WINNIPEG—June 12, 2012—The International Institute for Sustainable Development has revised and reissued the acclaimed Sustainable Development Timeline marking notable events and important milestones to achieving the world's goals for sustainable development over the past 50 years.

The update is one of IISD's contributions to the Earth Summit in Rio, which aims to secure a global agreement on "greening" world economies through a range of smart measures for clean energy, decent jobs and more sustainable use of resources.

Notably, it has been 50 years since Rachel Carson's Silent Spring; 40 years since the United Nations Conference on Human Environment in Stockholm; 25 years since the Brundtland Report; and 20 years since the first Earth Summit in Rio.

"It is the most popular publication ever produced by IISD," said Heather Creech, director of IISD's global connectivity program and editor of the SD Timeline.

"The timeline is an important tool for planning and marking progress for sustainable development, inspiring generations of young people to take positive actions and embark in a career in related fields," she said. Earlier versions of the timeline have been published in French and Mandarin.

The revised edition includes a number of new additions:

2012 – One of the first of the Millennium Development Goal targets is achieved

2012 – Trade disputes on solar and wind energy products

2011 – China begins shift to a "green" economy

2011 – Japan earthquake and tsunami

2011 – Climate change negotiations in Durban

2011 – The world population reaches 7 billion, and is increasingly interconnected

2011 – The Arab Spring

2010 – BP Deepwater Horizon oil rig explosion

2010 – The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity final report

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Please contact public affairs manager Nona Pelletier for more information: +1 204 958 7740 or +1 204 962 1303.