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Newsletter No. 2, January 2002Summit date The UN General Assembly has changed the dates for the Johannesburg Summit. The Summit will now begin on Monday, 26 August 2002 and conclude on Wednesday, 4 September. The high level segment involving the meeting of world leaders will take place during the last three days from 2-4 September 2002. For overall Summit preparation news and updates refer to the IISD website www.iisd.ca Multi-stakeholder debates The dates for the stakeholder dialogues scheduled for the second PrepCom in New York 28 January – 8 February have been changed and now span three days:
Representatives from BASD, ICC and the WBCSD will be present to convey the ‘business message’. Please see the attached guidelines for business delegates attending the PrepCom II. For the latest updates refer to the Johannesburg Summit website www.johannesburgsummit.org. Business Day BASD will organise a high profile ‘business day’ aiming to bring together leaders from business, government and civil society to express commitments and initiatives in line with the agenda and main objectives of the Summit. A Task Force has now been formed to further develop the idea and shape the agenda of the ‘business day’. A revised concept paper (7 January) has been posted on the BASD website and is available for review and comments by 21 January. Organisers agreed that the Business Day should be held on Sunday, 01 September 2002. This places it at the end of the first week and one day before heads of state and government meet. This date offers the best opportunity for attracting high profile leaders from all sectors of society. The proposed programme is organised into four plenary sessions including keynote addresses and panel sessions. Each panel discussion will address a different sustainable development theme - we encourage your input. Initiatives BASD will soon display initiatives and relevant links on its website for continuous development in the lead up to the Summit. Coming soon on this website! 'Virtual' Exhibition The plans for a ‘virtual exhibition' are being refined, but the concept remains the same: as a screen-based 'virtual' exhibition of best practices, initiatives and projects. It is intended as a continuous presentation in Johannesburg – centrally located in the main conference centre, in exhibition halls and around the city - with screens displaying 'live' and 'prepared' presentations including interactive web pages of sustainable development initiatives and projects from around the world. The main challenge to realising such an exhibit is to identify a technical/media partner, which can offer the technology and expertise to enable such a display. Assistance with identifying such a partner(s) would be greatly appreciated. The concept paper is available for your review. Physical Exhibition As we have mentioned previously, the South African Government is planning a 'physical' exhibition. The exhibition will be tailored more towards NGOs and focus primarily on cultural and social matters as opposed to what was originally proposed to be a technological exhibit. The exhibition will be housed outside the summit grounds in a park so that it is available to all. Legacy Projects The idea of legacy projects has now been formalised in a paper co-signed by the Business Co-ordinating Forum of South Africa (BCF) and ESKOM - in collaboration with the SA Environment Ministry. The proposed legacy projects have been organised under three main clusters:
BASD fully supports the idea that the Summit should leave a lasting legacy. Such projects actually offer business a concrete and sustainable way of contributing to the summit. Many of the projects fit in well with normal business social development aims, but if you have a legacy project idea in the African region, please let us know. A two-page concept paper will be prepared and posted on the website so please continue checking the BASD website. Hotel Booking The latest intelligence indicates that all hotel room bookings for the Johannesburg Summit must be done through an agency. The booking system will be carried out over the internet and is projected to be online sometime in the next 2 weeks. Please refer to the letter from the booking agency. There will be priority booking for 4 days for those who have had early contact with the booking agency. Everyone who receives this email has been added to the notification list for reservations and will receive information directly from the booking agency. BASD will also notify all business constituents through its network and will place on the BASD website all information as soon as it becomes available. Other News? Visit the BASD web site for update information on the PrepComs, the Secretary General's report, funding issues and budget relief items, and a summit event timeline. Also of interest are: Sir Mark’s letter to the editor of the Financial Times, and an article on Sir Mark’s appointment to the Global Compact Advisory Board. Contacts Eric Beynon |
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