Environmental and Social Safeguards
Environmental and Social Safeguards is the adaption and integration of precautionary environmental and social principles and considerations into projects and programs. The objective of such safeguards is to prevent and mitigate undue harm to the environment and people at the earliest possible planning stage. Safeguards can appear as a combination of minimum standards and best practice guidelines.
There is a growing awareness at both international and national levels of the need for effective environmental and social safeguards. The EMG feels that it is important to seek systematic and improved ways of taking due consideration to avoid potential environmental and social negative impacts when developing new strategies or projects to fulfill our mandates.
The EMG 15th Senior Officials meeting has therefore requested the Chair of the EMG to organize a consultation process and to prepare a report on options for the development of a possible United Nations system-wide approach to environmental and social safeguards. The EMG will consult members, the United Nations Development Group and the High-level Committee on Management.
The initial review will be conducted in 2010 and will be based on existing polices and guidelines. Read More
First workshop on safeguards
Terms of Reference for the Consultation Process 2010
Review of in-house environmental management policies and practices (JIU/REP/2010/1)
UNDG: Mainstreaming Environmental Sustainability in Country Analysis and the UNDAF
UNEP Financial Initiative: Fiduciary responsibility. Legal and practical aspects of intergrating environmental, social and governance issues into institutional investment.
UNEP Economics and Trade Branch: Integrated Policymaking for Sustainable Development:
A Reference Manual (2009)
World Bank Group: Environmental and Social Safeguards
European Commission: Environmental Assessments of New Initiatives
UNECE: Strategic Environmental Assessment Protocol to the Espoo Convention (2003)
Sphere Project: Humanitarian Charter and Millennium Standards in Disaster Response
IASC: Natural Disaster Guidelines - Human Rights