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International Agreements on Sustainability
For a more updated listing of major international agreements pertaining to issues of sustainability, please visit the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs Division for Sustainable Development.

OVERRIDING ISSUES ON SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

• The Millennium Declaration and documents related to the Millennium Summit
• Documents related to the International Conference on Financing for Development, including the Monterrey Consensus
• Agreements taken by the World Summit on Sustainable Development, including theJohannesburg Declaration and theJohannesburg Plan of Implementation
• Agreements leading to the World Summit on Sustainable Development, including:
  -Documents of the Preparatory Committee for the Johannesburg Summit
  -Documents from the Secretary-General of the United Nations
  -Documents from the Secretary-General of the Johannesburg Summit
  -Documents from the Summit Secretariat
  -General Assembly Resolutions
• Documents related to Earth Summit+5: Special Session of the General Assembly to Review and Appraise the Implementation of Agenda 21
• Agreements taken by the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development, including
  - The Rio Declaration on Environment and Development
  - Agenda 21 - Global Programme of Action on Sustainable Development
  - Statement of principles for the Sustainable Management of Forests
  - Declaration of Barbados and the Programme of Action for the Sustainable Development of Small Island Developing States
  - Declaration of the United Nations Conference on the Human Environment (1972)
• Other major agreements
  -The Universal Declaration of Human Rights
  - Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women
  - UNESCO Convention Concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage
  -Convention on the Rights of the Child
  -Documents related to the United Nations Special Session on Children
  -Convention on Environmental Impact Assessment in a Transboundary Context
  -The Bejjing Declaration and Platform of Action
  -Gender, Equality, Development and Peace for the 21st century - 23rd Special Session of the General Assembly (A/RES/S-23/2)

SOCIAL ISSUES

Health

• WHO-policy Health for All in the 21st Century

Human Settlements

• The Habitat Agenda and The Istanbul Declaration on Human Settlements
• Declaration on Cities and Other Human Settlements in the New Millennium

Population

• Programme of Action of the International Conference on Population and Development (1994)
• Benchmark Indicators Adopted at the ICPD+5 Review
• Key Actions for the Further Implementation of the ICPD Programme of Action

Poverty

• The Report of the World Summit for Social Development (Copenhagen, 1995)
• Further Initiatives for Social Development - Resolution adopted at the Special Session of the General Assembly (June-July 2000)
• Resolutions and decisions adopted by the General Assembly during its 24th Special Session

ECONOMIC ISSUES

Trade and environment

• Ministerial Declaration of the Fourth WTO Ministerial Conference and related documents
• Final Act of the Uruguay Round and related agreements
  - The Marrakesh Ministerial Decision on Trade and Environment
  - WTO-document on the relationship between the provisions of the multilateral trading system and measures for environmental purposes, including those pursuant to multilateral environmental agreements
  - Further WTO-documents on trade and environment

NATURAL RESOURCES ISSUES

Agriculture and Food Security

• Rome Declaration on World Food Security and to the World Food Summit Plan of Action
• World Declaration on Nutrition - Plan of Action for Nutrition
• Declarations of the World Food Summit: Five years later and other related documents
• International Code of Conduct on the Distribution and Use of Pesticides
• Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants
• Rotterdam Convention on the Prior Informed Consent Procedure for Certain
• Hazardous Chemicals and Pesticides in International Trade

Atmosphere

• UN Framework Convention on Climate Change
• The Montreal Protocol
• Vienna Convention for the Protection of the Ozone Layer (1985)

Biological diversity

• Convention on Biological Diversity
• Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora
• Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals
• UNESCO Convention Concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage
• Convention on Wetlands of International Importance especially as Waterfowl Habitat

Desertification

• United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification in Countries Experiencing Serious Drought and/or Desertification, Particularly in Africa

Hazardous waste management

• Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and their Disposal
• Bamako Convention on the ban of the import into Africa and the control of transboundary movement and management of hazardous wastes within Africa (1991)

Nuclear Safety

• Joint Convention on the Safety of Spent Fuel Management and on the Safety of Radioactive Waste Management
• Convention on Supplementary Compensation for Nuclear Damage
• Further conventions and legal instruments under the auspices of International Atomic Energy Aagency (IAEA)
  - Convention on Early Notification of a Nuclear Accident
  - Convention on Physical Protection of Nuclear Material
  - Convention on Nuclear Safety
  - Vienna Convention on Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage
  - Joint Protocol Relating to the Application of the Vienna Convention and theParis Convention

Oceans

• UN Convention on the Law of the Sea
• IMO Conventions in the field of marine safety, preventing marine pollution
• Regional Seas Action Plans
• UN Convention on the Law of the Non-Navigational Uses of International Watercourses
• International Convention on Liability and Compensation for Damage in Connection with the Carriage of Hazardous and Noxious Substances by Sea
• Convention on Protection and Use of Transboundary Watercourses
• International Convention on Oil Pollution Preparedness, Response and Cooperation
• FAO Code of Conduct for Responsible Fisheries
• Kyoto Declaration and Plan of Action