Earth Summit

Earth Summit was created as a means for member states to cooperate together internationally on development issues after the Cold War.

Its supreme decision-making body, the Conference of the Parties (COP) meets annually to assess progress in dealing with climate change.

[citation needed] The Convention on Biological Diversity was opened for signature at the Earth Summit and made a start towards a redefinition of measures that did not inherently encourage the destruction of natural ecoregions and so-called uneconomic growth.

[4] Although President George H. W. Bush signed the Earth Summit's Convention on Climate, his EPA Administrator William K. Reilly acknowledges that U.S. goals at the conference were difficult to negotiate and the agency's international results were mixed, including the U.S. failure to sign the proposed Convention on Biological Diversity.

[citation needed] Critics point out that many of the agreements made in Rio have not been realized regarding such fundamental issues as fighting poverty and cleaning up the environment.

Malaysia was successful at blocking the US-proposed convention on forests and its prime-minister Mahathir Mohamad accused later the global North of exercising eco-imperialism at this summit.

[16] "25.2 It is imperative that youth from all parts of the world participate actively in all relevant levels of decision-making processes because it affects their lives today and has implications for their futures.

[19][20] "The involvement of today's youth in environment and development decision-making...is critical to the long term success of Agenda 21" (UNCED 1992).