The Round Table is intended to further the international discussion on the issue of universal membership in UNEP and to possibly develop a common understanding and set of strategies within the European Union.

A universal membership of each UN Member States in the Governing Council of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) could increase UNEP's legitimacy and enhance its political importance. Accordingly, the issue of universal membership is one of major interest. In this context, Ecologic Institute organised a Round Table meeting between the German government and the EU partners on legal, organisational, as well as political implications of universal membership in UNEP. The Round Table has been organised in the context of the special UNEP Governing Council / Global Ministerial Environmental Forum (GC/GMEF) meeting in March 2004 in Jeju, South Korea. The event has been designed for representatives of EU Member States, as well as representatives of UN agencies.