Back to the Future: Is Rio+20 A 1992 Redux or Is There Cause for Optimism?

Rio+20, set for June 2012, offers an opportunity to review the current state of global environmental summitry. What can be expected of this latest round of global dialogue on sustainable development? The experiences of 1992 may prove telling on this question, as many impediments to paradigmatic development shifts remain entrenched. This NTS Alert notes the striking similarities between the discussions in the run-up to Rio+20 and that of the 1992 Earth Summit, and suggests that Rio+20’s greatest contributions may lie in multi-sector collaborations at national and subnational levels facilitated by the broad¬ranging participation of governmental, non¬governmental as well as private sector actors.