UNECE has launched on its website the Green Economy Toolbox, a practical one-stop tool providing information and guidance on the green economy. The toolbox offers numerous UNECE tools, such as guidelines and policy recommendations, from the areas of environmental protection, energy, education, finance, housing, innovation, standards or transport to support the transformation to the green economy.
The green economy, in a nutshell, is an economy that results in a better quality of life while respecting the ecological limits of the planet and reducing social inequalities. It can be seen as a way to reconcile stronger and more resilient economies with more inclusive and sustainable societies. In this context, the green economy is at the heart of renewed efforts to advance the broader agenda of sustainable development and better integrate its economic, social and environmental pillars. As such, the green economy is seen by many as a key concept to address today’s challenges.
This transformation requires action by various stakeholders to stimulate green investments in different sectors. The choice of instruments must be tailored to the characteristics of different economies and to national priorities. There is therefore no one-size-fits-all solution for the transformation to the green economy.
This is why the UNECE Green Economy Toolbox has opted for a diversified approach. It offers tools for different stakeholders, such as Governments, businesses, academia, and non-governmental organizations. It also allows searching for different purposes, such as environmental protection, social inclusiveness and economic development, as well as sectors, such as energy, housing, health, finance, forest, transport or industry. Eventually, the toolbox contains different categories of tools, such as on legislation, norms and standards, training and measurement. Hence, the toolbox can contribute in multiple ways to achieving green economy.
The UNECE Green Economy Toolbox can be accessed at: http://www.unece.org/greeneconomywelcome/home.html
For further info, please contact:
Mr. Lukasz Wyrowski
Environmental Affairs Officer
lukasz.wyrowski[a]unece.org
or
Mr. Michael Kunz
Economic Affairs Officer
michael.kunz[a]unece.org
Note to editors
The UNECE Green Economy Toolbox has been developed by the inter-divisional Rio+20 Task Force of UNECE in response to the request of the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development (20-21 June 2012), also known as the Rio+20 Conference, to provide toolboxes and good practices for policies on greening the economy in the context of sustainable development and poverty eradication (paragraph 66 of the Rio+20 outcome document “The Future We Want”).