Lobbying and Advocacy for Habitat III Webinar:Subtitle

Felix Dodds• Felix Dodds is a Senior Fellow at the Global Research Institute and a Senior Affiliate of the Water

Institute at the University of North Carolina and an Associate Fellow at the Tellus Institute.

• He was the co-director of the 2014 Nexus Conference on Water, Food, Energy and Climate.

• Felix was the Executive Director of Stakeholder Forum for a Sustainable Future from 1992-2012.

• He has been active at the UN since 1990 attending and actively participating in the World Summits, Conferences and has advised the Danish and UK Governments and the European Union

• In 2011 he chaired the United Nations DPI 64th NGO conference - 'Sustainable Societies Responsive Citizens'.

• From 1997-2001 he co-chaired the UN Commission on Sustainable Development NGO Steering Committee.

• He has coordinated some of the most innovative stakeholder dialogues at the intergovernmental level Bonn Water (2001), Bonn Energy (2004) and Bonn Nexus (2011).

• He has written or edited thirteen books the latest is due out in May 2016 The Water, Food and Climate Nexus: Challenges and an agenda for Action which he edited with Jamie Bartram.

• His next one out in September is Negotiating the Sustainable Development Goals: A transformational agenda for an insecure world with Ambassador David Donoghue and Jimena Leiva Roesch

Felix Dodds www.felixdodds.net2

What were Habitats I and II? • Habitat I in Vancouver, 1976

• The chief outcome of Habitat I was the Vancouver Declaration on Human Settlements comprised of an action plan with 64 recommendations for national action.

• It also led to the United Nations Centre for Human Settlements (UNCHS), which would ultimately become UN-Habitat, the official UN agency for cities & human settlements.

• Habitat II, Istanbul 1996 – the City Summit• Provided a new mandate for the UNCHS. (1)to ensure adequate shelter

for all and (2) to guarantee sound development of human settlements in an urbanizing world.

• Its chief outcomes were the Istanbul Declaration on Human Settlements adopted jointly as a new global action plan to realize sustainable human settlements

• Habitat II +5• Recommended the upgrading of the UNCHS to UN Habitat a progarmme of

the UN

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Defining Non-Governmental OrganisationsHow do you describe an NGO? One survey found 48 different

terms and acronyms. Here is a sample:

In short, there is no agreed terminology for describing the NGO sector. In some ways, it is easier to describe what NGOs are not, rather than

what they are. It is generally agreed that NGOs are not:• part of government, or • organized primarily for private profit.

BINGOs Big International NGOs BONGOs Business Organized NGOsCBOs Community Based OrganizationsCSOs Civil Society OrganizationsENGOs Environmental NGOsGONGOs Government Organized NGOsMONGO

IPOs Indigenous Peoples OrganizationsGROs Grassroots Organizations GSCOs Global Social Change OrganizationsNPOs Nonprofit OrganizationsVos Voluntary OrganizationsNGI

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Definitions and players• Stakeholders: Those

impacted by a decision or impact on a decision

• Social movements: are a type of group action. They are large, sometimes informal, groupings of individuals or organizations which focus on specific political or social issues. In other words, they carry out, resist, or undo a social change.

• Civil society: is the "aggregate of non-governmental organizations and institutions that manifest interests and will of citizens.

• Global citizenship: defines a person who places their identity with a "global community" above their identity as a citizen of a particular nation or place.

• The idea is that one’s identity transcends geography or political borders and that the planetary human community is interdependent and whole; humankind is essentially one

July 22, 2012

NGOs, constituent, civil society, or major groups?“Major Groups” is a term that

was introduced in Agenda 21, agreed by governments at the Rio Earth Summit. It describes nine sectors of society identified as having a significant role in sustainable development:

1. Women 2. Children and youth3. Indigenous people4. NGOs (Civil Society

Organizations)5. Local authorities6. Workers and trade unions7. Business and industry8. The scientific and technical

community (Research and Academia)

9. Farmers10.Grass roots organizations11.Parliamentarians12.Foundations and philanthropies13.Professionals14.Media15.Older Persons

Stakeholders in Intergovernmental Processes

FOUR important functions:• Setting agendas• Negotiating outcomes• Conferring legitimacy• Implementing solutions

What is the process up to Habitat III18-20 April Latin America and the Caribbean Regional Meeting – Mexico25-29th Open ended consultations with Policy Units – New York16-17th May Informal hearings for local and sub national governments – New York 18-20th May Informal negotiations – New York1-2 June German Conference on Habitat III invitation only – Berlin6-7th June Informal hearings with CSOs – New York8-10th June Informal negotiations – New York25-27 July Third Prepcom – Surabaya Indonesia 17-20 October Habitat III - Quito Ecuador

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Zero draft: THE NEW URBAN AGENDA – THE HABITAT III OUTCOME DOCUMENT –

Outline1. QUITO DECLARATION: MOVING TOWARDS A NEW GLOBAL URBAN AGENDA. (Guiding principles and

vision)2. Sustainable Housing And Urban Development Action PlanA. The Transformative Commitments For A Sustainable Urban Development. (To Achieve What And Why)• Leave No One Behind, Urban Equity And Poverty Eradication• Ecological And Resilient Cities And Human Settlements• Create Sustainable And Inclusive Urban Growth, Prosperity And Opportunities For AllB. Effective Implementation (How And With Whom)• Building The Urban Structure: Establishing A Supportive National Framework• Planning And Managing The Urban Spatial Development: Strategic And Integrated Planning• Financing The New Urban Agenda: Enhancing The Means Of ImplementationC. Framework For Action: National And Local Urban Agenda (Actions, Actors, Timeline For Action) D. Follow-Up And Review

Hard and Soft Law – SDGs are soft law

Hard Law▪ Legally binding▪ MEAs that conform to the

1969 Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties

▪ Enforceable in law

•Soft Law• Non-binding• Global or regional instruments

that do not strictly conform to the Vienna Convention but could play positive role in national policy-making.

• Important influence on international and national policy

• Can lay the groundwork for multilateral accords

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SWOT analysis Strengths

a. What is the unique nature of the campaign?

b. What does the team do well?c. What do other people see as

your strengths?

Weaknesses

a. What can you improve?b. What are your resource

limitations?c. What do you do badly?d. How do others perceive your

campaign?e. Do you know what all the key

governments think of your campaign?

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SWOT analysis (cont.)Opportunities

a. Where is the campaign’s support?b. What academic evidence is there

in support of your campaign?c. What are the key media chances

you could utilise in the future to support your campaign?

d. Who is seeing key government officials in the short term

Threatsa. What are the obstacles facing the

campaign?b. What funds do you have to

support the campaign?c. What are the views of other

stakeholders?d. Which of the key country blocks

oppose your campaign?

National Preparations What Can You Do?• What do you want?• Have a briefing paper no longer than two pages • Have some paragraphs ready• Know the government officials in charge of the Habitat in

capital and meet with them• Utilize parliament to raise the issue to the Minister• Write article for national newspaper• Town Hall Meetings – Citizens Charter• Follow up – start a conversation with government now• Projects to implement

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Traditional Media Traditional media tends to be one way where you read an article, listen to a radio programme or watch a TV news item. You have a very limited range of engagement with traditional media you can write a letter to the editor and sometimes join a phone in for a radio programme.• Press releases• News items• Fact sheets for the media• Video news releases• Opinion articles – which could be syndicated • Editorials

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Social Media Social News: Twitter, Digg, Propeller, Reddit. Interact by short messaging, voting for articles and commenting on them.Social Networking: Facebook, Google Plus, LinkedIn (which now enables blog placements too) Hi5, Last.FM, MySpace. Interaction by adding friends and colleagues, commenting on profiles, joining groups and having discussions.Social Photo and Video Sharing: YouTube, Pinterest, Flickr. Interact by sharing photos or videos and commenting on user submissions.Wikis: Wikipedia, Wikia. Interact by adding articles and editing existing articles.Website: Easily accessible explaining what the Coalition is doingBlogging : A regular blog posting where Coalition members share the responsibility to do this over the year – possibly with a blog every month to start with. E-newsletters – These now can be created very easily with Coalition members generating content

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Why attend UN meetings?• To influence the text that will be

negotiated;• To build and cultivate alliances for

future work;• To show case studies of successes that

your organization has achieved;• To learn about how intergovernmental

negotiations work;• To raise funds for your work.

www.tellusorg16

Understanding the countries• European Union Netherlands (Jan-June 16), Slovakia (Jul-Dec 15)• G77 (134) and China Chair: Thailand (http://www.g77.org/ )• Key G77 countries: Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Brazil,

Bolivia, Colombia, China, Cuba, Egypt, Guatemala, India, Indonesia, Kenya, Nigeria, Pakistan, Singapore, South Africa, Tanzania

• Key EU 27 countries: Denmark, Germany, France, Czech Republic, Netherlands, Sweden

• Single decision countries: eg Australia, Canada, Japan, Korea, Mexico, New Zealand, Norway, Monaco, Russia, Switzerland, Ukraine United States,

• AOSIS (43 countries) Bureau Ahmed Sareer (Chair) from the Maldives; Mahe ’Uli’uli Sandhurst Tupouniua from Tonga; and Lois Young from Belize.

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Understanding the countries• Regional Blocks

• Africa (chair Egypt 2015-17) (54) UNGA President 4 and 9 –

• Asia (53) UNGA President 1 and 6)• Latin America and the Caribbean (33) UNGA President 2 and 7 –

• Eastern Europe (23) UNGA President 3 and 8• Western Europe and Other Group (28) UNGA President 05 – Denmark President of UNGA in September 2015-2016

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The Bureau • The Bureau plays a critical role in

managing the process. • They can guide the direction of the negotiations

through the structuring of the text and the inclusion in first drafts of certain ideas.

• Bureau members are in touch with thinking in the different groups and discussing ideas with them

• You should find out who the Bureau members are and meet with them well before the relevant meeting.

• An early visit to New York before the UN meeting to meet Bureau members, key government representatives in the Missions and the UN Secretariat is well worth doing.

• Share your positions with Bureau members if they are sympathetic to your views.

July 22, 2012

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The Bureau• María Duarte (Ecuador)• Maryse Gautier (France)• Mamadou Mboji (Senegal)• Eric Miangar (Chad)• Barbara Richards (Chile) (no

photo)• Daniela Grabmullerova (Czech

Republic)• Tania Roediger – Vorwek

(Germany)• Majid Hasan Mohammed Alsuwaidi

(United Arab Emirates) (no photo)• Elena Szolgayova (Slovakia) (no

photo)

July 22, 2012

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UN Secretariat• For any UN process the Secretariat will

play a critical role. This will include:• Analysing the national, regional and thematic reports.

• Preparing the background documents and zero draft.

• Producing negotiating text arising from the discussions.

• Making available all official documents.

• Servicing the negotiations.• Producing or updating a website for the meeting.

• Producing promotional material for the meeting.

• Accrediting stakeholders.July 22, 2012

Key people and coalitions• The Secretary General of the

Conference (Executive Director of UN-Habitat) – Dr Clos

• The “fixer” - Ana Moreno• The NGO or Stakeholder relations

person – Laney Stone• The General Assembly of Partners

(GAP) - Shipra Narang Suri and Genie Birch

• The person in charge of the text section you are interested in

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A Typical Day 8-9:00 a.m. Individual Government delegations will usually meet internally

to prepare their own country lobbying position and to review the previous day.Stakeholder morning sessions

9-10:00 a.m. Governments will usually attend meetings of the relevant groupings they are members of, e.g., G77 or European Union. NGOs and other stakeholders will also usually hold their consultations to prepare for the day.

10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Meeting sessions.

1 p.m. to 3 p.m. Lunch time – side events, an opportunity to spend time with government officials. Sometimes, if the venue is difficult to access, Stakeholders may hold their own consultations over lunch (try to avoid this if possible).

3 p.m. to 6 p.m. Meeting sessions (additional sessions will be added when they are needed, often into the night or even through the night).

6 p.m. to 8 p.m. Side Events can also be held at this time.

July 22, 2012

Before the meetingGovernment

Strong For

Weak For

Not yet declared

Weak Against

Strong Against

Capital

New YorkOther Venues

For key governments

The world of brackets• Alternative brackets • Contentious brackets • Suspicious brackets • Tactical or trading brackets • Uncertain brackets • Waiting brackets • Weary brackets

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Brackets Who put the bracket in? When you know who put it

forward, ask why. The ‘why’ may not be clear

to other delegations and you can play an important role in highlighting the ‘why’ in your lobbying.

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:Why have they bracketed?

• If it was because they are waiting for instructions from the capital, then phone your colleagues in the capital and get them to raise the issue with relevant civil servants or ministers. This only works if you are completely on top of the negotiations and can act immediately.

• If it involves trading brackets with somewhere else in the text, then you need to be able to work with the stakeholders who are trying to lobby on that section.

• If it is because of exhaustion brackets, then make some text suggestions. This can be a very opportunistic time as officials are tired and looking for a way through the darkness – or even to go home for the night!

• If there are suspicious brackets, then it is important to work out why and try to help build trust.

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What participation and influence mechanisms should stakeholders employ ?

Game plan for the whole negotiation – Coalition should be asking national partners to before you arrive at a UN meeting

organize several meeting in capitals with key governments brief the media, place early stories in the mediaMeet with key parliamentarians before leaving – initiated a

debate in parliamentSet up a rapid response mechanism in the capital in case you

need itTry to get an NGOs on delegation and allowed to attend pre

inter-departmental meetings before the event

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What participation and influence mechanisms should you employ ?

At the UN event a coalition should: have a photo booklet of key negotiators and

UN staff so they are easy to find www.iisd.ca Designate point contacts for all key people

eg G77, EU, US, key countries, Bureau members, UN officials,

There should be floor managers in each negotiation room

Use coffee bar diplomacy, receptions Use any informal possibilities

drinks/dinner/dancing If you are spending more than 20% of

your time with other Stakeholders you are not doing your job.

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What levers of influence do they have in the negotiation stages ? Much less as the process moves to end gameOffer to support smaller states eg FIELD helped AOSIS in the climate

change negotiationsOrganize side eventsTalking with your own government dailyBe there until 4am to offer text changesKey G77 countries: Argentina, Brazil, Bolivia, Colombia, China, Cuba,

Egypt, Guatemala, India, Indonesia, Kenya, Nigeria, Pakistan, Singapore, South Africa, Tanzania

Key EU countries: Denmark, Germany, Netherlands, Sweden, FranceSingle decision countries: eg Australia, Canada, Japan, Korea,

Mexico, New Zealand, Norway, Monaco, Russia, Switzerland, Ukraine, United States,

www.tellus.org30

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Why go on a government delegation?• You will have access to the brief of your country;• You may be able to sit in on delegation meetings

within blocks;• You may be able to sit in on delegation meetings

between blocks;• You will be able to push for the NGO or

stakeholder position during the appropriate meetings of the delegation;

• You can be asked to act as the intermediary between the NGOs and the government;

• You will be aware of where there is possible movement in a negotiation and may be asked to draft text for your delegation to put forward;

• You will be able to cultivate relationships with the delegation for future work.

July 22, 2012

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The downside of being on a delegation

• If you do join a government delegation you will lose some independence. Some governments will require NGOs on a delegation to sign an official document saying they will not divulge what they have heard in delegation meetings;

• You will have limited time available for being with other NGOs if you are an active member of the delegation;

• You may be seen as the doorkeeper for NGOs with the delegation;

• You may be viewed as having ‘switched sides’ and joined the government team more than what is expected;

• You may not be allowed to speak publicly on a position – if you find this something that you cannot agree to, do not join a delegation or resign when it becomes difficult for you. Some delegations allow their NGOs to speak but they just have to first ask the Head of delegations permission.

July 22, 2012

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WHAT NOT TO DO (AT A MEETING)• Do not go up to a government when they

are speaking• Do not sit in a government seat – unless

you are on that government’s delegation• Do not interrupt the meeting• Do not target a government in your

intervention• Do not wear inappropriate clothes• Do not do a demonstration inside the venue• Do not take a countries flag/name• Do not deviate from your message when

you are speaking as a representative of the caucus

July 22, 2012

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Documents-/INF/ Information series

-/L… Limited distribution, generally of draft documents

-/NGO/ Statements by NGOs

-/PET/ Petitions

-/PV… Verbatim records of meetings

-/R… Restricted distribution

-/RES/ Resolutions

-/SR… Summary of meetings

-/TP… Technical Papers

-/WP… Working Papers

-/Add… Addendum

-/Amend…

Amendment to the document

-/Corr… Corrigendum (i.e., an error to be corrected or reorganization of the text)

-/Rev… Revision (supersedes a previously issued document)

July 22, 2012

The final letters indicate the number sequence 1, 2, 3 etc. or a modification of the document:‘Non-papers’ will also be distributed informally during sessions to facilitate negotiations. These usually contain proposed text amendments from government negotiators.

What are the conditions needed for a coalition to succeed ?

Know Your Own GoalsKnow the Decision-making Process in Your CountryKnow When To Work at What LevelKnow the Decision-making ContextKnow the Tools at Your DisposalKnow When To Make Your PositionKnow the Government OfficialsKnow the Key UN OfficialsKnow Your AlliesKnow Your AdversariesKnow Your LimitsKnow Your Brackets and Terms

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Now its upto you