IUCN, the International Union for Conservation of Nature

The first Regional debate on Future of Sustainability was held on June 4th, 2008 entitled Future of Sustainability Debate in the Arab Region: Voices from the South.   

The series of annual sustainability debates will raise the profile of IUCN and the Alexandria Library as important think-tanks for sustainability  in the region.

While IUCN works within a sustainable development paradigm, it is not generally regarded as a sustainability organization itself. However, in order to more effectively deliver its mission, and in order to make more rapid progress towards sustainability, the Union can play a more proactive role in mobilizing and convening other stakeholders for more holistic sustainability goals. To this end, IUCN is proposing to convene and provide platforms on sustainability themes, with key stakeholders from major economic sectors to address 21C challenges, in collaboration with key regional institutions and think tanks. The annual Sustainability Forums would provide an important vehicle to help deliver concrete results around IUCN’s programmatic themes at a regional level.

As a leading centre for learning, tolerance, dialogue and understanding, the Library of Alexandria in Egypt is well positioned to play a leadership role and act as a think tank for sustainability issues within the North African region. With access to considerable intellectual resources and networks the Library can help enrich and deepen a new generation of sustainability thinking and practice, and make significant contributions to the proposed Forums as well as the forthcoming IUCN Congress in Barcelona in 2008. The Library is already responding to the various challenges in this arena by collaborating with the Middle East and North Africa Network for Environmental Economics. These further strengthen the leadership and think-tank role of the Library of Alexandria within the sustainability field.

The main objectives of the Sustainability Forums to be held in Alexandria Library are:

 1.       Provide a platform to discuss key sustainability themes with major stakeholders within the Arab region.

2.       To develop partnerships for commitment and action on concrete sustainability themes within the Arab region.

3.       Frame and re-define key challenges to and opportunities for sustainability in the Arab region;

4.       Inform the debate on the balance between development and conservation in the era of globalization, poverty, climate change, and knowledge economy;