Global governance the need

Some 32 social scientists and researchers from around the world have concluded that fundamental reforms of global environmental governance are needed to avoid dangerous changes in the Earth system.

The group argued for the creation of a Sustainable Development Council that would better integrate sustainability concerns across the United Nations system. Consultations should not take place only at the global scale, where the broadest policies are created, but also at local scales, smaller scales, all scales where the 'smallest' are consulted.

Research now indicates that the world is nearing critical tipping points in the Earth system, including on climate and biodiversity, which if not addressed through a new framework of governance could lead to rapid and irreversible change. Science assessments indicate that human activities are moving several of Earth's sub-systems outside the range of natural variability typical for the previous 500,000 years.

The team warned that emerging technologies "need an international institutional arrangement-such as one or several multilateral framework conventions" to support forecasting and transparency, and to ensure that environmental risks are taken into account.

Will it work or end up as yet another council of members who meet, discuss crucial issues and disperse? DO we need more entities, or more willingness to acknowledge the problem facing humanity?