The dissatisfaction, anger and disillusionment of civil society with the outcome text of the Rio+20 Summit—and the lack of willingness of heads of state to make it stronger—has culminated today in a walkout by civil society. Lead by youth activists, hundreds left the venue of Rio+20, chanting “the future we want is not found here,” after the NGO Major Group had rejected the text already in the opening plenary of the high-level segment of Rio+20.
The protests attracted widespread media attention. We document some of the media coverage in this post - starting with just a few and extending the list over the coming hours, as the news items appear across the globe. New items will be on top, as the list grows, news items will be moving down.
Rio+20 protesters rip up summit text Video on the Guardian website Climate campaigners carry out a ‘ritual rip-up’ of the Rio+20 summit negotiating text that they condemn as a betrayal for future generations. Cam Fenton, a Canadian youth environmental campaigner, says the civil society rejects the attempts of world leaders to solve the world’s environmental problems
Civil Society Groups Stage Protest, Walk Out of Rio Centro Article by the Student Reporters Members from civil society groups staged a major sit-in style protest at the RioCentro convention center on Thursday before marching out en-mass, carrying banners and chanting the slogan “The future we want….is not here!”
Rio+20 draft text is 283 paragraphs of fluff Article on the Guardian website The text could be illustrated with rainbows and psychedelic unicorns and stuck on the door of your toilet. But without any proposed means of implementation, it might just as well be deployed for a different function in the same room.
Youth and Civil Society Raise the Stakes for World Leaders to Stop a #RioFail Article by the Media Co-Op Youth from around the globe joined with Civil Society groups to push world leaders to increase their ambition and prevent the failure of Rio+20.
Criticism and discord mark Rio summit end Article for BBC Online The United Nations summit on sustainable development is entering its final day in the Brazilian city of Rio de Janeiro amid widespread criticism of the likely outcome.
Rio+20 Fail: Youth Lead Walkout of UN Summit Article on Common Dreams Slamming leaders’ negotiating text as a failure for people and the environment, youth climate leaders stage civil disobedience.
Lame it on Rio: Youth stage Earth Summit walkout Article by Bill McKibben, the founder of 350.org, for Grist The Rio+20 conference is remarkably listless; the energy of 1992 has bled into a formulaic bureaucracy-fest. But it came spontaneously alive for a few hours this afternoon, when a youth-led demonstration turned into an Occupy-style sit-down that in turn agreed to a mass walkout.
ONU elogia metas e ONGs deixam conferência Article on Odia A manifestação de 200 jovens de organizações sociais deu o tom (azedo) nesta quinta-feira na conferência da ONU sobre desenvolvimento sustentável.
Rio+20 protesters perform ‘ritual rip-up’ of negotiated text Article on the Guardian website Anger rises at Rio Earth summit, as raucous demo focuses on Future We Want text that ‘moves us forward by inches’
Rio+20 politicians deliver ‘new definition of hypocrisy’ claim NGOs Article on the Guardian website Greenpeace, WWF and Oxfam criticise world leaders for shirking responsibilities and say civil society must act in their place
Dispatches From Rio (and Beyond): Young People Reflect on What’s Missing Article on the New York Times website Here’s two fresh dispatches from young people reflecting on Rio+20, the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development.