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150-695: The Stockholm Declaration of 1972 , or the Declaration of the United Nations Conference on the Human Environment , is the first United Nations declaration on the global environment. It consists of 26 principles and led to the creation of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), which laid the foundation for future global environmental governance . The United Nations Conference on

300-703: A pro bono basis made possible by his business activities, which included being chairman of the International Advisory Group of CH2M Hill , Strovest Holdings, Technology Development Inc., Zenon Environmental, and most recently, Cosmos International and the China Carbon Corporation. Strong lobbied to change NGO perspectives on the World Bank . He is believed by some to have inspired the works of former U.S. Vice President Al Gore on climate change. In 1999 Strong took on

450-674: A "systemic failure". In 2010, the organization suffered the worst loss of life in its history, when 101 personnel died in the Haiti earthquake . Acting under the United Nations Security Council Resolution 1973 in 2011, NATO countries intervened in the First Libyan Civil War . The Millennium Summit was held in 2000 to discuss the UN's role in the 21st century. The three-day meeting was

600-683: A $ 35 million luxury hotel within the Jairo Mora Sandoval Gandoca-Manzanillo Mixed Wildlife Refuge in Costa Rica where development is restricted and must be approved by the Kekoldi Indian Association, which it was not. "He (Strong) is supporting Indians and conservation around the world and here he's doing the complete opposite," lamented Demetrio Myorga, President of the Kekoldi Indian Association. Maurice Strong

750-574: A 27-nation Preparatory Committee for the Conference, whose goal was to produce a declaration concerning the "rights and obligations of citizens and Governments with regard to the preservation and improvement of the human environment" as outlined by a recommendation by the Secretary-General. The Conference Secretariat, Maurice Strong , was responsible for the preparation and organization of the Conference. An Intergovernmental Working Group

900-621: A UN official, negotiated an armistice to the resulting conflict , with the Security Council deciding that “an armistice shall be established in all sectors of Palestine”. On 7 November 1956, the first UN peacekeeping force was established to end the Suez Crisis ; however, the UN was unable to intervene against the Soviet Union's simultaneous invasion of Hungary , following the country's revolution . On 14 July 1960,

1050-481: A conference and initialised the drafting of the UN Charter , which was adopted on 25 June 1945. The charter took effect on 24 October 1945, when the UN began operations. The UN's objectives, as outlined by its charter, include maintaining international peace and security, protecting human rights , delivering humanitarian aid , promoting sustainable development , and upholding international law . At its founding,

1200-564: A final draft was formed on the last day of the Conference. A debate held by Maurice Strong saw opposition and reservation from certain countries. The Committee proceeded with a draft resolution, which was adopted by 103 votes to none, with 12 abstentions from South Africa and the Soviet bloc. On December 15, 1972, the General Assembly adopted the text under Resolution 2994 with 112 votes to none, and 10 abstentions. The Declaration

1350-1013: A myriad of autonomous, separately administered funds, programmes, research and training institutes, and other subsidiary bodies . Each of these entities have their own area of work, governance structure, and budgets such as the World Trade Organization (or the WTO) and the International Atomic Energy Agency (or the IAEA), operate independently of the UN but maintain formal partnership agreements. The UN performs much of its humanitarian work through these institutions, such as preventing famine and malnutrition (the World Food Programme ), protecting vulnerable and displaced people (the UNHCR ), and combating

1500-480: A permanent member to block adoption of a resolution, though not debate. The ten temporary seats are held for two-year terms, with five members elected each year by the General Assembly on a regional basis . The presidency of the Security Council rotates alphabetically each month. The UN Secretariat carries out the day-to-day duties required to operate and maintain the UN system. It is composed of tens of thousands of international civil servants worldwide and headed by

1650-606: A plane crash . Months later he was posthumously awarded the Nobel Peace Prize . In 1964, Hammarskjöld's successor, U Thant , deployed the UN Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus , which would become one of the UN's longest-running peacekeeping missions. With the spread of decolonization in the 1960s, the UN's membership shot up due to an influx of newly independent nations. In 1960 alone, 17 new states joined

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1800-529: A prominent theme for the next forty years. Brazil believed that some environmental degradation should be allowed in developing nations for economic growth. The delegates of Brazil emphasized that the Western industrialized countries should have taken the responsibility to address environmental issues, and no measures that restrict trade in the name of the environment, such as environmental requirements that make goods more expensive, should be imposed. While discussing

1950-412: A quality that permits a life of dignity and well-being, and he bears a solemn responsibility to protect and improve the environment for present and future generations. In this respect, policies promoting or perpetuating apartheid, racial segregation, discrimination, colonial and other forms of oppression and foreign domination stand condemned and must be eliminated. Principle 2 The natural resources of

2100-470: A report on the state of the planet, Only One Earth: The Care and Maintenance of a Small Planet , co-authored by Barbara Ward and Rene Dubos . The report summarized the findings of 152 leading experts from 58 countries in preparation for the first UN meeting on the environment , held in Stockholm in 1972. This was the world's first "state of the environment" report. The Stockholm Conference established

2250-402: A somewhat Machiavellian view, arguing that nations are preoccupied with promoting their own interests rather than preserving the commons. This idea of the nation-state has affected the outcomes of environmental agreements throughout history. The implementation varied in different countries based on the differences between the rich and poor nations, which potentially led to mild conflict between

2400-583: A special responsibility to safeguard and wisely manage the heritage of wildlife and its habitat, which are now gravely imperilled by a combination of adverse factors. Nature conservation, including wildlife, must therefore receive importance in planning for economic development. Principle 5 The non-renewable resources of the earth must be employed in such a way as to guard against the danger of their future exhaustion and to ensure that benefits from such employment are shared by all mankind. Principle 6 The discharge of toxic substances or of other substances and

2550-445: A two-thirds majority of those present and voting is required. All other questions are decided by a majority vote. Each member has one vote. Apart from the approval of budgetary matters, resolutions are not binding on the members. The Assembly may make recommendations on any matters within the scope of the UN, except matters of peace and security that are under consideration by the Security Council. Draft resolutions can be forwarded to

2700-889: A wide variety of complex tasks. The UN comprises six principal operational organizations: the General Assembly , the Security Council , the Economic and Social Council , the International Court of Justice , the UN Secretariat , and the Trusteeship Council , although the Trusteeship Council has been suspended since 1994. The UN System includes a multitude of specialized agencies , funds, and programmes, including

2850-1033: A wide variety of topics. These include the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues , which advises UN agencies on issues relating to indigenous peoples , the United Nations Forum on Forests , which coordinates and promotes sustainable forest management, the United Nations Statistical Commission , which co-ordinates information-gathering efforts between agencies, and the Commission on Sustainable Development , which co-ordinates efforts between UN agencies and NGOs working towards sustainable development . ECOSOC may also grant consultative status to non-governmental organizations. as of April 2021 almost 5,600 organizations have this status. The UN Charter stipulates that each primary organ of

3000-549: Is a diplomatic and political international organization with the intended purpose of maintaining international peace and security , developing friendly relations among nations, achieving international cooperation, and serving as a center for coordinating the actions of member nations. It is widely recognised as the world's largest international organization. The UN is headquartered in New York City , in international territory with certain privileges extraterritorial to

3150-467: Is defined in the UN Charter as the organization's chief administrative officer. Article 99 of the charter states that the secretary-general can bring to the Security Council's attention "any matter which in their opinion may threaten the maintenance of international peace and security", a phrase that secretaries-general since Trygve Lie have interpreted as giving the position broad scope for action on

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3300-655: The Battle of Mogadishu . The UN mission to Bosnia faced worldwide ridicule for its indecisive and confused mission in the face of ethnic cleansing. In 1994, the UN Assistance Mission for Rwanda failed to intervene in the Rwandan genocide amidst indecision in the Security Council. From the late 1990s to the early 2000s, international interventions authorized by the UN took a wider variety of forms. The United Nations Security Council Resolution 1244 authorised

3450-810: The Canada Development Investment Corporation , the holding company for some of Canada's principal government-owned corporations. In 1992, he became Chairman of Ontario Hydro . Charles Lynch noted that Strong "tended to fare better than the companies and institutions that have used his talents." He was said to have become a billionaire as a result of his several ventures, but in 2010 he said that he had "never been anywhere close to being [so]." On December 31, 1986, Strong founded American Water Development Incorporated (AWDI) which he controlled along with his associates, William Ruckelshaus , Richard Lamm , Samuel Belzberg , and Alexander Crutchfield Jr. It filed an application with

3600-667: The Colorado Department of Natural Resources and the National Park Service who alleged the project would affect others' water rights and cause significant environmental damage to nearby wetland and sand dune ecosystems by reducing the flow of surface water. After a lengthy trial, which ended in 1992, Colorado courts ruled against AWDI and required payment of the portion of the objectors' legal fees, $ 3.1 million, which were spent fighting AWDI's attempt to appropriate surface water for beneficial use. While this

3750-805: The District Court for Water Division 3 in Alamosa, Colorado for the right to pump underground water from the lands of the Luis Maria Baca Grant No. 4 and other lands in Saguache County, Colorado in Colorado's San Luis Valley and sell it to water districts in the Front Range Urban Corridor of Colorado. The project was opposed by neighboring water rights owners, local water conservation districts,

3900-646: The Earth Summit , and held in Rio de Janeiro from June 3 to June 14, 1992. According to Strong, participants at the Rio Conference adopted sound principles but did not make a commitment to action sufficient to prevent global environmental tragedy, committing to spend less than 5% of the $ 125 billion he felt appropriate for environmental projects in developing nations. He was seconded in that opinion by U.N. Secretary General Boutros Boutros-Ghali who stated to

4050-528: The Four Power Declaration on General Security which aimed for the creation "at the earliest possible date of a general international organization". This was the first public announcement that a new international organization was being contemplated to replace the League of Nations. The Tehran Conference followed shortly afterwards at which Roosevelt, Churchill and Joseph Stalin , the leader of

4200-540: The Group of 77 under the leadership of Algeria, which briefly became a dominant power at the UN. On 10 November 1975, a bloc comprising the Soviet Union and Third World nations passed a resolution , over strenuous American and Israeli opposition, declaring Zionism to be a form of racism . The resolution was repealed on 16 December 1991, shortly after the end of the Cold War. With an increasing Third World presence and

4350-472: The ICJ Statute , which forms an integral part of the UN Charter, and non-members may also become parties. The ICJ's rulings are binding upon parties and, along with its advisory opinions, serve as sources of international law . The court is composed of 15 judges appointed to nine-year terms by the General Assembly. Every sitting judge must be from a different nation. The Economic and Social Council (or

4500-591: The NATO -led Kosovo Force beginning in 1999. The UN mission in the Sierra Leone Civil War was supplemented by a British military intervention . The invasion of Afghanistan in 2001 was overseen by NATO. In 2003, the United States invaded Iraq despite failing to pass a UN Security Council resolution for authorization, prompting a new round of questioning of the UN's effectiveness. Under

4650-820: The Paris Peace Conference . The League of Nations was approved and started operations, but the United States never joined. On 10 January 1920, the League of Nations formally came into being when the Covenant of the League of Nations , ratified by 42 nations in 1919, took effect. The League Council acted as an executive body directing the Assembly's business. It began with four permanent members—the United Kingdom , France , Italy , and Japan . After some limited successes and failures during

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4800-621: The UNEP as an institution failed to do so with its lack of funding and enforcement mechanisms. Consequently, states are not obligated nor motivated to follow up on the agreement met at the Conference. The ongoing political and ideological rivalry between the US and USSR and their respective allies continues to overshadow the tension in the international environment during the Stockholm Conference in 1972. The Cold War started in 1947 and

4950-497: The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). On the positive side, the implementation of the Stockholm Conference led to the creation of an action plan that consisted of three pillars: Firstly, an Earthwatch Programme to identify problems of international significance to warn against impending environmental crises; second, recommendations concerning "environmental management or in other words

5100-694: The White House in December 1941 for the Arcadia Conference . Roosevelt is considered a founder of the UN, and coined the term United Nations to describe the Allied countries . Churchill accepted it, noting its use by Lord Byron . The text of the Declaration by United Nations was drafted on 29 December 1941, by Roosevelt, Churchill, and Harry Hopkins . It incorporated Soviet suggestions but included no role for France. One major change from

5250-646: The World Bank Group , the World Health Organization , the World Food Programme , UNESCO , and UNICEF . Additionally, non-governmental organizations may be granted consultative status with the Economic and Social Council and other agencies. The UN's chief administrative officer is the secretary-general , currently António Guterres , who is a Portuguese politician and diplomat. He began his first five-year term on 1 January 2017 and

5400-977: The World Resources Institute , membership on the board of the International Institute for Sustainable Development , the Stockholm Environment Institute , The Africa-America Institute , the Institute of Ecology in Indonesia, the Beijer Institute of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences and others. Strong was a longtime Foundation Director of the World Economic Forum , a senior advisor to the president of

5550-406: The secretary-general , who is assisted by the deputy secretary-general . The Secretariat's duties include providing information and facilities needed by UN bodies for their meetings and carrying out tasks as directed by the Security Council, the General Assembly, the Economic and Social Council, and other UN bodies. The secretary-general acts as the spokesperson and leader of the UN. The position

5700-702: The 1920s, the League proved ineffective in the 1930s, as it failed to act against the Japanese invasion of Manchuria in 1933. Forty nations voted for Japan to withdraw from Manchuria but Japan voted against it and walked out of the League instead of withdrawing from Manchuria. It also failed to act against the Second Italo-Ethiopian War , after the appeal for international intervention by Ethiopian Emperor Haile Selassie I at Geneva in 1936 went with no avail, including when calls for economic sanctions against Italy failed. Italy and other nations left

5850-516: The Alberta oil patch. In the 1950s, he took over a small natural gas company, Ajax Petroleum, and built it into one of the largest companies in the industry, Norcen Resources . This attracted the attention of one of Canada's principal investment corporations with interests in the energy and utility businesses, Power Corporation of Canada . It appointed him initially as its executive vice president and then president from 1961 until 1966. In 1976, at

6000-700: The Atlantic Charter was the addition of a provision for religious freedom , which Stalin approved after Roosevelt insisted. Roosevelt's idea of the " Four Powers ", refers to the four major Allied countries, the United States, the United Kingdom, the Soviet Union, and China , emerged in the Declaration by the United Nations. On New Year's Day 1942, Roosevelt, Churchill, the Soviet Union's former Foreign Minister Maxim Litvinov , and

6150-400: The Charter by the five permanent members of the Security Council : the United States, the United Kingdom, France, the Soviet Union and China — and by a majority of the other 46 nations. The first meetings of the General Assembly , with 51 nations represented, and the Security Council took place in London beginning in January 1946. Debates began at once, covering topical issues such as

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6300-428: The Chinese Premier T. V. Soong signed the " Declaration by United Nations ", and the next day the representatives of twenty-two other nations added their signatures. During the war, the United Nations became the official term for the Allies. In order to join, countries had to sign the Declaration and declare war on the Axis powers . The October 1943 Moscow Conference resulted in the Moscow Declarations , including

6450-404: The Conference without further discussion in the committee. The debate at the Stockholm Conference was headed by Maurice F. Strong , the former President of the Canadian International Development Agency . In the general debate, many speakers highlighted the significance of the Declaration and several, including Strong, rallied for the adoption of the Declaration without further changes to preserve

6600-445: The Council of Ministers approved the first four-year Environment Action Programme (1973-1976) in Europe to "reduce pollution and nuisances; improve the environment and quality of life; and promote common community action by member states, in international organizations dealing with the environment". China, as a new joint of the United Nations in October 1971, became an "indispensable stakeholder in global environmental governance" since

6750-445: The Council of the University for Peace from 1998 to 2006. More recently Strong was an active honorary professor at Peking University and honorary chairman of its Environmental Foundation. He was chairman of the advisory board for the Institute for Research on Security and Sustainability for Northeast Asia. He died at the age of 86 in 2015. Maurice Strong was a child during the Great Depression , enduring serious poverty. His father

6900-439: The Depression radicalized him and that he considered himself to be "a socialist in ideology, a capitalist in methodology." He dropped out of high school at the age of 14 and did not attend university. Despite the lack of formal education, he became CEO of many companies. In 1948, when he was nineteen, Strong was hired as a trainee by a brokerage firm, James Richardson & Sons, Limited of Winnipeg where he took an interest in

7050-428: The ECOSOC) assists the General Assembly in promoting international economic and social co-operation and development. It was established to serve as the UN's primary forum for global issues and is the largest and most complex UN body. The ECOSOC's functions include gathering data, conducting studies and advising and making recommendations to member states. Its work is carried out primarily by subsidiary bodies focused on

7200-420: The General Assembly by its six main committees: As well as by the following two committees: The Security Council is charged with maintaining peace and security among nations. While other organs of the UN can only make recommendations to member states, the Security Council has the power to make binding decisions that member states have agreed to carry out, under the terms of Charter Article 25. The decisions of

7350-402: The General Assembly of the United Nations. Maurice Strong became director in 1999 where he was at the center of further controversy, particularly in reference to the eviction of the beloved radio station Radio for Peace International (RFPI), the fleeing of the Earth Council in 2003, and the implementation of military training programs on campus. Strong was a board member of the Earth Council, which

7500-556: The HIV/AIDS pandemic (the UNAIDS ). Maurice Strong Strong had his start as an entrepreneur in the Alberta oil patch and was President of Power Corporation of Canada until 1966. In the early 1970s he was Secretary General of the United Nations Conference on the Human Environment and then became the first executive director of the United Nations Environment Programme . He returned to Canada to become Chief Executive Officer of Petro-Canada from 1976 to 1978. He headed Ontario Hydro , one of North America's largest power utilities,

7650-411: The Human Environment was held in Stockholm, Sweden, from June 5–16 in 1972. The 1972 United Nations Conference on the Human Environment signifies the first international effort to place environmental issues at the forefront of global concerns. The Conference sought to recognize the finite nature of Earth's resources and human impacts on the environment. It represented the beginning of a global dialogue on

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7800-422: The League. When war broke out in 1939 , the League effectively closed down. The first step towards the establishment of the United Nations was the Inter-Allied Conference in London that led to the Declaration of St James's Palace on 12 June 1941. By August 1941, American President Franklin Roosevelt and British Prime Minister Winston Churchill had drafted the Atlantic Charter ; which defined goals for

7950-421: The Resources of the Biosphere , which was convened in Paris by UNESCO in September 1968. Promptly, the Application of Science and Technology to Development , the U.N. Advisory Committee, and the Secretary General seconded this notion. Finally, the General Assembly and the Economic and Social Council endorsed the Secretary-General's recommendation. In 1971, General Assembly Resolution 2581 effectively created

8100-427: The Soviet Union, and the signing of the Korean Armistice Agreement on 27 July 1953. On 29 November 1947, the General Assembly approved resolution 181 , a proposal to partition Palestine into two state, with Jerusalem placed under a special international regime. The plan failed and a civil war broke out in Palestine, that led to the creation of the state of Israel afterward. Two years later, Ralph Bunche ,

8250-400: The Soviet Union, before all the issues were resolved. By 1 March 1945, 21 additional states had signed the Declaration by the United Nations. After months of planning, the UN Conference on International Organization opened in San Francisco on 25 April 1945. It was attended by 50 nations' governments and a number of non-governmental organizations. The delegations of the Big Four chaired

8400-451: The Soviet Union, met and discussed the idea of a post-war international organization. The new international organisation was formulated and negotiated amongst the delegations from the Allied Big Four at the Dumbarton Oaks Conference from 21 September to 7 October 1944. They agreed on proposals for the aims, structure and functioning of the new organization. It took the conference at Yalta in February 1945, and further negotiations with

8550-536: The Stockholm Conference 1972. After the Stockholm Conference, China held its first national environmental conference in 1973. After the Cultural Revolution , China held its second national environmental protection conference to strengthen its environmental management and pollution treatment in 1983. China also established the China Council for the International Cooperation on Environment and Development (CCICED) to actively promote international environmental cooperation. The Stockholm Declaration has an undeniable impact on

8700-460: The Stockholm Conference in 1967. In addition, during this time period when countries were at war and decolonizing themselves, international cooperation was crucial. In spite of the ongoing politics, the Soviet Union , the other members of the Eastern bloc , most Western European countries, and the United States all supported Sweden's proposal. However, the United Kingdom and France in particular were concerned that developing countries may use

8850-437: The Stockholm Conference provided a higher standard for the European Council to combat environmental issues. In the Paris Summit 1972 , the Heads of State and of Government acknowledged the theme of the Stockholm Conference that became the origin of the community environmental policy in Europe and led to the establishment of the Environmental Unit (predecessor of the Directorate-General for Environment ). On 22 November 1973,

9000-404: The Stockholm Declaration, was to create, clarify, and rearticulate principles that states can incorporate into their domestic legislation. The goal was that if enough states included the Declaration domestically, it might lead to the Declaration transforming into international law norms . From June 2 to 3, 2022, an international environmental meeting will be held again in Stockholm, Sweden. Under

9150-418: The U.N. had reached an impasse. "It just happened to coincide with the publicity surrounding my so-called nefarious activities," he insisted. "I had no involvement at all in Oil-for-Food ... I just stayed out of it." In Volcker's September 7 report he concluded, "While there is evidence that Iraqi officials tried to establish a relationship with Mr. Strong, the Committee has found no evidence that Mr. Strong

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9300-399: The U.N.'s Oil-for-Food Programme , evidence procured by federal investigators and the U.N.-authorized inquiry of Paul Volcker showed that in 1997, while working for Annan, Strong had endorsed a cheque for $ 988,885, made out to "Mr. M. Strong," issued by a Jordanian bank. It was reported that the cheque was hand-delivered to Mr. Strong by a South Korean businessman, Tongsun Park , who in 2006

9450-499: The UN authorized a US-led coalition that repulsed Iraq's invasion of Kuwait . Brian Urquhart , the under-secretary-general of the UN from 1971 to 1985, later described the hopes raised by these successes as a "false renaissance" for the organization, given the more troubled missions that followed. Beginning in the last decades of the Cold War , critics of the UN condemned the organization for perceived mismanagement and corruption. In 1984, American President Ronald Reagan withdrew

9600-412: The UN established the United Nations Operation in the Congo (or UNOC), the largest military force of its early decades, to bring order to Katanga , restoring it to the control of the Democratic Republic of the Congo by 11 May 1964. While travelling to meet rebel leader Moise Tshombe during the conflict, Dag Hammarskjöld , often named as one of the UN's most effective secretaries-general, died in

9750-562: The UN had 51 member states ; as of 2024 , it has 193 sovereign states , nearly all of the world's recognized sovereign states. The UN's mission to preserve world peace was complicated in its initial decades due in part to Cold War tensions that existed between the United States and Soviet Union and their respective allies. Its mission has included the provision of primarily unarmed military observers and lightly armed troops charged with primarily monitoring, reporting and confidence-building roles. UN membership grew significantly following

9900-430: The UN itself and operate with almost complete independence from it". These include specialized agencies, research and training institutions, programmes and funds and other UN entities. All organizations in the UN system obey the Noblemaire principle , which calls for salaries that will attract and retain citizens of countries where compensation is highest, and which ensures equal pay for work of equal value regardless of

10050-446: The UN's focus on promoting development, peacekeeping, human rights and global security. The Sustainable Development Goals (or SDGs) were launched in 2015 to succeed the Millennium Development Goals. In addition to addressing global challenges, the UN has sought to improve its accountability and democratic legitimacy by engaging more with civil society and fostering a global constituency. In an effort to enhance transparency, in 2016

10200-405: The UN's primary mandate was peacekeeping , the division between the United States and the Soviet Union often paralysed the organization; generally allowing it to intervene only in conflicts distant from the Cold War . Two notable exceptions were a Security Council resolution on 7 July 1950 authorizing a US-led coalition to repel the North Korean invasion of South Korea , passed in the absence of

10350-420: The UN, 16 of them from Africa. On 25 October 1971, with opposition from the United States, but with the support of many Third World nations, the People's Republic of China was given the Chinese seat on the Security Council in place of the Republic of China (also known as Taiwan). The vote was widely seen as a sign of waning American influence in the organization. Third World nations organized themselves into

10500-411: The UN, but I'm still quite cooperative with a number of UN activities, in particular to China and that region. I don't have any government responsibilities or formal role. I continue to be active, though. In 2012 for Rio+20 he contributed to a book by Felix Dodds and Michael Strauss titled Only One Earth — the Long Road via Rio to Sustainable Development , which reviewed the last forty years and

10650-458: The UN. Even though the Soviet Union and the United States had supported the proposal during discussions in the UN General Assembly , the Geneva-based secretariat preparing the meeting often had to strike a delicate balance between east and west. However, on March 7, 1972, the Soviet Union and Czechoslovakia boycotted the opening of the final United Nations preparatory session for the conference to be held in Stockholm in June. The disagreement around

10800-580: The United Nations can establish various specialized agencies to fulfill its duties. Specialized agencies are autonomous organizations working with the United Nations and each other through the coordinating machinery of the Economic and Social Council. Each was integrated into the UN system through an agreement with the UN under UN Charter article 57. There are fifteen specialized agencies, which perform functions as diverse as facilitating international travel, preventing and addressing pandemics, and promoting economic development. The United Nations system includes

10950-560: The United States' funding from the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (or UNESCO) over allegations of mismanagement, followed by the United Kingdom and Singapore. Boutros Boutros-Ghali , the secretary-general from 1992 to 1996, initiated a reform of the Secretariat, somewhat reducing the size of the organisation. His successor, Kofi Annan , initiated further management reforms in

11100-662: The United States, and the UN has other offices in Geneva , Nairobi , Vienna , and The Hague , where the International Court of Justice is headquartered at the Peace Palace . The UN was established after World War II with the aim of preventing future world wars , and succeeded the League of Nations , which was characterized as being ineffective. On 25 April 1945, 50 nations assembled in San Francisco , California, for

11250-595: The University for Peace and helped to rebuild its programs and leadership. He retired from the Council in the spring of 2007. From 2003 to 2005, Strong served as the personal envoy to U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan to lead support for the international response to the humanitarian and development needs of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea . The University for Peace was established in 1980 by

11400-587: The Working Group drafted a preamble in addition to 17 fundamental principles. This initial draft faced heavy criticism from the Preparatory Committee due to the view that the draft was an instrument to promote "restrictive, anti-developmental and 'conservationist' policies." In response to the feedback, the Group created a new document of a preamble and 23 principles. This draft was presented at

11550-1009: The World Bank, a member of the International Advisory of Toyota Motor Corporation, the Advisory Council for the Center for International Development at Harvard University , the World Business Council for Sustainable Development , the World Conservation Union (IUCN), the World Wildlife Fund , Resources for the Future and the Eisenhower Fellowships . His public service activities were carried out on

11700-452: The agreements reached in pre-Conference consultation sessions. However, while some speakers were willing to accept the draft, they also highlighted the text's lack of attention to developing nations' needs. Developing countries stressed that developed nations should not use environmental concerns as an excuse for imposing development restrictions. They argued that developed nations exploited the greatest amount of resources and contributed most of

11850-578: The application in practice of what was shown to be desirable or necessary in regard to the environment"; lastly, supporting measures such as education, training, public information. Furthermore, the implementation also resulted in the enactment of three international conventions, in London and Washington D.C. respectively which dealt with environmental issues such as waste dumping in oceans, preservation of heritage sites and limiting international trade in certain wildlife species. The principles and goals set at

12000-709: The assembly gathers at annual sessions at the General Assembly Hall , but emergency sessions can be summoned. The assembly is led by a president , elected by the member states on a rotating regional basis, and 21 vice-presidents. The first session convened on 10 January 1946 in the Methodist Central Hall in London and comprised representatives of 51 nations. When the General Assembly decides on seminal questions such as those on peace and security, admission of new members and budgetary matters,

12150-529: The basis of the Convention on the Privileges and Immunities of the United Nations , the UN and its agencies are immune from the laws of the countries where they operate, safeguarding the UN's impartiality with regard to host and member countries. Below the six organs are, in the words of the author Linda Fasulo, "an amazing collection of entities and organizations, some of which are actually older than

12300-589: The body's former headquarters in the Peace Palace in The Hague, Netherlands , making it the only principal organ not based in New York City. The ICJ's main function is adjudicating disputes among nations. Examples of issues they have heard include war crimes, violations of state sovereignty and ethnic cleansing. The court can also be called upon by other UN organs to provide advisory opinions on matters of international law. All UN member states are parties to

12450-629: The case was settled for $ 11.8 million, without a ruling of wrongdoing. Strong was sharing a house in 1947 with the first UN Treasurer, Noah Monod, who upon request arranged a UN job for him, starting as a junior security officer at UN headquarters in Lake Success, New York . He later returned to Canada, and with the support of Lester B. Pearson , directed the founding of the Canadian International Development Agency in 1968. In 1971, Strong commissioned

12600-622: The century prior to the UN's creation, several international organizations such as the International Committee of the Red Cross were formed to ensure protection and assistance for victims of armed conflict and strife. During World War I , several major leaders, especially U.S. President Woodrow Wilson , advocated for a world body to guarantee peace. The winners of the war, the Allies , met to decide on formal peace terms at

12750-602: The challenges for the future. He attended the conference, for which the United Nations Development Program paid all his travel expenses. Maurice Strong was no stranger to skepticism and criticism as a result of his lifelong involvement in the oil industry, juxtaposed with his heavy ties to the environmental issues. Some wonder why an "oilman" would be chosen to take on such coveted and respected environmental positions. One of Strong's companies, Desarrollos Ecológicos (Ecological Development), built

12900-691: The conditions of under-development and natural disasters pose grave problems and can best be remedied by accelerated development through the transfer of substantial quantities of financial and technological assistance as a supplement to the domestic effort of the developing countries and such timely assistance as may be required. Principle 10 For the developing countries, stability of prices and adequate earnings for primary commodities and raw materials are essential to environmental management, since economic factors as well as ecological processes must be taken into account. Principle 11 The environmental policies of all States should enhance and not adversely affect

13050-491: The conference as means to garner more financial support from formal colonial powers. Developing countries were also wary that Northern countries' interests would control the discussions and weaponize environmental issues to hinder their economic development. In December 1968, the United Nations General Assembly agreed to convene in 1972 through the adoption of Resolution 2398(XXIII) , with one of

13200-592: The council are known as United Nations Security Council resolutions . The Security Council is made up of fifteen member states: five permanent members (China, France, Russia, the United Kingdom and the United States) and ten non-permanent members (currently Algeria , Ecuador , Guyana , Japan , Malta , Mozambique , the Republic of Korea , Sierra Leone , Slovenia and Switzerland ). The five permanent members hold veto power over UN resolutions, allowing

13350-456: The debate, China requested a Working Group. They proposed that in order to solve environmental issues, developing countries need to develop their economy, technology, and industrialize to improve productivity. This notion was amended by Iran. The Conference created this group, resulting in a series of amendment requests. After an all-night session and under the leadership of Taieb Slim, T. C. Bacon, Hans Blix , along with Strong and his associates,

13500-666: The delegates, "The current level of commitment is not comparable to the size and gravity of the problems," After the Earth Summit, Strong continued to take a leading role in implementing the results of agreements at the Earth Summit through the establishment of the Earth Council , acting as co-chair of the Earth Charter Commission at the outset of the Earth Charter movement, his chairmanship of

13650-486: The delicate question of the Korean Peninsula and China's changing role in the world. Your unwavering commitment to the environment, multilateralism and peaceful resolution of conflicts is especially appreciated. In 2010, Strong described the nature of his activities at that time: I am retired from all my official roles, but I am still very active. I have close relationships at the UN. I don't have any role at

13800-420: The earth, including the air, water, land, flora and fauna and especially representative samples of natural ecosystems, must be safeguarded for the benefit of present and future generations through careful planning or management, as appropriate. Principle 3 The capacity of the earth to produce vital renewable resources must be maintained and, wherever practicable, restored or improved. Principle 4 Man has

13950-883: The eighth secretary-general, Ban Ki-moon , the UN intervened with peacekeepers in crises such as the War in Darfur in Sudan and the Kivu conflict in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and sent observers and chemical weapons inspectors to the Syrian Civil War . In 2013, an internal review of UN actions in the final battles of the Sri Lankan Civil War in 2009 concluded that the organization had suffered

14100-500: The employee's nationality. In practice, the International Civil Service Commission , which governs the conditions of UN personnel, takes reference to the highest-paying national civil service. Staff salaries are subject to an internal tax that is administered by the UN organizations. The General Assembly is the primary deliberative assembly of the UN. Composed of all UN member states ,

14250-573: The environment as part of an international development agenda. It led to the establishment by the UN General Assembly in December 1972 of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), with headquarters in Nairobi , Kenya , and the election of Strong to head it. UNEP was the first UN agency to be headquartered in the third world . As head of UNEP, Strong convened the first international expert group meeting on climate change. Strong

14400-641: The environmental movement, he was instrumental in promoting government funding and entry into international meetings for environmental non-governmental organizations . Maurice Strong received a number of honours, awards and medals. He received 53 honorary doctorate degrees and honorary visiting professorships at 7 universities. Honours appearing in the Canadian order of precedence are: Other honours and awards include: John Ralston Saul dedicated his polemic Voltaire's Bastards: The Dictatorship of Reason In The West to Strong. Strong's papers are archived at

14550-540: The face of threats from the US to withhold its UN dues. Though the UN Charter had been written primarily to prevent aggression by one nation against another, in the early 1990s the UN faced several simultaneous, serious crises within Somalia, Haiti, Mozambique, and the nations that previously made up Yugoslavia. The UN mission in Somalia was widely viewed as a failure after the United States' withdrawal following casualties in

14700-504: The failure of UN mediation in conflicts in the Middle East , Vietnam , and Kashmir , the UN increasingly shifted its attention to its secondary goals of economic development and cultural exchange. By the 1970s, the UN budget for social and economic development was far greater than its peacekeeping budget. After the Cold War, the UN saw a radical expansion in its peacekeeping duties, taking on more missions in five years than it had in

14850-659: The five principal organs are located at the main UN Headquarters in New York City, while the International Court of Justice is seated in The Hague . Most other major agencies are based in the UN offices at Geneva , Vienna , and Nairobi , and additional UN institutions are located throughout the world. The six official languages of the UN, used in intergovernmental meetings and documents, are Arabic , Chinese , English , French , Russian and Spanish . On

15000-423: The highest political level more challenging and therefore restricting the changes. Sir Tony Brenton and Strong highlighted the implications of the nation-state within the international system. Strong points out that states would not easily forgo their sovereignty and enter collective agreements with other nations, which makes international environmental action exceptionally difficult. Similarly, Brenton follows

15150-484: The ineligibility of East Germany to participate in the Stockholm Conference. Developing countries including India , Nigeria , and Brazil expressed both embracements of the environmental actions and concerns for potential hindrance on economic development. Indian prime minister Indira Gandhi asserted that "poverty is the worst form of pollution", encompassing a discursive framework that pitted Northern environmentalism against Southern development commitment that remain

15300-481: The largest gathering of world leaders in history, and it culminated in the adoption by all member states of the Millennium Development Goals (or MDGs), a commitment to achieve international development in areas such as poverty reduction , gender equality and public health . Progress towards these goals, which were to be met by 2015, was ultimately uneven. The 2005 World Summit reaffirmed

15450-400: The link between economic growth, the pollution of the environment, and the well-being of humanity. The resulting Stockholm Declaration urged its partnering nations to reduce air, land, and water degradation by integrating science and technology in their development plans. It also called nations to create regulations on wildlife protection, environmental conservation, and population control. While

15600-444: The majority of the Declaration to be "useless for legal purposes" because of its vagueness. Most of the Declaration, apart from Principle 21, was written as policy statements rather than in legal language. The Declaration is also not legally binding by nature, and it was considered as a soft law at the international level. In addition, while many legal treaties formed secretariats and organizations to oversee compliance and implementation,

15750-563: The modern U.N. has come to embody" in which Strong had a major role. In reply, Strong stated that "everything I did, I checked it out carefully with the U.S." Shortly after this, Strong moved to an apartment he owned in Beijing , where he appeared to have settled. He said that his departure from the U.N. was motivated not by the Oil-for-Food investigations, but by his sense at the time, as Mr. Annan's special adviser on North Korea, that

15900-503: The need to inform other countries about ecological disasters, Brazil criticized any principles that can potentially violate national sovereignty. Brazilian delegates also believed that the United Nations had placed too much emphasis on emerging issues such as the environment, oceans, and space, which distracts the UN from its central role in peacemaking and economic development, especially in the Global South . The Stockholm Conference

16050-626: The norm for alternative environmental ideologies and countercultural beliefs that could co-exist with conventional models of development such as the Stockholm Conference. Between June 3 and 14, 1992, the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED) met in Rio De Janeiro to reaffirm and build onto the UN Conference on the Human Environment. Given that the Stockholm Conference had previously set

16200-507: The oil business, being transferred as an oil specialist to Richardson's office in Calgary, Alberta . There he made the acquaintance of one of the figures in the oil industry, Jack Gallagher , who hired him as his assistant. At Gallagher's Dome Petroleum , Strong occupied several roles including vice president of finance, leaving the firm in 1956 and setting up his own firm, M.F. Strong Management, assisting investors in locating opportunities in

16350-461: The organization are five principal organs established by the UN Charter: the General Assembly , the Security Council , the Economic and Social Council , the International Court of Justice and the UN Secretariat . A sixth principal organ, the Trusteeship Council , suspended its operations on 1 November 1994 upon the independence of Palau ; the last remaining UN trustee territory. Four of

16500-506: The organization held its first public debate between candidates for secretary-general. On 1 January 2017, Portuguese diplomat António Guterres , who had previously served as the UN High Commissioner for Refugees , became the ninth secretary-general. Guterres has highlighted several key goals for his administration, including an emphasis on diplomacy for preventing conflicts, more effective peacekeeping efforts, and streamlining

16650-411: The organization to be more responsive and versatile to international needs. On 13 June 2019, the UN signed a Strategic Partnership Framework with the World Economic Forum in order to "jointly accelerate" the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development . The United Nations is part of the broader UN System, which includes an extensive network of institutions and entities. Central to

16800-474: The participation of East Germany and West Germany – neither country a UN member state at the time – resulted in a boycott by the Soviet Union and most Warsaw Pact nations in the Eastern Bloc. As a member of several United Nations agencies, West Germany was invited. Still, East Germany was not invited because it has not become a United Nations body member. The USSR and its alliance were dissatisfied with

16950-442: The period of March 28, 1995 – October 18, 1996, (known as the "class period"), Molten Metal artificially inflated the price of their stock by materially misrepresenting the capability of its technology, namely through a series of public announcements. As of March 11, 1996 Strong owned approximately 40,000 shares of stock and another 262,000 shares were owned by a company of which Strong was Chairman. The company filed for bankruptcy and

17100-524: The plenary meetings. Previously, Churchill had urged Roosevelt to restore France to its status of a major power after the liberation of Paris in August 1944. The drafting of the Charter of the United Nations was completed over the following two months, and it was signed on 26 June 1945 by the representatives of the 50 countries. The UN officially came into existence on 24 October 1945, upon ratification of

17250-490: The pollution to the global environment. In contrast, developing countries suffered the burden of a degrading environment, debt, and economic backwardness. Thus, the Global South argued that the Global North should bear most of the responsibility in environmental protection. Furthermore, some countries asserted that they reserve the right to alter the text, as they were not included in the preparatory progress. Following

17400-553: The post, but over the years it has become accepted that the position shall be held for one or two terms of five years. The current secretary-general is António Guterres of Portugal, who replaced Ban Ki-moon in 2017. The International Court of Justice (or ICJ), sometimes known as the World Court, is the primary judicial organ of the UN. It is the successor to the Permanent Court of International Justice and occupies

17550-600: The post-war world. At the subsequent meeting of the Inter-Allied Council in London on 24 September 1941, the eight governments in exile of countries under Axis occupation , together with the Soviet Union and representatives of the Free French Forces , unanimously adopted adherence to the common principles of policy set forth by Britain and the United States. Roosevelt and Churchill met at

17700-560: The presence of Russian troops in Iranian Azerbaijan and British forces in Greece . British diplomat Gladwyn Jebb served as interim secretary-general. The General Assembly selected New York City as the site for the headquarters of the UN. Construction began on 14 September 1948 and the facility was completed on 9 October 1952. The Norwegian Foreign Minister, Trygve Lie , was the first elected UN secretary-general . Though

17850-460: The present or future development potential of developing countries, nor should they hamper the attainment of better living conditions for all, and appropriate steps should be taken by States and international organizations with a view to reaching agreement on meeting the possible national and international economic consequences resulting from the application of environmental measures. Principle 12 United Nations The United Nations ( UN )

18000-532: The previous four decades. Between 1988 and 2000, the number of adopted Security Council resolutions more than doubled, and the peacekeeping budget increased by more than tenfold. The UN negotiated an end to the Salvadoran Civil War , launched a successful peacekeeping mission in Namibia , and oversaw democratic elections in post- apartheid South Africa and post- Khmer Rouge Cambodia. In 1991,

18150-646: The primary aims being to establish a declaration on the human environment. Such a document is based on the proposal by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) to create a " Universal Declaration on the Protection and Preservation of the Human Environment ". This declaration can be traced to the Intergovernmental Conference of Experts on the Scientific Basis for Rational Use and Conservation of

18300-507: The reception of the Declaration remained generally positive, some were critical about the practicality of its implementation. All countries agreed on the proposal during the Conference but failed to continue implementing their formulated promises. A year after the Stockholm Conference, it was reflected that better implementation of the declaration required technological, industrial and economic changes globally. The global society continued to lack institutional arrangement, making decision-making at

18450-467: The reception of the ideas in the Declaration generally stayed positive, it received wide criticisms on its practical implementation, especially from developing nations. Amid the Cold War in the 1960s, neutral Sweden was not a NATO member. Due to its geography and increasing pollution issues, it was particularly vulnerable to environmental problems. These cumulating factors motivated Sweden to propose

18600-454: The relationship between the US and the USSR continued to exacerbate. Sweden and other supporters of the conference hoped to use preparations for it to build bridges within a deeply fractured UN and viewed the Cold War from a position of political neutrality. It saw transboundary issues around environmental pollution as a potential catalyst of cooperation and could help boost the global importance of

18750-399: The release of heat, in such quantities or concentrations as to exceed the capacity of the environment to render them harmless, must be halted in order to ensure that serious or irreversible damage is not inflicted upon ecosystems. The just struggle of the peoples of ill countries against pollution should be supported. Principle 7 States shall take all possible steps to prevent pollution of

18900-576: The request of Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau , Strong returned to Canada to head the newly created national oil company, Petro-Canada . He was slated to stand as a candidate for the Liberal Party of Canada in Scarborough Centre in the 1979 federal election , but chose to abandon the race, returning to private enterprise to manage AZL Resources, a Denver oil promoter that he had previously acquired, where he served as chairman and

19050-781: The respective countries. However, it was also observed that developing countries required facilitation and access to innovative technology, which was only possible through the cooperation of the rich and developed countries. To achieve the solutions outlined in the conference, a more international cooperative attitude was required at a global level. Additionally, the implementation of the Stockholm Declaration encouraged both developed and developing nations to increase their identification and pursuit of new directions for economic growth. Especially approaches that were less energy-intensive, less dependent on non-renewable resources and more focused on reusing and recycling. The implementation

19200-475: The seas by substances that are liable to create hazards to human health, to harm living resources and marine life, to damage amenities or to interfere with other legitimate uses of the sea. Principle 8 Economic and social development is essential for ensuring a favorable living and working environment for man and for creating conditions on earth that are necessary for the improvement of the quality of life. Principle 9 Environmental deficiencies generated by

19350-596: The standard for future international environmental conferences, the Rio Declaration adopted three of the documents drafted in the Stockholm Declaration. For example, Principle 21 from the Declaration was modified and adopted into a customary international environmental law in the Rio Declaration (initially known as the Earth Charter ). The aim of the Rio Declaration , which was a step forward from

19500-422: The subsequent international environmental treaties, as it is the first major international treaty that framed environmental issues as global issues . Principle 21, which outlines states' sovereign rights to exercise in their territories and their responsibilities to prevent transboundary harm, serves as the legal core to the document. As the first attempt to achieve global consensus, experts like Brenton consider

19650-532: The task of trying to restore the viability of the University for Peace , headquartered in Costa Rica , established under a treaty. The reputation of the University of Peace was at risk because the organization had been subjected to mismanagement, misappropriation of funds and inoperative governance. As chairman of its governing body, the Council, and initially as rector, Strong led the process of revitalizing

19800-410: The theme, " Stockholm+50 : a healthy planet for the prosperity of all – our responsibility, our opportunity," this conference will commemorate the first United Nations Conference on the Human Environment, and "celebrate 50 years of global environmental action." The 26 principles are: Principle 1 Man has the fundamental right to freedom, equality and adequate conditions of life, in an environment of

19950-416: The widespread decolonization in the 1960s. Since then, 80 former colonies have gained independence, including 11 trust territories that had been monitored by the Trusteeship Council . By the 1970s, the UN's budget for economic and social development programmes vastly exceeded its spending on peacekeeping . After the end of the Cold War in 1991, the UN shifted and expanded its field operations, undertaking

20100-404: The world stage. The office has evolved into a dual role of an administrator of the UN organization and a diplomat and mediator addressing disputes between member states and finding consensus to global issues . The secretary-general is appointed by the General Assembly, after being recommended by the Security Council, where the permanent members have veto power. There are no specific criteria for

20250-565: Was a close adviser to former UN Secretary General Kofi Annan and became embroiled in what is now known as the Oil for Food Program Scandal and reportedly received millions of dollars from North Korean and Iraqi lobbyists. Strong died at the age of 86 on November 27, 2015 in Ottawa , Ontario. A funeral service was held there in early December 2015, with a public memorial service occurring in late January 2016 across from Parliament Hill . The service

20400-429: Was also challenged by a lack of funding. The UNEP is a UN Programme established after the Stockholm Declaration to coordinate and promote environmental cooperation. However, UNEP was forced to rely on voluntary financial contributions from a few countries. Funding is limited and inconsistent. UNEP's 2010 annual budget was only $ 217 million, compared with $ 4 billion for the World Food Programme and nearly $ 4.8 billion for

20550-489: Was broadcast on CPAC , and among those who spoke were James Wolfensohn , Adrienne Clarkson , John Ralston Saul and Achim Steiner . Written tributes from Mikhail Gorbachev , Gro Harlem Brundtland and Kofi Annan were also sent. While unremarkable in appearance, Strong was said to have "an astonishing network" that connected diverse interest groups. One observer described his "scarcely-concealed delight in explaining his often Machiavellian political manoeuvrings." In

20700-562: Was convicted in New York federal court of conspiring to bribe U.N. officials to rig Oil-for-Food in favor of Saddam Hussein . Mr. Strong was never accused of any wrongdoing. During the inquiry, Strong stepped down from his U.N. post, stating that he would "sideline himself until the cloud was removed." The affair was said to have arisen from "the tangled nest of personal relationships, public-private partnerships , murky trust funds , unaudited funding conduits, and inter-woven enterprises that

20850-466: Was created as an international body to promote the environmental policies established at Earth Summit in 1992. The Costa Rican government donated more than 20 acres (8.1 ha) of land to be used by Earth Council, but when plans for building fell through, it was allegedly sold for $ 1.65 million. Earth Council temporarily moved to the UPEACE campus until December 2003 when it moved to Canada in the midst of government accusations and demands for $ 1.65 million. RFPI

21000-497: Was established in the committee's second session. The consensus was for the Declaration to be "inspirational and concise", in addition to being easily comprehensible by the public to act as a means for education, public awareness, and community participation to protect the environment. The members of the Committee agreed that the Declaration should only list "broad goals and objectives", and the Conference should adopt an in-depth action program outlined by supporting documents. Initially,

21150-427: Was going on, Strong exited the company. Maurice Strong was a director of Molten Metal Technology, Inc., an environmental technology company founded in 1989 that claimed to have innovative technology that could be used to recycle hazardous waste into reusable products. During the years 1992–1995, this innovation attracted approximately $ 25 million in research grants from the United States Department of Energy. Throughout

21300-445: Was involved in Iraqi affairs or matters relating to the Programme or took any action at the request of Iraqi officials." Secretary-General of the United Nations Kofi Annan, near the end of his term, paid the following tribute to Maurice Strong: Looking back on our time together, we have shared many trials and tribulations and I am grateful that I had the benefit of your global vision and wise counsel on many critical issues, not least

21450-410: Was laid off at the beginning of the Depression era and thereafter supported his family on odd jobs; his mother succumbed to mental illness and died in a mental hospital. He was born in Oak Lake, Manitoba , a town on the Canadian prairies on the main line of the Canadian Pacific Railway . He is a cousin of American journalist and activist Anna Louise Strong . Strong later said that growing up during

21600-417: Was met with protests from a variety of groups such as scientists concerned with population growth, and also the more radical alternative groups that had their own environmental campaigns and agendas. These protests were not disruptive or violent, but their presence suggested that some non-state participants were not aligned with the mainstream values and processes of the conference itself. These protests also set

21750-411: Was national president and chairman of the Extension Committee of the World Alliance of YMCAs and headed American Water Development Incorporated . He served as a commissioner of the World Commission on Environment and Development in 1986 and was unironically recognised by the International Union for Conservation of Nature as a leader in the international environmental movement. He was President of

21900-456: Was not altered in the Assembly to preserve the agreement achieved at Stockholm. A major topic at the Conference was institutional expansion, which came to reality with the creation of the United Nations Environmental Program by General Assembly Resolution 2997. Under the Action Plan, Earthwatch was established as an environmental assessment body to measure and identify global environmental issues as well as to forecast potential crises. While

22050-400: Was one of the commissioners of the World Commission on Environment and Development, set up as an independent body by the United Nations in 1983. Strong's role in leading the U.N.'s famine relief program in Africa was his first in a series of U.N. advisory assignments, including reform and his appointment as Secretary General of the U.N. Conference on Environment and Development, best known as

22200-447: Was re-elected on 8 June 2021. The organization is financed by assessed and voluntary contributions from its member states. The UN, its officers, and its agencies have won multiple Nobel Peace Prizes , although other evaluations of its effectiveness have been contentious. Some commentators believe the organization to be a leader in peace and human development, while others have criticized it for ineffectiveness, bias, and corruption . In

22350-418: Was served with an eviction notice in July 2002, based on claims the station was operating without proper permits, which RFPI refuted. Those close to the situation claim that UPEACE officials didn't approve of the criticism they were receiving from the station and took matters into their own hands when power to the building was cut and a wire fence put up around the perimeter. In 2005, during investigations into

22500-411: Was the largest shareholder. In 1981, Strong was sued for allegedly hyping the stock ahead of a merger that eventually failed. Strong settled for $ 4.2 million at the insistence of his insurance company. AZL merged with Tosco Corporation from which Strong acquired the 160,000 acres (65,000 ha) Baca Ranch in Colorado which would house Strong's Manitou Foundation. Strong later became chairman of

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