News

As the world continues to cope with multiple crises, our collective aim of realizing the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030 is at risk. At the halfway point of the 2030 Agenda, 2023 has been an important stock-taking year to analyze progress on the SDGs and how to revitalize implementation.

Just ahead of the SDG Summit, the September 2023 event at the United Nations where world leaders will announce new commitments toward achieving the goals, a group of experts appointed by the UN Secretary-General will release the Global Sustainable Development Report 2023 (GSDR). This Independent Group of Scientists (IGS), consisting of 15 experts representing a variety of backgrounds, scientific disciplines and institutions, ensuring geographical and gender balance, has been working on the report for four years. The GSDR will provide evidence that can help decision-makers to accelerate action and overcome impediments that stand in the way of progress on sustainable development. The focus will be on accelerating transformation through important entry points and enabling science to support this acceleration.

To support the global push for increased SDG ambition, the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UN DESA) will organize a special edition Global Policy Dialogue on “Time for Transformation,” featuring several IGS members who will discuss the key messages from the report, including how the power of science can help us understand and navigate relationships among social, environmental and economic development objectives. Audience questions and live polls will be part of the event.

This dialogue is made possible by the UN Peace and Development Trust Fund.

Format

The 60-minute event will include an introductory section including a video followed by two panel discussions. The discussions will be interactive and led by a moderator. Time will be reserved during the event for audience questions and polls. The audience will also be invited to submit questions in advance when completing the Zoom registration.

Location

The event will be held in-person at the SDG Studio at UN Headquarters in New York, with a virtual global audience.

Platform

The event will be organized with the support of the technical team at the SDG Studio. The audience can watch via Zoom, UN WebTV, or live on UN DESA’s Facebook page. The audience also can participate in the polls, submit their own questions or vote up questions posed by others.

Discussion 2: Transformations through science

Speakers:

• Nyovani Janet Madise (Malawi), Director of Development Policy and Head of the Malawi Office of the African Institute for Development Policy, and member of the Independent Group of Scientists preparing the 2023 Global Sustainable Development Report
• Ambuj Sagar (India), Vipula and Mahesh Chaturvedi Professor of Policy Studies and Founding Head of the School of Public Policy at the Indian Institute of Technology, and member of the Independent Group of Scientists preparing the 2023 Global Sustainable Development Report

Register here: https://bit.ly/dialogue14sept