The World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD) in Johannesburg in 2002 brought together thousands of delegates with the goal of mapping out the future of the global sustainable development agenda. The resulting 54-page technical document, the Johannesburg Plan of Implementation (JPOI), outlining government priorities and commitments, whilst impacting on the lives of millions, will only be understood by a relatively small group of policy-makers and specialists. The Plain Language Guide to the World Summit on Sustainable Development aims to provide a quick way in to the JPOI to help promote genuine public understanding of the agreement and practical action on the commitments. It is a resource book for those working in community groups, business, local government, central government departments, regional institutions and the international community. This guide is designed to make the decisions of the World Summit on Sustainable Development available and comprehensible to as wide an audience as possible. As such, it will be particularly useful to those who were not centrally involved in the negotiations, but who wish to take forward action on sustainable development in their own areas and in partnership with other groups. #The guide will be widely used in the Commonwealth and beyond to promote understanding and engagement in the WSSD process at all levels# From the Foreword by DON MCKINNON, Commonwealth Secretary General.