Twenty-five years ago on 3 June 1992 the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED) was opened in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil by Canadian businessman and diplomat Maurice F. Strong in his role as Secretary-General of the so-called Earth Summit. Rio brought unparalleled media attention to a host of interrelated global issues: biodiversity, climate change, consumption patterns, deforestation, fragile ecosystems, hazardous waste, indigenous knowledge, poverty, responsible entrepreneurship and the role of nongovernmental organizations (NGOs)