June 8 2013

International Student Conference on Environment and Sustainability

We, the youth, from 45 countries come together at 2013 International Student Conference on Environment and Sustainability in Shanghai, China, because we believe that we have innovative ideas and abundant energy and capabilities to confront the sustainable development challenges.

We are very appreciative towards the vehement support of UNEP, which has taken part in this initiative, along with Tongji University, to create a collaboration of international students, raising awareness of the importance of consumption and behaviour, as drivers for change towards a more sustainable future, which can be linked to the post-2015 agenda, after the Rio +20 summit.

We realize that food and health are both components of human well-being, which correlates with environmental sustainability, through the consumer-based decisions which influence the trends of global industry and economy. Green consumption patterns are important for increasing individual awareness and behavioral change, but also for influencing corporate social responsibility, a key driver in the transition to green economy, eco-friendly urban development and greener cities.

We, therefore, urge the global leaders to conduct the outcome documents of Rio+20 summit, by establishing guidelines and launching global process to integrate sustainability into decision making, redirecting their public investment towards green sectors, creating green job opportunities for the youth, enhancing the existing knowledge base at grass root level and promoting the international cooperation and knowledge sharing, in order to realize the vision of a sustainable future.

We make a strong commitment and assure the global leaders we will support efforts towards a sustainable world by:

- Promoting advocacy on different environmental, social and climate change issues at local, regional, national and international level;

- Supporting the campaigns on the use of green votes for green policies;

- Practicing low carbon activities at the individual level to reduce our carbon footprints

Today, we, being the youth, are going to be the decision-makers of tomorrow. We believe that the smallest change may cause a radical difference in the future to come, and this will be a future we want.