Quick Overview

Ms. von Weizsäcker expresses how she has enjoyed listening and learning through her participation in many negotiations and drafting processes such as the biodiversity convention, biosafety protocol, the Earth Charter, and more. Her elaboration on the meaning and importance of the Precautionary Principle, the Polluter Pays Principle and the Environment Democracy Principle is full of insights and clarity. She reflects on the power dynamics in some negotiations and also in the causes and on the consequences of environmental degradation. On the interactions among different actors to move forward in the implementation of these principles, she uses an example in the COVID context. She outlines some of the deep challenges that every organization faces, including finding the right level of engagement and responsibility, building consensus, and listening to the voices of the unheard. Towards the end, she encourages people to travel to the unknown with all the navigating tools and to act on the best available knowledge, as the world cannot afford to wait.