The United Nations Environment Assembly,

Recalling the Global Action Programme on Education for Sustainable Development, which the United Nations General Assembly took note of in its resolution 69/211 of 19 December 2014, as a follow-up to the United Nations Decade of Education for Sustainable Development after 2014, as endorsed by the General Conference of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization at its thirty-seventh session,

The United Nations Environment Assembly,

Recalling decision 27/2 of the Governing Council, taken at its twenty-seventh and first universal session, held in Nairobi from 18 to 22 February 2013, to strengthen the regional presence of the United Nations Environment Programme in order to assist countries in the implementation of their national environmental programmes, policies and plans,

The United Nations Environment Assembly,

Considering the document “The future we want”, adopted by the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development and endorsed by the General Assembly in its resolution 66/288 of 27 July 2012, in particular paragraph 99, in which Heads of State and Government encouraged action at regional, national, subnational and local levels to promote access to information, public participation in decision-making and access to justice in environmental matters, as appropriate,

The United Nations Environment Assembly,

Recalling paragraph 29 of Governing Council decision 27/13 of 22 February 2013, in which the Executive Director was requested to provide, by 30 June 2013, a full report on the relationship between the United Nations Environment Programme and those multilateral environmental agreements for which the Programme provides the secretariat and to provide the final report to the governing body of the Programme at its next session,

The United Nations Environment Assembly,

Recalling General Assembly resolution 2997 (XXVII) of 15 December 1972,

Recalling also the outcome document of the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development, entitled “The future we want”, endorsed by the General Assembly in its resolution 66/288 of 27 July 2012, in particular its paragraph 88,

Recalling further General Assembly resolutions 67/213 of 21 December 2012, 67/251 of 13 March 2013 and 68/215 of 20 December 2013,

The United Nations Environment Assembly,

Welcoming the outcome document of the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development, entitled “The future we want”,1 in particular paragraph 56, recognizing that there are different approaches, visions, models and tools available to each country, in accordance with its national circumstances and priorities, to achieve sustainable development,

The United Nations Environment Assembly,

Recalling paragraphs 120 and 124 of the outcome document of the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development, entitled “The future we want”, in which Heads of State and Government called for the adoption of measures to significantly reduce water pollution and increase water quality and made a commitment to the progressive realization of access to safe and affordable drinking water and basic sanitation,

The United Nations Environment Assembly,

Noting the Fifth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, which confirms that climate systems are warming and that global temperatures will continue to rise in the coming decades, if not centuries, even if emissions of greenhouse gases are stabilized, affecting natural systems on which humanity relies and highlighting the need to adapt to the impacts of climate change,

The United Nations Environment Assembly,

Noting the World Health Organization estimate, from the report adopted by its Executive Board in May 2014, that air pollution contributes to 7 million premature deaths each year globally, a burden of disease that may now exceed the burdens of malaria, tuberculosis and AIDS combined,

Recalling the mandate of the United Nations Environment Programme as outlined in Governing Council decision 27/2, paragraph 2,

The United Nations Environment Assembly,

Recalling the concern reflected in the outcome document of the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development, entitled “The future we want”,1 that the health of oceans and marine biodiversity are negatively affected by marine pollution, including marine debris, especially plastic, persistent organic pollutants, heavy metals and nitrogen-based compounds, from numerous marine and land-based sources, and the commitment to take action to significantly reduce the incidence and impacts of such pollution on marine ecosystems,