UN Commission on Sustainable Development “Energy Cycle” (2005-2007)

The United Nations Commission on Sustainable Development (CSD) has been meeting annually since 1992. The CSD adopted a number of critical reforms in 2003, including a transition to two-year cycles focused on a “thematic cluster” of issues. From May 2005-May 2007, the CSD is focusing on energy-related issues.

See below for more information on what the United States and its partners have been doing during this “Energy Cycle.” The United States has been working with its partners to improve access to modern, clean, healthy, and efficient energy services. Our approach has been through sharing what works to help individuals. In particular, we have been focusing on three core areas:

1. Solutions: Identifying and Sharing Practical and Proven Approaches

• The UN CSD Matrix (continuous) - The UN has incorporated case studies submitted by the U.S. Delegation and many others into the “CSD Matrix,” a web-based catalog of practical solutions.
• “Featured Solutions” drawn from the CSD Matrix (February 2007) - The U.S. delegation extracted 10 solutions from the UN CSD Matrix and highlighted how these solutions have delivered practical results and how they are being scaled up and replicated.
• U.S. Case Studies (Submitted May 2006) - During the Review Session in 2006, the United States submitted dozens of case studies showing successful solutions to energy challenges throughout the world.
• U.S. Energy Partnerships registered on the UN's Partnerships Database . The UN Database and SDP.gov provide vehicles for transparent, voluntary reporting on the progress of our partnerships.

2. Results: Measuring and Reporting Impact

• Remarks by Assistant Secretary Claudia A. McMurray at 2006 World Bank Energy Week: “The ultimate measure of our success is whether we deliver concrete, on-the-ground results that improve access to modern, clean, healthy, and efficient energy services.”
• “Featured Results” on SDP.gov - During the Energy Cycle, we have re-emphasized the U.S. government's commitment to measuring and reporting results, including by highlighting “Featured Results.”
• Remarks by Special Representative Jonathan Margolis to the Business Roundtable (Oct 2006): “If the message in 2002 was 'words are good, actions are better,' the message in 2006 is 'actions are better, but results are what matter.”

3. Next Steps

• The United States looks forward to continuing to work with its partners before, during, and after the April/May 2007 CSD-15 Session to identify ways to replicate and/or scale up the solutions that have been identified.
• 05/01/07 --  The U.S. Government will host the Washington International Renewable Energy Conference in March 2008
• Replicating and scaling up solutions that work.