Reform of the information service

Environmental Policy and Law, 14/4 (/985) ween what most Governments ask of UNEP and the resources they provide. However, too much constructive work had been carried out by the present Council to allow him to end on a sour note. The Council had reaffirmed the importance of the environment. It had strengthened UNEP's mandate and provided clear, practical policy guidance, thereby underscoring his conviction that UNEP has a wider role in helping the United Nations to build a better world. The President of the Session, Dr. Emil Salim, also addressed the delegates before the closure of the Session . Dr. Salim said that during the debates, cool self-restraint had prevailed over strident insistence, reason over emotion and cooperation over confrontation. ~II

this marked a growing and mature realism on the part of nations in dealing with environmental problems. An unrealistic attitude had been sobered by experience gained since the 1972 Stockholm Conference. Three years ago at the 1982 meeting to mark the ten years of Stockholm, frustration was widespread in the face of all the problems, but he felt that now environmental concern seems to have been re-awakened and in this process of re-awakening we have become more realistic and more aware of the complexity and immensity of the environmental problem we face. This re-awakening was certainly not unaffected by the recent spate of bitter experiences and the occurence of grave environmental disasters. All these tragedies caused a wave of concern

107 on the part of all people, not just on the part of environmentalists and scientists but also on the part of decision-makers and the public at large. Environmental problems have now become living and immediate realities for people all over the world. Such wide-spread concern should provide a renewed impetus towards fresh efforts by all national governments as well as by international agencies, including UNEP. UNEP must step up its activities and increase its outreach to assure the widest possible participation of the people and the communities. Dr. Salim continued "if I can judge the session's mood, it is that UNEP should reconsider the area of environmental problems at hand and try to establish some focal points ' 0 for action".

SELECTED DOCUMENTS UNEP 13th GOVERNING COUNCIL (14-24 May 1985)* DECISIONS (Selection) REFORM OF THE INFORMATION SERVICE The Governing Council. Recalling its decision 12/15 of 28 May 1984 , Noling with appreclalion the details prov lded in the Executive Director's reports on pro gress made in the reform of the Inform ation Serv ice, ' Welcoming the ne w publication UNEP News , 1. Reaffirms the prlonttes to be followed in the relorm of the Inlormatron Service , as laid out in dec ision 12115, parag raph 1, and In par tlcular 1he need to devote more re sources to meeting the information requirements of develop ing countr ies; 2. Notes with appreciation that the disconresources released as a result of the unuanon of s upport for Mazmg/fa have been applied to regional Informalion act ivities and the development 01 non-traditronat lorms of inlormation; 3. Urges the E xeculive Director to continue they efforts to streamline information activ o Ilres ; 4. Requests the Executive D irector to pro Vide Gov ernments perlodrcany , through the Committe e 01 Permanent Repre sentatives

established under Council decrsron 131 ... 01.. . May 1985, with inlormatlon on the allocation and utilization of funds for Inlormatron activit ies financed a s lollows: (a) Under the information budget line; (b) Unter the programme and programme support costs budget; (c) Through projects under other budget lines or through the Revolv ing Fund (Inlorma· tion); 5. Urges that e very effort Is made to ensure that the inlormatlon conveyed through the programme Is 01 the h ighest quality possible, In terms 01 both scientific va lidity and timeliness; 6. Requests the Commillee of Permanent Representatives to rev iew penodrcally the performance 01 the Information Service, tncludlng progress In its reform; 7. Invites the E xeculive Director to conlinue to co-operate with the Commillee of Perma nent Representat ives in this r eview, and to report to the Council at its fourteenth session on progress In the Implementation of decision 12/15; 8. Further requests the Executive Director to ensure Within available resources , that all publications of the Environment Programme appear In at least the t wo work ing languages ,

except when the publications are e xclusively drrected towards reg ions of the world where only one language Is used .

WORLD CLIMATE PROGRAMME The Governing Council . Recalling Its dsclsrons 7/4 0 of 3 May 1979, B/6 0129 April 1980, section II, and 9/13 A of 26 May 1981 . lmNoting the progress being made in the plementatlon 01 the World Climate Programme, and In particular the World Climate Impact Studras Programme implemented by the United Nations Environment Programme, Invites the E xecutive Director , in cooperation with the World Meteorological Organization and within available resources, to support the further development 01 the World Climate Programme by: (a) Encouraging the d evelopment 01 na tronal climate programmes where none exist at present, a nd the inclusion 01 climate lrnpact studies components WIthin such programmes ; (b) Facilitating closer co-opera lion among national climate prog rammes and between them and the World Climate Programme, with a view to realizing the objectives 01the World Climate Programme.

MARINE POLLUTION The GovernIng Council. Recalling section VIII of its decrslon 12/12 of 28 May 1984, Noling the progress made in assessing marine pollution probl ems and in developing methodologies, relerence method s and 'S~

also page 86.

0378-777X/85/$3.30 © 1985 Elsevier Science Publishers B.V. (North-Holland)