Proceedings and comunications

As it was clearly shown during the last World Summit on Sustainable Development, held in Johannesburg, islands are privileged scenarios at the moment to exemplify the most innovative aspects of sustainable development.

On the eve of the new millennium, aspects such as advanced water resource management, renewable energies, sustainable mobility, waste management, new forms of tourism, search for advanced solutions with regard to biodiversity conservation, or new technologies of the Information Society, are now the centres of the new island paradigm.

Islands have always been exceptional laboratories for natural and cultural heritage conservation, where advanced initiatives of sustainable development with a high replication capacity have been put into practice. In the last ten years we have been witnesses of a high effervescence of projects and development of new eco-efficient technologies adapted to the singularity of islands. It is worth mentioning that the first 100% renewable energy powered territories in the world are islands, or that island territories are developing pioneer strategies of incorporation into the Information Society, such as the “Digital Islands” initiative. On islands we also verify the existence of advanced experiences in water desalination powered by clean energy sources, the appearance of new technologies adapted to the island reality with regard to zero-waste strategy, without forgetting the great deal of sustainable tourism initiatives, a sector where islands have always been pioneer.

Starting from the idea of islands as sustainability laboratories, and taking into account the scarce knowledge we have of the high potential offered by the several island experiences, the First Conference on Innovation and Sustainable Development on Islands was held in La Palma in October 2002. The meeting was sponsored by the island of La Palma, which has been declared a Biosphere Reserve in its totality.

The initiative started from a large group of islands, among which those belonging to the UNESCO-MaB’s international network of Biosphere Reserves stand out; the initiative also relied on the support of several organisations such as the UNESCO itself, European Commission, World Tourism Organisation, Biodiversity Foundation and Spanish Ministry of Environment.

The main Conference agreement was to establish the necessary measures for the constitution of an island network able to drive a Forum in favour of Innovation for Sustainable Development. This Forum would be able to support innovative actions of cooperation and transfer in island regions.