The Climate Sustainability Forum was convened by Uchita de Zoysa from the Centre for Environment & Development in Sri Lanka, and brought together civil society representatives from over 30 countries to discuss the importance of linking up initiatives on sustainable development with climate change mitigation efforts. 

As a representative of the US, Gail Karlsson emphasized that many Americans do recognize the dangers of climate change and are pressing for strong action by Congress to limit US greenhouse gas emissions. She also pointed out that even without strong leadership from the federal government, many cities and citizens have made plans and taken actions to reduce their emissions. She noted that New Yorkers already use less energy and have lower CO2 emissions than other Americans due to the density and pedestrian-friendly nature of the city, and broad access to mass transit. She described actions by New Yorkers to conserve electricity, choose green energy, ride bikes and plant trees, and also highlighted Mayor Bloomberg's PlaNYC with its target of reducing overall emissions in the city 30% by 2030. The city government has made a committment to reduce its own operations by 30 percent within 10 years, and many large institutions, including 14 universities have pledged to match that commitment.

The forum stressed that climate change and sustainability need to be addressed together, and called for an international agreement on 'Climate Sustainability' to reverse decades of irresponsible consumption, production, and trade patterns and to build an equitable, fair, and just world. 'Climate sustainability' addresses the pressing issues of poverty, inequality, and environmental degradation through strategies for mitigation, adaptation, finance, and technology sharing.

Jeffrey Barber from the CitNet Secretariat, questioned the ability of UN processes to reverse worsening climate trends, and focused instead on building a global movement of people with their own initiatives for sustainable production and consumption that can lead to a better quality of life for everyone. Besides the US and Sri Lanka, the forum included representatives from Argentina, Austria, Bangladesh, China, Denmark, Ethiopia, France, Hungary, India, Israel, Malaysia, the Maldives, the Netherlands, Norway, Pakistan, Senegal, Taiwan, and the UK. 

http://www.stakeholderforum.org/fileadmin/files/Outreach_issues_2009/091209-outreach-color_01.pdf, page 10