The Johannesburg summit : the "official" summit and the "not-so-official" summit

• Jacques AUXIETTE
  Mayor, La Roche-sur-Yon ; treasurer, Fédération mondiale des cités unies (world federation of united cities) ; in charge of international affairs, Association des maires de France (association for the mayors of France)
  
• Georges CAVALLIER
  French national co-ordinator for the UN summit on the future of cities
  
• Michel MOUSEL
  President, Comité français pour le sommet mondial du développement durable (French committee for the world summit on durable development)
  

Summary

Twenty-two thousand people took part in the world summit on durable development in Johannesburg. Some participants took part in the framework of official negotiations, and others in the not-so-official, ie. the discussions took place at the same time between representatives of non-state institutions (such as NGOs, local authorities, companies etc.). Despite this mobilisation, gouvernance on a world scale still seems very hesitant, as witnessed by the lack of treatment given in official negotiations to major themes such as the spectacular growth of cities or even the essential role that regional authorities can play in the implementation of principles of durable development. Despite all this, there is one piece of good news : the Johannesburg summit was able to stand up to the triple offensive launched by the United States questioning the achievements in Rio, the need for global regulations and the recourse to the multiparty system… a few months before the outbreak of the war in Iraq.

Summary translated from French by Rachel MARLIN.

• The entire article was written by Élisabeth BOURGUINAT.

To obtain this article, you can :

• download it for free in French (PDF help) or contact ecopar@paris.ensmp.fr (Reference IN250303).