ECI hosted two webinars on 29 June, marking the 23rd anniversary of the launch of the Earth Charter, which occurred during special ceremony at the Peace Palace, in The Hague in 2000 following a thorough consultation and drafting process that began in 1992 at the UN Earth Summit. The virtual events, organized to remember this significant date and purpose of the Earth Charter as well as to stimulate dialogue, drew participants from around the globe, including renowned environmentalists, educators, and young leaders. These webinars also underlined that this year marks the mid-point of the implementation of the 2030 Agenda, and panelists agreed that the Earth Charter principles and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) go hand in hand in global efforts contributing to planetary well-being and setting us on the path towards ecological civilizations.
The first webinar was held on Thursday, 29 June at 9AM Costa Rica time and included the participation of Jeremy Lent, author and founder of the Deep Transformation Network (UK-USA); Laura Restrepo, Special Projects Coordinator at Climate Reality Latin America and Earth Charter Young Leader (Colombia); Ricardo Young, Ethos Institute for Business and Social Responsibility (Brazil); and Akpezi Ogbuigwe, Educator and Member of the Earth Charter International Council (Nigeria). Click here to access the recording, which is freely available on ECI’s YouTube channel. This live session counted with English-Spanish translation.
A second webinar was held later that evening at 7PM Costa Rica, which allowed participants to tune in from Asia and Oceania, in addition to the Americas. The discussion panel for this stimulating conversation included Kazuo Takahashi, from the Earth Charter Study Group (Japan); Evon Ganeson, Sustainable Design Strategist & Earth Charter Youth Leader (Malaysia); Olivia Tyler, from Western Sydney University (Australia); and Mirian Vilela, Executive Director, ECI (Brazil). The panel was moderated by Joan Anderson, Soka Gakkai International (UK/Japan). The recording can be found by clicking here.
In both online events, Michael J. Bracken, Chair of ECI’s Board and council member, shared heartening reflections, and appreciation to all involved in the Earth Charter movement, in addition to inviting the audience to continue to engage with the Earth Charter and collaborate with ECI.
Some questions and perspectives addressed during the discussions included:
- What do we mean by ecological civilizations?
- What are some of the good practices in the effort of using and implementing the Earth Charter and implementing the SDGs? Particularly, what are some examples of emerging efforts towards planetary well-being and of building ecological civilizations?
- What are the relationships between the SDGs and the Earth Charter?
- What are the necessary actions we need to take to significantly accelerate our response to address the pressing challenges and build ecological civilizations? How can the Earth Charter be used in the context of a possible planetary system collapse and the possibilities to a great transition towards an ecological civilization?
ECI would like to thank all the panelists and moderators who brought in unique and interesting perspectives to address the main themes of the day, as well as the webinar attendees who enriched the discussion by contributing with their perspectives and thought-provoking questions and comments.
Click here if you would like to learn more about the history of the Earth Charter and click here to get involved and join the global movement turning conscience into action!
These webinars were organized in collaboration with the Club of Rome, Okayama University and Soka Gakkai International and as part of the activities of our UNESCO Chair on Education for Sustainable Development with the Earth Charter.