2008 Japan G8 Summit NGO Forum Environement Poverty &Development Peace and Human Rights. Support our Challenge

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As the issues we are working to address are of global scale, global efforts to resolve them are called for. The G8 countries today have tremendous influence on the global politics as well as globalized economy. It is essential for the G8 Summit to have meaningful debates and agree upon effective measures to resolve these issues of a global scale. Through efforts to promote social justice and civil society participation, and to resolve issues through cross-border cooperation, NGOs have accumulated and shared their own unique knowledge and experience, from a perspective different than that of government. We shall establish this Forum in order to fulfill our responsibility as members of civil society
and by proposing practical solutions to global issues based on this knowledge and information.

Our Goals
Climate change, biodiversity and other environmental issues, severe poverty in developing countries, communicable diseases such as HIV/AIDS, and other global issues are threatening the survival and sustainable development of global society. Such global issues have been among the main agenda items of the G8 summit since the 1980’s, leading to various agreements on these issues.

It is noteworthy that climate change and poverty in Africa were among the main agenda items for the 2005 G8 Summit held in Gleneagles in the United Kingdom. A proposal was made to establish a framework for dialogue, including with developing countries, on future initiatives to address climate change. Since a report on this issue is due at the G8 Summit in Japan in 2008, it will be an important opportunity for negotiations on this issue. On poverty, though many promises have been made, none have been adequate enough; the prospects

for truly resolving this issue remain unclear. At the Japan summit, it is hoped that existing barriers will properly be addressed to achieve agreement on effective policies to truly address the issues of global poverty.

The NGO Forum will appeal to the G8 leaders at the G8 Summit to be held in Japan in 2008, as well as the 2007 G8 Summit in Germany and other ministerial meetings, to commit to effective measures to address global environmental issues, promote development and eliminate poverty in developing countries, safeguard human rights and build peace.

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