Solidarity and Sustainable Development

Abstract

No lasting success can be expected in promoting sustainable development without global solidarity. The tenth UNCTAD session adopted on February 18, 2000. The Bangkok Declaration: Global Dialogue and Dynamic Engagement, which stated that solidarity and a strong sense of moral responsibility must be the guiding light of national and international policy. Solidarity was proclaimed as a fundamental value of international relations in the UN Millennium Declaration of September 8, 2000 and in the UN World Summit Outcome of September 16, 2005.

However, no tangible progress has been made in correlating the duty of solidarity with the major objectives of sustainable development. Efforts are continuing under the United Nations Decade of Education for Sustainable Development (2005 -2014).

Solidarity should be incorporated in national constitutions. Education curricula should include provisions for teaching global solidarity. The UN Secretary-General's reports on the implementation of the UN Summit's declarations should contain sections on the progress achieved in advancing global solidarity and should encourage collective reflection under the motto Opus Solidaritatis Pax (Peace is the fruit of solidarity). Further consideration must be given to establishing a World Solidarity Institutions Organization, as suggested in 2004.

There is an urgent need for multilateral diplomacy to contribute to the universal acceptance of global solidarity as an imperative prerequisite of authentic sustainable development.