The Langkawi Declaration on the Environment was a declaration issued by the assembled Heads of Government of the

Commonwealth of Nations The Commonwealth of Nations, often referred to as the British Commonwealth or simply the Commonwealth, is an International organization, international association of member states of the Commonwealth of Nations, 56 member states, the vast majo ...

on the issue of environmental sustainability. It was issued on October 21, 1989, at Langkawi,

Malaysia Malaysia is a country in Southeast Asia. Featuring the Tanjung Piai, southernmost point of continental Eurasia, it is a federation, federal constitutional monarchy consisting of States and federal territories of Malaysia, 13 states and thre ...

, during the tenth Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM). The declaration covers a wide range of topics related to the environment, blaming 'past neglect in managing the

natural environment The natural environment or natural world encompasses all life, biotic and abiotic component, abiotic things occurring nature, naturally, meaning in this case not artificiality, artificial. The term is most often applied to Earth or some parts ...

and resources'. It lists what the Heads of Governments perceived to be the main environmental problems: the

greenhouse effect The greenhouse effect occurs when greenhouse gases in a planet's atmosphere insulate the planet from losing heat to space, raising its surface temperature. Surface heating can happen from an internal heat source (as in the case of Jupiter) or ...

, damage to the ozone layer,

acid rain Acid rain is rain or any other form of Precipitation (meteorology), precipitation that is unusually acidic, meaning that it has elevated levels of hydrogen ions (low pH). Most water, including drinking water, has a neutral pH that exists b ...

marine pollution Marine pollution occurs when substances used or spread by humans, such as industrial waste, industrial, agricultural pollution, agricultural, and municipal solid waste, residential waste; particle (ecology), particles; noise; excess carbon dioxi ...

, land degradation, and species

extinction Extinction is the termination of an organism by the death of its Endling, last member. A taxon may become Functional extinction, functionally extinct before the death of its last member if it loses the capacity to Reproduction, reproduce and ...

. These, the declaration affirmed, were issues that transcended national borders, and hence required the involvement of international organisations, such as the Commonwealth, to coordinate strategies to solve them. A key agreement in the formulation of the agreement was the pledge by developed countries not to connect future international development aid to commit to environmental sustainability or introduce

trade barrier Trade barriers are government-induced restrictions on international trade. According to the comparative advantage, theory of comparative advantage, trade barriers are detrimental to the world economy and decrease overall economic efficiency. Most ...

s. This, the developing countries argued, would prevent economic growth (described as a 'compelling necessity'), and hence reduce their ability to develop sustainable natural environments. In exchange, the developing countries conceded to the Commonwealth's developed members (particularly

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

, and the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

) their interest in protecting the environment. Amongst the commitments made by members in the Langkawi Declaration were: * Support the development of an international sustainable development funding mechanism. * Support the

Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) is an intergovernmental body of the United Nations. Its job is to "provide governments at all levels with scientific information that they can use to develop climate policies". The World Met ...

and recommend the Commonwealth's own report on

climate change Present-day climate change includes both global warming—the ongoing increase in Global surface temperature, global average temperature—and its wider effects on Earth's climate system. Climate variability and change, Climate change in ...

. * Promote energy efficiency. * Promote afforestation and sustainable forest management in developing countries, and the conservation of

virgin forest An old-growth forest or primary forest is a forest that has developed over a long period of time without Disturbance (ecology), disturbance. Due to this, old-growth forests exhibit unique ecological features. The Food and Agriculture Organizati ...

to protect

biodiversity Biodiversity is the variability of life, life on Earth. It can be measured on various levels. There is for example genetic variability, species diversity, ecosystem diversity and Phylogenetics, phylogenetic diversity. Diversity is not distribut ...

. * Restrict non- sustainable fisheries, including banning tangle nets and pelagic driftnet fishing, as part of a general trend amongst international organisations. * Prevent dumping of toxic or hazardous materials in the oceans or in developing countries. * Promote public awareness of environmental risks and issues.

Footnotes

External links

Full text of the Langkawi Declaration
{{Commonwealth of Nations key documents History of the Commonwealth of Nations Climate change policy International sustainable development 1989 in Asia 1989 in international relations 1989 in the environment Government statements 1989 in Malaysia Climate change in Malaysia Langkawi Environmental policy