Sustainable Consumption and Production in the Asia-Pacific Region

The third White Paper consists of five main sections. Section I puts forward an overarching hypothesis that sustainable consumption can drive sustainable production and lead to structural changes in the Asian economy, which in turn will form a virtuous circle and encourage ever-increasing sustainable consumption. The second section of the White Paper examines the roles of key stakeholders – consumers, communities, local governments and businesses, as well as the policy role of national governments in creating appropriate incentives for change in this direction. The third section examines sustainable consumption and production in four key sectors – agriculture, forestry, water resources, and energy. The fourth section of the White Paper examines cross-cutting themes of climate change and regional integration. The final chapter then attempts to pull together these diverse strands and to present a coherent set of policy options that will assist Asia-Pacific to accelerate the urgent need to move towards SCP.