Study Guide - World Model United Nations

Carbon emissions are an issue that much of the world is concerned with. This image shows the emission levels by
continent. http://www.grida.no/images/pubs/msv/ch1-fig1-550px.JPG
needs and voices of the small island developing nations.
In 2002, Johannesburg, South Africa hosted a World
Summit on Sustainable Development. At this meeting,
the unique presence of the small island developing nations
was highlighted, with a renewed focus on ensuring
that these nations are able to develop substantially.
A subsequent meeting in Mauritius in 2005 focused
on the relationship between the environment and the
development needs of SID nations. Discussion at this
meeting highlighted the huge impact that the climate
and weather can have in nearly all aspects of life in SID
nations, and revolved around how to better mitigate
problems that climate change occurrences can pose to
development. There was general recognition that these
nations have begun to depend heavily on tourism as a
main source of revenue. Therefore, one of the main issues
discussed in this meeting was how to ensure that
tourism did not become the sole source of revenue,
because of the potential economic devastation that a
natural disaster could bring if it was. Also recognized
was the need to determine a more appropriate plan for
maintaining trade balances, because due to limited natural
resources, these nations tend to have a limited capability
for export. One of the main takeaways from this
Harvard WorldMUN 2012
gathering was that economic diversity is incredibly important,
and heavy dependence on one industry (particularly
tourism), is a poor plan to increase sustainability.
Suggestions were laid out for encouraging synergy
between industries along with more diverse economic
plans for these developing island nations. 24
The Mauritius Plan was intended to continue where
the Barbados Plan left off, and it was indeed successful
in doing so. In 2010, the United Nations conducted its
five-year review of the Mauritius plan to judge its effectiveness
and to determine where there remained room
for improvement. The United Nations Environmental,
Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) oversaw
the proceedings at this meeting, which took place
in New York, to ensure that progress was being made. 25
In addition to being a point of discussion at these two
meetings, the plight of small island developing nations
and their sustainability has also been highlighted in the
United Nations’ Millennium Development Goals, making
this one of the forefront issues that the United Nations
is currently addressing.
Over the past few years, there have been some common
trends in small island nations pushing for increased de-
UNDP 18