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Sixty-ninth session of the Commission, 20-21 April 2021

Promoting circular economy and sustainable use of natural resources in the UNECE region

20 - 21 April 2021
Geneva Switzerland

The UNECE region leads the world in producing, value-adding and transforming its natural resources for socio-economic consumption. However, these resources are often finite. Their production and consumption require enormous energy and other resource inputs, and lead to environmental degradation and increased vulnerability to climate change – effects that are compounded on the region’s increasingly urbanized populations. Transitioning to a more circular economy and sustainable use of natural resources is crucial for achieving the SDGs.  

The 69th session of the UNECE will gather ministers and deputy ministers from the region and provide countries with an opportunity to: 

  • Exchange experiences on transitioning to a more circular economy and sustainable use of natural resources 

  • Identify gaps and ways to address them 

  • Share their success stories via dedicated webinars and exhibits 

  • Submit voluntary commitments related to the theme of the session to accelerate progress in the region.

 

Programme, agenda

Title

English

French

Russian

Programme of the 69th session (Draft as of  21 April 2021) PDF    

E/ECE/1493  - Annotated provisional agenda for the sixty-ninth session 

PDF

PDF

PDF

Statements and presentations

20 April 2021

Morning session

Opening and Welcome  

 

H. E. Mr.Mr. Yury Ambrazevich, Chair of the Commission

UN web TV

 

Ms. Olga Algayerova, Executive Secretary, Economic Commission for Europe

UN web TV

6:26

 

Ms. Tatiana Valovaya, Director-General of the United Nations Office at Geneva

statement

 

Mr. Frans Timmermans, Executive Vice-President of the European Commission

Video

 

Ms. Odile Renaud-Basso, President of the European Bank of Reconstruction and Development

UN web TV

36:15

 

Mr. Dominic Waughray, Managing Director of the World Economic Forum. 

Video

 

Delegation

High Level Segment

Spain

H.E. Ms. Teresa Ribera, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for the Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge

Video

Belarus

H.E. Mr. Vladimir Makei, Minister of Foreign Affairs

statement

Armenia

H.E. Mr. Vahan Kerobyan, Minister of Economy

statement

Turkmenistan

H.E. Mr. Muhammetgeli Serdarov, Minister of Finance and Economy

statement

Slovakia

H.E. Mr. Ján Budaj, Minister of Environment

UN web TV

1:03:40

Georgia

H.E. Mr. Levan Davitashvili, Minister of Environmental Protection and Agriculture

statement

Austria

H.E. Ms. Leonore Gewessler, Federal Minister of Climate Action, Environment, Energy, Mobility, Innovation and Technology

Video

Andorra

H.E. Ms. Sílvia Calvó Armengol, Minister of Environment, Agriculture and Sustainability

Video

Luxembourg

H.E. Ms. Carole Dieschbourg, Minister of the Environment, Climate and Sustainable Development

Video

North Macedonia

H.E. Mr. Nuredini Naser, Minister of Environment

Video

Russian Federation

H.E. Mr. Sergei Vershinin, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs

UN web TV

1:38:05

Ireland

H.E. Mr. James Brown, Minister of Justice and Equality

statement

Germany

H.E. Ms. Elisabeth Winkelmeier-Becker, Deputy Minister of Economic Affairs and Energy

Video

Hungary

H.E. Mr. Attila Steiner, State Secretary, Ministry for Innovation and Technology

UN web TV

1:52:35

Bulgaria

H.E. Mr. Milen Lyutskanov, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs

UN web TV

1:57:50

Romania

H.E. Mr. Ionuț Sorin Banciu, Secretary of State, Ministry of Environment, Water and Forests

statement

Portugal

H.E. Ms. Inês dos Santos Costa, Secretary of State of Environment

statement

Czech Republic

H.E. Mr. Vladislav Smrž, Deputy Minister of Environment

statement

Slovenia

H.E. Dr. Stanislav Raščan, State Secretary, Ministry of Foreign Affairs

Video

United States of America

H.E. Ms. Nerissa Cook, Deputy Assistant Secretary, Bureau of International Organizations Affairs, Department of State

Video

Latvia

H.E. Ms. Alda Ozola, Deputy State Secretary, Ministry of Environmental Protection and Regional Development

statement

Serbia

H.E. Ms. Sandra Dokić, Assistant Minister of Environmental Protection

UN web TV

2:28:15

United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland

H.E. Ms. Miriam Shearman, Deputy Permanent Representative

statement

Switzerland

Ms. Martine Rohn-Brossard, Head of Europe, Trade and Development Cooperation Section,  Swiss Federal Office for the Environment.

statement

Estonia

Mr. Kaupo Heinma, Deputy Secretary-General of the Unit of Environmental Management and International Affairs, Ministry of the Environment

statement

Croatia

Mr. Marko Markic, Director of EU Programmes and Projects, European and International Affairs, Ministry of Economy and Sustainable Development

UN web TV

2:43:50

Kazakhstan

H.E. Mr. Akhmetzhan Primkulov, Vice Minister of Ecology, Geology and Natural Resources

Video

Greece

Mr. Konstantinos ARAVOSSIS, Secretary-General for Natural Environment & Water, Ministry of Environment and Energy

Video

Israel

Mr.  Alon Zask, Deputy Director General for Natural Resources, Ministry of Environmental Protection

Video

Republic of Moldova

H.E. Ms. Iuliana Dragalin, State Secretary, Ministry of Economy and Infrastructure

Video

Ukraine

H.E. Mr. Taras Kachka, Deputy Minister for the Development of Economy, Trade and Agriculture

UN web TV

3:04:45

Montenegro

H.E. Ms. Slavica Milacic, Permanent Representative of Montenegro

statement

The Netherlands

H.E. Ms. Stientje van Veldhoven, Minister for Environment, Host of the WCEF 2021

statement

Bosnia and Herzegovina

Mr. Mirza Hujić, Assistant Minister, Sector for Water Resources, Tourism and Environment Protection, Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Relations

UN web TV

3:21:45

Azerbaijan

Ms. Sevinj Hasanova, Deputy Minister of Economy

UN web TV

3:23:40

Tajikistan

H.E. Mr. Abdurahmonzoda Abdurahmon, Deputy Minister of Economic Development and Trade

UN web TV

3:28:05

20 April 2021

Afternoon session

Item 3:  Roundtable: Building back better - Accelerating the shift to a more circular economy and the sustainable use of natural resources

UN web TV

Segment 1: Circular Energy, Mobility and Digital Transformation: Towards Cradle -to-Cradle Models

 

Mr.  Julian Hilton, Chair, ECE Expert Group on Resource Management, SDG Delivery Working Group

 

Mr. Denis Deryushkin, Deputy Head, Federal State Budgetary Institution “Russian Energy Agency”, Ministry of Energy, Russian Federation,

 

Mr. Peter Handley, Head of Unit, Energy Intensive Industries and Raw Materials, Directorate-General for the Internal Market, Entrepreneurship and SMEs, European Commission,

 

Ms. Sarah Forbes, Division of Minerals Sustainability, Department of Energy, United States of America

 

Mr. Christoph Wolff, Head of Shaping the Future of Mobility, World Economic Forum

 

Mr. Thomas Deloison, Director Mobility, World Business Council for Sustainable Development,

 

Mr. Mr. Scott Foster, Director, Sustainable Energy Division, ECE

 

Mr. John Batten, Global Cities Director, Arcadis,

UN web TV

Segment 2: Supply Chain Traceability and Sustainability 

 

Mr. Joss Blériot, Executive Lead, International Institutions & Governments, Ellen MacArthur Foundation

 

Ms.  Olga Algayerova, Executive Secretary, ECE

 

Ms. Maylis Souque, Senior Advisor on Corporate Social Responsibility and Responsible Business Conduct (RBC), Ministry for Economy, Finance and Recovery, France

 

Mr. Greg Rampley, Chief, Bioproducts and Supply Chain Economics, Natural Resources Canada 

 

Mr. Gernot Lorenz, Federal Ministry for Climate Action, Environment, Energy, Mobility, Innovation and Technology, Austria

 

Mr. Bartosz Zambrzycki, Directorate-General for Health and Food Safety, European Commission

 

Ms. Alice Tipping, Lead, Sustainable Trade and Fisheries Subsidies, International Institute for Sustainable Development

 

Ms. Elisa Tonda, Head, Consumption and Production Unit, UN Environment

 

Ms. Miriam Shearman, Deputy Permanent Representative to the United Nations and other International Organisations in Geneva, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland

 

Ms. Maria Benedetta Francesconi, Directorate General for Industrial Policy, Innovation and SMEs, Ministry of Economic Development, Italy

 

Mr. Crispin Conroy, Permanent Observer of the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) to the United Nations Office at Geneva

21 April 2021

Morning session

UN web TV

Item 3. Roundtable: Building back better - Accelerating the shift to a more circular economy and the sustainable use of natural resources (cont.)

Segment 3: Business perspectives 

Video

Mr. John Denton AO, Secretary General, International Chamber of Commerce

 

Mr. Jyrki Katainen, President, Finnish Innovation Fund, SITRA

 

Mr. Dmitry Mariyasin, Deputy Executive Secretary, ECE

 

Ms. Shakhlo Turdikulova, First Deputy Minister, Ministry of Innovative Development, Uzbekistan

 

Ms. Natalia Stapran, Director, Department of Multilateral Economic Cooperation and Special Projects, Ministry of Economic Development, Russian Federation

Video

Ms. Elisabeth Winkelmeier-Becker, Deputy Minister, Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy, Germany

 

Mr. Pär Larshans, Head of Sustainability and Public Affairs, Ragn-Sells

 

Ms. Ardita Seknaj, Secretary General, ICC Albania

 

Mr.Stephan Sicars, Managing Director, Directorate of Environment and Energy, UNIDO

 

Mr. Laszlo Borbely, State Counsellor to the Prime Minister, Romania

 

Mr.Alexander Szymoniuk, Lukas Land Building Technologies

 

Mr.Joakim Wernberg, Swedish Entrepreneurship Forum

UN web TV

1:26:50

Item 5: Report on activities on the high-level theme of the sixty-eighth session; “Smart Sustainable Cities: Drivers for Sustainable Development” and update on the work in the nexus areas

Circular Cities: Local action towards a circular economy 

 

Ms. Ms. Olga Algayerova, ECE Executive Secretary

PPP

Mr. Mechislav Goi, Mayor of Grodno, Belarus

 

Mr. Victor Vieira, Senior Advsisor to the Director of Lisbon City Urban Environmental Department, City of Lisbon, Portugal

PPP

Ms. Eleni Myrivili, Senior Advisor to the City of Athens

UN web TV

2:14:30

The work of the UNECE Nexus Teams  

 

Mr. Yaroslav Demchenkov, Deputy Minister for European Integration, Ministry of Energy, Ukraine

PPP

Mr. Robert Thaler, Chair of the Transport, Health and Environment Pan-European Programme (THE PEP)

 

Mr. Jan Hoffmann, Head, Trade Logistics Branch, United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD)

 

Ms. Elisabete Quintas da Silva, Chair of the ECE Committee on Environmental Policy

Documents

Doc symbol and No.

Document title

English

French

Russian

E/ECE/1494

Biennial Report

PDF

PDF

PDF

E/ECE/1495

Circular economy and the sustainable use of natural resources: Trends and opportunities in the region of the Economic Commission for Europe

PDF

 PDF

 PDF

E/ECE/1496

Circular economy and the sustainable use of natural resources: Toolbox of instruments of the Economic Commission for Europe

PDF

PDF

 PDF

E/ECE/1497

Consideration of the high-level statement

PDF

 PDF

 PDF

E/ECE/1498

Progress report on the work of the Economic Commission for Europe related to the high-level theme of the sixty-eighth session

 PDF

 PDF

 PDF

E/ECE/1499

Report on activities of the Executive Committee

 PDF

 PDF

 PDF

E/ECE/1500

E/ECE/1500/Add.1

Other issues calling for decision by the Commission

 PDF

 PDF

 PDF

PDF

 PDF

PDF

E/ECE/1501

Evaluation of the Regional Forum on Sustainable Development

 PDF

 PDF

 PDF

  List of Participants PDF    

(for reference) National action plans on the Circular Economy of UNECE member States

Side event Cyber Monday, 19 April 2021

Side event programme in the lead up to the Commission (as of 16 April 2021)

Invitation to a side event: A framework for international cooperation on Sustainable Resource Management

UN Web TV

Morning session

Afternoon session