Local Agenda 21
What is Local Agenda 21 ?
In 1992, world leaders came together to focus on these problems at the 'UN Conference on Environment and Development' in Rio de Janeiro. The outcome of that conference was a simple but challenging question.
"How can we ensure that our children and grandchildren, wherever they live, will have a quality of life as good as we in the West do now?"
Since then communities world-wide have begun to shape their own answers. They are creating positive visions of their future, building on what they are doing now but making sure that over time their actions add up to meet the vision. They are not doing this just for themselves but are linking to global concerns and global actions. Binding these communities together is one of the initiatives from Rio: Local Agenda 21.
If sustainability is to be achieved, action at the local level – in the parish or neighbourhood where people live - will be vital. That is where Local Agenda 21 comes into the picture.
It enables parishes and local communities to:
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build on the good things already going on;
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identify what isn't being done and start to plug the gaps
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have a stronger voice in decisions affecting them, and
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pull things together and keep up the momentum.
In other words to become more "sustainable"
It is Local because long term progress only comes when people start to organise and act locally.
It is an Agenda because it encourages people to think widely - about social, economic and environmental things - and to link actions together.
The 21 refers to the 21st century - and now we are in it! It means the need to plan ahead and generally to work towards sustainability - in other words towards finding an answer to that critical question raised in Rio.
Local Agenda 21 in Kennet
We have given the Local Agenda 21 Strategy for the Kennet area the sub title From Rio to Ramsbury. We have done that to emphasise the links between the principles established at the Rio Summit and later and the need for local action.
Follow here to view The Strategy (pdf, 62 KB)