Opening of Global Virtual University (GVU)

Arendal is today one of the very few places in Norway where we can proudly plant the UN flag. But the Global Resource Information Database – in short GRID - is not Norwegian. It belongs to the UN-family and owes its prominent position to its international staff and contacts, many of which have come to Arendal for today's important event.

As the host country, Norway has supported GRID Arendal all along, from its establishment in the year's after the World Commission on Environment and Development right up to the new Global Virtual University project.

The Global Virtual University is a natural continuation of GRID Arendal's core activities. Primarily for three reasons:

Firstly, GRID-Arendal has consistently been at the forefront when it comes to using information and information technology for sustainable development.

Secondly, GRID-Arendal is acknowledged for monitoring the state of the environment and gathering important information for decision-making. GRID successfully illustrates environmental challenges at the local city level as well as at the larger regional and global levels.

Thirdly, GRID-Arendal is also acknowledged for its ability to reach out and communicate with the public at large. By making environmental information available to communities, GRID helps raise awareness and create an informed public debate on sustainability issues.

It only seems natural that GRID-Arendal now joins forces with the UN University, UNEP and other partners to create the first online university for sustainable development.

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The Global Virtual University is a pioneer project that will help meet the educational needs of the developing world.

Many students in many different countries will be able to benefit from the courses. With the help of UNEP, Agder University College and other institutions in the North and in the South, students will learn how natural resources and ecosystems can best be managed for the benefit of present and future generations. The courses will give tomorrow's decision-makers the tools to help fight poverty and environmental degradation.

This project is a true partnership where different sectors and actors pool resources to achieve sustainable solutions together. It is in the spirit of last year's Johannesburg Summit, where world leaders called for the implementation and follow-up of global goals at the national and local levels.

Today's complex global challenges call for international and interdisciplinary alliances. I recently had the privilege of visiting the UN University in Tokyo, where I once again was reminded of the benefits of knowledge and education.

GRID Arendal is in itself an excellent illustration of what partnerships and alliances can produce. Local enthusiasm and support combined with modern communication systems and partners worldwide has made this centre a dynamic part of the UN's Environment Programme, based in Nairobi, Kenya.

My government will continue to focus on sustainable development initiatives in the follow-up of the Johannesburg Summit. Let me also say how pleased we are that Norway's environment minister, Børge Brende, was appointed Chair of the UN Commission for Sustainable Development. We will seek to make the most of this opportunity by putting additional political emphasis on sustainability issues, while continuing to build on our alliances with other countries and actors to help reach the Millennium Development Goals.

Distinguished guests,

Ladies and gentlemen,

I congratulate the UN University and GRID Arendal with the opening of the new Global Virtual University.

We are proud to be a part of this project that is an innovation both in terms of capacity–building, information technology-use, and education for sustainable development.

You might be a “virtual university”, but I know that you will produce real graduates with a real knowledge of the needs of the real world.