 May 2013: The 11th meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and their Disposal (BC COP11), the sixth meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Rotterdam Convention on the Prior Informed Consent (PIC) Procedure for Certain Hazardous Chemicals and Pesticides in International Trade (RC COP6), the sixth meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) (SC COP6), and the second simultaneous extraordinary meetings of the Conferences of the Parties to the three conventions (ExCOPs2) convened from 28 April-10 May 2013, in Geneva, Switzerland. Over 1000 participants, including over 80 ministers, attended the meetings.
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9 May 2013: The Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR) in Bogor, Indonesia, has released a working paper that examines policies for Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD+) benefit-sharing mechanisms in 13 countries.
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The third LatinoSan is organized by the Panamanian Government with support from the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), the World Bank, the Swiss Cooperation and the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (AECID). It will examine the current state and future prospects for sanitation in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC), focusing on emerging challenges and opportunities, and consider the creation of a mechanism to follow-up the commitments made at LatinoSan 2007 and 2010 conferences. On this last point, conference organizers hope to win endorsement in a Declaration of Panama for the idea of creating a Pro-tempore Regional Secretariat for Sanitation.
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29 April 2013: The 11th meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Basel Convention (BC COP 11), the sixth meeting of the Rotterdam Convention COP (RC COP 6), the sixth meeting of the Stockholm Convention COP (SC COP 6) and the second simultaneous extraordinary meetings of the COPs to the three conventions (ExCOPs 2) are convening back-to-back in Geneva, Switzerland.
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The 2013 AMR section of the annual Substantive Session of the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) will consider the theme "Science, technology and innovation (STI) and culture for sustainable development and the MDGs". This event will seek to highlight the role of science, technology and innovation, and the potential of culture – and related national and international policies – in promoting sustainable development and achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). Regional preparatory meetings are being organized to prepare for the session.
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The Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) holds short sessions, ad hoc meetings, round tables and panel discussions throughout the year, to prepare for its annual four week substantive session in July. The 2013 meeting will convene from 1-25 July, in Geneva, Switzerland, and will consist of the following segments: High-level Segment, including the Annual Ministerial Review (1-4 July); Coordination Segment (5-9 July); Operational Activities Segment (10-12 July); Humanitarian Affairs Segment (15-17 July); and General Segment (18-25 July).
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26 April 2013: At its meeting in Rome, Italy, the governing Council of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO) approved strategies related to strengthening FAO partnerships with civil society organizations and with the private sector.
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