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Dear Friends and Colleagues,

The CSD Secretariat invites your organization to contribute to the seventeenth session of the Commission on Sustainable Development (CSD-17), which will take place from 4 to15 May 2009, and will be preceded by an Intergovernmental Preparatory Meeting (IPM) scheduled on 23-27 February 2009. Both meetings will take place at UN Headquarters in New York.

The CSD Secretariat has compiled these Guidelines for Major Groups to facilitate your contributions to the preparatory process and participation in the CSD-17 policy session, including its IPM. We have included chapters that outline the reporting process for the policy year, provide important deadlines for written submissions, and include essential information for your participation in the IPMs and in the CSD-17 meeting itself. The two-year cycle of CSD-16 and CSD-17 focuses on implementation in the areas of agriculture, rural development, land, drought, desertification and Africa.

During the past review session (CSD-16) major groups played an important and dynamic role. It is anticipated that major groups continue to participate in the upcoming policy session, by contributing to the formulation of concrete policy alternatives. The CSD-17 will build on previous practices and continue to enhance the participation of the major groups, and provide you with various opportunities to engage in dialogues with government officials and other participants, including interactive discussions within the High-Level Segment of the session.

Maintaining and enhancing the established participatory tradition of the CSD requires continued commitment by all parties. Your involvement in the work of the Commission enriches the debates and influences outcomes. We therefore invite you to begin preparing for CSD-17, and stand ready to work with you in the preparatory process and to facilitate your organization’s active participation in this year’s meetings.

Table of content:

1. INTRODUCTION TO CSD-17
1.1. Themes, Cross-cutting Issues, Timeline
1.2. Framework for Organization of Work
1.3. CSD-17 Bureau

2. THE CSD-17 REPORTING PROCESS AND INPUTS FROM MAJOR GROUPS
2.1 Tentative List of Reports and Supplementary Materials
2.2 Written Inputs from Major Groups
2.3 Major Groups Participation in Intersessional Meetings
2.4 Expected Outcomes

3. MAJOR GROUPS' PARTICIPATION IN CSD-17
3.1. Accreditation and Pre-Registration
3.2. Major Groups’ Involvement in Official Sessions
3.3. Meeting with the CSD-17 Bureau and Major Groups
3.4. Major Groups’ Organizing Partners
3.5. CSD-17 Partnerships Fair
3.6. The Learning Centre
3.7. Side Events

• Annex 1: Multi-Year Programme of Work for CSD: 2004-2017
• Annex 2: Member States of the CSD in 2008-2009
• Annex 3: List of Useful Contacts

1.1. Themes, Cross-cutting Issues, Timeline
The seventeenth session of the UN Commission on Sustainable Development (CSD-17) will meet at UN Headquarters in New York from 4-15 May 2009. CSD-17 will be preceded by a one-week Intergovernmental Preparatory Meeting (IPM) scheduled from 23-27 February 2009, also at the UN Headquarters in New York.
As the second year of the CSD-16/ -17 implementation cycle, CSD-17 will review progress in the following areas:

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1.2 Framework for the Organization of Work

This information will be made available as soon as the CSD-16 Bureau finalizes its discussions on this topic.

(Click here for the the CSD-17Agenda
[Arabic] [Chinese] [English] [French] [Russian] [Spanish]

1.3 CSD-17 Bureau

For more biographical information on the Bureau click here.

For a list of CSD-17 member states, please click here.

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The CSD-17 reporting process focuses on policy options and possible actions to overcome the constraints and obstacles and meet the challenges identified by CSD-16 with regard to the thematic cluster of agriculture, rural development, land, drought, desertification and Africa, in the context of Agenda 21, the Programme for the Further Implementation of Agenda 21, the Johannesburg Plan of Implementation and the Mauritius Strategy for the sustainable development of Small Island Developing States.

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2.1 Tentative List of Reports and Supplementary Materials
Official documents are issued in all six languages. Waivers are required for official documents exceeding the word limit and are granted on an exceptional basis. Background papers are issued in English or in the language of submission only. A list of Reports and Supplementary Materials for CSD-17 will be posted as soon as available.

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2.2. Written Inputs from Major Groups
The CSD Secretariat welcomes written contributions from major group organizations that will contribute to CSD-17. Major groups are encouraged to make substantive contributions to CSD-17 in the form of:

• Brief written inputs to the Secretary-General's state of implementation reports, focusing on possible actions to overcome the obstacles to implementation identified during CSD-16. These reports will be finalized in time for the Intergovernmental Preparatory Meeting scheduled from 23– 27 February 2009, and will be available by December 2008.
  Deadline for submissions: 19 September 2008;

• As per past practice, there will be one document entitled “Major Groups’ Priorities for Action”, to be prepared by the CSD-17 major groups organizing partners in consultation with major group networks worldwide. The Major Groups’ paper is released unedited as part of the official documentation in all official UN languages. The Major Groups’ Priorities for Action paper builds on the review session’s Discussion Papers and includes each sector’s priorities for policy options and possible actions to overcome constraints and obstacles and meet the challenges identified by CSD-16 in the current thematic areas. The Priorities for Action paper is not only limited to recommendations for governments, but also includes policy options in which initiatives by Major Groups are integrated parts of the proposed solutions. It will provide a basis for Major Groups’ policy inputs and will serve as a starting point for their participation in the Intergovernmental Preparatory Meeting and in CSD-17.
   Deadline for submission: 1 November 2008;

• Case studies and examples of best practices, which can be submitted online (Ongoing);

• Major groups’ organizations can also submit input to the CSD-16/17 Matrix by e-mail. The Matrix is an information tool developed by the Secretariat. It aims to provide user-friendly information on practical experiences in implementation in the current thematic areas. It is based on information submitted by Governments, including through national reports; and by UN agencies and major groups. It takes into account information contained in Secretary-General’s reports and Partnerships for Sustainable Development registered with the CSD Secretariat, as well as information emerging from the regional implementation meetings. The Matrix is not an official document of the CSD. As an information tool, it is a work in progress. The latest version reflects CSD-16 discussions. The Secretariat will continue to update the Matrix as more information on implementation is made available.

For a list of useful contacts, please refer to Annex 3.

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2.3. Major Groups participation in inter-sessional meetings

To enhance, consolidate and supplement existing information on the agenda themes, a number of conferences, expert group meetings, workshops and other consultation opportunities are organized throughout the year. These events may be sponsored and hosted by Governments, various UN agencies, IGOs and other Major Groups organisations and often include representatives from major groups organizations. Access the calendar of inter-sessional meetings. 

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2.4. Expected Outcomes

The outcomes of CSD-17 will be recorded and published in the CSD-17 Report, including:

• Policy decisions on practical measures and options to expedite implementation
• Summary of the High-level segment, including the interactive discussion with major groups
• Record of regional discussions
• Record of the Partnership Fair
• Record of the Learning Centre

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The CSD has traditionally provided a lively forum for interaction among government officials, major groups and international organizations, infusing the CSD inter-governmental process with new ideas. Major groups’ representatives in the CSD process have participated in multi-stakeholder dialogues, interactive discussions, roundtables and panels. They have developed coordinated positions, launched several multi-stakeholder partnerships, organized dozens of side events to share experiences, successfully lobbied for particular initiatives that they felt the CSD should undertake or support, and agreed on joint implementation initiatives.

In recent years, major groups have been increasingly accepted within the official intergovernmental process as respected and essential partners in sustainable development, and their presence is now more integrated into the official sessions than ever before. The unique and innovative participatory traditions of the CSD have been widely acknowledged and are fully supported by the CSD. The CSD Bureau and the Secretariat continue to explore new ways to enhance major groups’ participation in the CSD process.

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3.1. Accreditation and Pre-Registration

Non-governmental participation in the CSD is subject to the rules of participation of the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC). These rules require that the non-governmental participants represent an NGO in consultative status with ECOSOC. Major group organizations that are in consultative status with ECOSOC, including those in the CSD Roster, can send representatives to CSD-17. Major group organizations who were accredited to the WSSD will be required to obtain consultative status with ECOSOC in order to participate in CSD meetings. ECOSOC rules do not permit participation of representatives from organizations that are not in consultative status.

If you are unsure of your organization’s accreditation status, you can check with the following sources:

ECOSOC Roster: If your organization is listed in the database, then it is accredited.

CSD Roster: If your organization is listed, it is accredited.

You can also:

• Contact the NGO Section. The NGO Section maintains up-to-date lists of accredited organizations, including those that have recently been granted consultative status but have not yet been added to the lists available on the Internet.
  One UN Plaza, Room DC1-1480 New York, NY 10017
  Tel: (1-212) 963-8652 Fax: (1-212) 963-9248
  E-mail

• Contact the Major Groups Programme at the CSD Secretariat.
  Two UN Plaza, Room 2210 New York NY 10007, USA
  Tel: (1-212) 963-8497 or (1-212) 963-4704 Fax: (1-917) 367-2341
  E-mail

Please make sure that your organization has the necessary consultative status BEFORE sending representatives to New York or making travel arrangements for them.

If your organization is not accredited and you want to send representatives to CSD-17, you are welcome to contact an accredited organization within your networks and explore the possibility that they include your representatives in their delegation. The major groups organizing partners may also choose, at their discretion, to include representatives of unaccredited organizations under their umbrella so that they may participate in the meeting.

Alternatively, major groups may also wish to request that they be included in their Government delegation by contacting the appropriate department of State.

Pre-registration

If you are planning to attend CSD-17, you must be pre-registered through an accredited organization in order to register at the meeting and receive a UN grounds pass. This includes any major groups’ representatives who participate in the Partnerships Fair, Learning Centre, and Side Events.

A new online system is being used this year for pre-registration to CSD-17 and its IPM. The UN-DESA Event Management System will allow you to log in and manage your organization's pre-registration request through the Internet, including adding or changing names of representatives and printing confirmation letters. Login information for your organization will be provided by the NGO Section. To request your username and password, please send an e-mail.

Representatives requiring a visa to enter the United States are advised to apply as early as possible in case any time is needed for special clearances by the US authorities, and ensure that the visa is received in time for travel. Past practice shows that when applying for US visa, it is recommended that NGO and other major group sectors representatives bring copies of the UN confirmation letter as well as a letter prepared by their own NGO at the time of their appointment with the US Consulate/Embassy. The NGO letter should include detailed information on the visa applicant: e.g., position, number of years working for the NGO, and number of applicants that the NGO is sending to CSD-17 if applicable.

NGO representatives who have existing working relations with the US Mission in their respective Country may try and contact their counterpart(s) and obtain a referral letter to be presented at the time of the interview with the Consular Section (Note that the referring officer has no role in the visa decision process).

To learn more about UN rules and regulations for major groups’ participation, please refer to our FAQ. 

Click here for detailed information on accreditation and pre-registration to CSD-17

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3.2. Major Groups’ Involvement in Official Sessions

Intergovernmental Preparatory Meeting (23-27 February 2009)
Structure and Modalities of Participation: Currently the CSD Bureau is mandated to consider the various options, using past practices as the baseline. More details will be posted as soon as a decision is made.

CSD-17 (4-15 May 2009)
Structure and Modalities of Participation: Currently the CSD Bureau is mandated to consider the various options, using past practices as the baseline. More details will be posted as soon as a decision is made.

Outcome
Major groups’ contributions made during CSD-15 are expected to inform the CSD and potentially influence the session’s outcomes, including the final text.

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3.3. Meeting with the CSD-17 Bureau and Major Groups

It is customary for the CSD Chair and other members of the Bureau to meet with major groups’ representatives in the course of the preparatory process and during the CSD Session. Information on the exact time and venue will be disseminated through our list server and posted on our website as it becomes available. As per past practice, a Co-chair will be designated to serve as a contact person for the major groups during the CSD-17 session.

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3.4. Major Groups’ Organizing Partners

The preparation of multi-stakeholder participation within the CSD is itself a multi-stakeholder process. Key major group networks are invited by the CSD Bureau to form a facilitating group called “organising partners”, which coordinates the preparations and assists the Secretariat in generating and guiding the engagement of stakeholders for each major group sector. The Secretariat chairs the facilitating group and supports its work throughout the preparatory process and the CSD session.

The major groups organizing partners’ main responsibilities include:

• Consulting with networks to prepare written inputs in the form of “Priorities for Action” addressing agriculture, rural development, land, drought, desertification, and Africa —including the cross-sectoral themes—that reflect their group’s views on deliverables and on the mobilization of concrete and tangible actions to advance implementation.

• Organizing, managing and disseminating data and information on Major groups and CSD-17.

• Consulting with networks to identify participants to serve on their sector’s delegation.

• Coordinating and facilitating the participation of representatives of their respective sector throughout the CSD-17 session, working in collaboration with other major group sectors’ representatives present at CSD-17 and the IPM.

Click here for the full list of Major Groups’ Organizing Partners for the 2008-2009 Implementation Cycle.

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3.5. CSD-17 Partnerships Fair

The CSD Partnerships Fair provides a venue for registered Partnerships for Sustainable Development to showcase progress, launch new partnerships, network with existing and potential partners, create synergies between partnerships and learn from each other's experiences. The Partnerships Fair gives CSD participants an opportunity to gather information on and discuss the valuable contribution of these important initiatives towards supporting the implementation of inter-governmentally agreed sustainable development goals and objectives.

The Partnerships Fair is an official part of the CSD. It will focus on partnerships working in the thematic areas of agriculture, rural development, land, drought, desertification, Africa and SIDS. A summary of its activities will be included in the Report of CSD 17.

Please be advised that Partnerships Fair activities will not be organized during the Intergovernmental Preparatory Meeting (IPM) from 23 to 27 February 2009.

General Structure of the CSD-17 Partnerships Fair

“Partnerships in Practice” Interactive Discussions: These sessions are organized by the CSD Partnerships Team to generate open dialogue on practical issues related to partnerships working to implement sustainable development within the CSD-16/17 thematic cluster, namely in the areas of Agriculture, Rural Development, Land, Drought, Desertification and Africa, as well as on issues common to all partnerships. In keeping with the policy-year focus on “practical measures and options to expedite implementation of commitments”, these interactive discussions aim to offer the opportunity to highlight “on the ground” experiences from partnership practitioners and are designed to maximise opportunities for CSD participants to raise questions, identify challenges, share information on lessons learned and best practices as well as find innovative solutions.

Partnerships Training Sessions: During CSD-16, two training sessions on partnerships-related issues were offered to CSD participants that attracted a significant amount of interest and participation. These highly interactive and dynamic sessions provided CSD participants with very valuable tools, resources, examples and practical experiences on establishing, developing and maintaining effective partnerships. They also highlighted the challenges, benefits and incentives of using partnerships as collaborative mechanisms or models for more effective delivery of sustainable development goals and objectives, involving a diverse group of stakeholders.

The CSD Secretariat will be offering once again the opportunity for organizations and/or Governments to sponsor similar sessions during CSD-17. Kindly contact the CSD Secretariat in early 2009 to discuss availability of time-slots and potential themes.

Partnerships Fair Information Desks: A limited number of information desks, free of charge, will be available upon request for those participating in CSD registered partnerships. CSD Partnerships representatives will have the opportunity to display and distribute information about their partnership as well as discuss their work more directly with representatives attending CSD-17.

Partnerships Information Desks will be offered during CSD-17 from 4 to 12 May 2009 from 10:00 AM to 6:00 PM. Please be advised that Partnerships Information Desks will not be available during the CSD-17 High Level Segment.

Who can participate at the Partnerships Fair?

All CSD participants, including representatives of Governments, UN system organizations, other intergovernmental organizations and accredited major groups, are welcome to attend the Partnerships Fair.
In particular, partnerships working in the areas of the CSD 16/17 thematic cluster - Agriculture, Desertification, Drought, Land, Rural Development and Africa -, are encouraged to participate. The launching of new partnerships is also encouraged and welcomed.

Please be advised that registration of a partnership with the CSD Secretariat does not constitute accreditation to the Commission on Sustainable Development. In order to gain access to UN premises during CSD 17, partners must ensure that they are accredited to the Commission on Sustainable Development (through a Government, intergovernmental organization, or Major Group).

CSD Partnerships Database

This interactive database contains information from over 340 partnerships that have voluntarily registered their activities with the Secretariat of the Commission on Sustainable Development. The information contained in this database is based on partnerships voluntary self-reports. Thus, the CSD Secretariat is urging all CSD registered Partnerships to keep updating their information in the database in the lead up to the CSD 17 so that CSD participants will be able to access the most current information on partnerships’ latest achievements and contributions to implementation.

The database can be accessed by clicking here.

Interested in registering your partnership?
For complete and detailed information on partnerships for sustainable development, including request forms, important dates and key documents, please click here.


For complete and detailed information on partnerships for sustainable development, including request forms, important dates and key documents, please please refer the Partnerships web page.  

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3.6. The Learning Center

The Learning Centre is part of the official programme of the Commission on Sustainable Development (CSD) and runs parallel to the CSD plenary sessions. Its purpose is to provide teaching and training at a practical level on topics of relevance to the specific themes being considered by the CSD, as well as selective cross-cutting themes of sustainable development to further implementation of Agenda 21, the Johannesburg Plan of Implementation (JPOI) and the Mauritius Strategy for the sustainable development of SIDS. If you wish to propose an activity in the Learning Centre, please follow the guidelines which will be posted in the near future on the CSD-17 main page.

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3.7. Side Events

Side events, sponsored by major groups, governments and UN agencies, will be organized as a complementary part of the CSD-17 programme of work and the Intergovernmental Preparatory Meeting in order to generate informal opportunities for exchange of information, experience and non-standard views. If you wish to organize a side event, please follow the guidelines for side events organizers at CSD-17 which will be posted in the near future on the CSD-17 main page.

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