How to Re-Energize the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Paris Climate Agreement by Felix Dodds

How to Re-Energize the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Paris Climate Agreement By Felix Dodds Introduction The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, including the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the Paris Agreement on climate, gave the world a roadmap in 2015 to how we might live more sustainably on this planet. Supported by the Addis Ababa Action Agenda, the 2030 Agenda focused the means of implementation for the SDGs and Paris Agreement while also addressing financing for development more generally. After the 2030 Agenda was negotiated, it was agreed that there would be a regular annual review of a set of individual goals and targets at the High-Level Political Forum (HLPF) on sustainable development. It was also agreed that the Heads of State and Government would review the entire 2030 Agenda to provide an additional level of oversight every four years. The first review of the 2030 Agenda by the Heads of State and Government will take place in September 2019, and they will conduct a similar review of the Paris Agreement in November and December 2020. This paper was originally presented at the Friends of Governance for Sustainable Development workshop in December 2018. It represented an updated paper I initially shared in September 2018 after attending a UN Foundation meeting that had been held in the margins of the UN General Assembly High Level Segment (2018). That meeting had focused on the question of whether or not we are we on track to deliver the SDGs. The outcome of that meeting made it evidently clear to me and others that we are very much not on track! As Francesca Perucci, Chief of the Statistical Branch, said at the UN Statistical Division in an interview: “Almost all areas where you see progress, if you look at the rate, or the pace of progress, it is never sufficient to meet the targets.” (Perucci, 2018) It was clear that at that point in 2018, the sustainable development community was NOT offering a coherent set of messages for the review. There was also a lack of a coordinated and collaborative approach to counterbalance the growth of economic populism. In hindsight, there is no doubt that we did not at the time realize the regressive forces that were intensifying around the world… though perhaps we should have. The results of the financial crisis in 2008 were still being felt. We had seen the political establishment in most countries become far too cozy with the financial sector. We saw them privatize the profits of a few and socialize the losses of the many. Hardly any of the culprits behind the financial crisis went to jail, and many emerged from the crisis even wealthier than before. Meanwhile, millions of people lost their jobs, their homes and, in some cases, their lives. No wonder the anger and loss of support for our political class. The Way Forward The 2030 Agenda and the Paris Agreement were unique in many ways. For starters, they both are global agreements that engaged the views of stakeholders in their development and now continue to do so in their implementation. Since 2015, NGOs and other stakeholders too often rebrand their work around the SDGs without really taking to heart the need to change the ways in which they do THEIR work. There are a number of differences between the SDGs and the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). The first is that every country must implement the SDGs, not just developing countries as was the case with MDGs. This enables a real opportunity for the developed world to change their development decisions to be more in line with sustainable development. After all, the pressing challenge of climate change and many of the other tipping points we currently face are due in large part to the actions of developed countries in recent centuries. The second is the issue of interlinkages between different issues. There was a real recognition first around the Rio+20 conference and then in the SDG and climate negotiations that we need to move beyond silos. For instance, water availability is an important consideration in both agricultural and energy issues. The example of Barnhart in Texas where local water was used for fracking leaving no water for the local population is an acute case, but one that will become increasingly common in other communities in the future. “We have large urban centres sucking water out of West Texas to put on their lands. We have a huge agricultural community, and now we have fracking which is also using water. And then there is climate change. West Texas has a long history of recurring drought, but under climate change, the Southwestern United States has been experiencing record-breaking heatwaves, further drying out the soil and speeding the evaporation of water in lakes and reservoirs. Underground aquifers have failed to regenerate. "What happens is that climate change comes on top and in many cases, it can be the final straw that breaks the camel's back, but the camel is already overloaded," (Goldenberg, 2013) The impact of climate change is encouraging policymakers to address challenges with an integrated agenda. The impending 30-40% increase in global demand for food by 2030 due to a growing population will hopefully lead to more sustainable diets, more people moving out of poverty, and increased resource efficiency due to urbanization. The same is true for energy provision, and the German Nexus Conference in 2011 estimated there would be a shortfall of water availability of around 30% also by 2030. Given the impact these challenges will have at the community level, in particular, local governments and stakeholders need to develop tools and procedures to address these important interlinkages. Many local authorities are trying to integrate the SDGs into their planning process, which will certainly help. However, time is not on our side – we need more urgency. Real World Campaign What we need is a Real-World Campaign: We Are the People, which will emphasise the 5Ps of the 2030 Agenda: People We are determined to end poverty and hunger, in all their forms and dimensions, and to ensure that all human beings can fulfil their potential in dignity and equality and in a healthy environment. Planet We are determined to protect the planet from degradation, including through sustainable consumption and production, sustainably managing its natural resources and taking urgent action on climate change, so that it can support the needs of the present and future generations. Prosperity We are determined to ensure that all human beings can enjoy prosperous and fulfilling lives and that economic, social and technological progress occurs in harmony with nature. Peace We are determined to foster peaceful, just and inclusive societies which are free from fear and violence. There can be no sustainable development without peace and no peace without sustainable development. Partnership We are determined to mobilize the means required to implement this Agenda through a revitalized Global Partnership for Sustainable Development, based on a spirit of strengthened global solidarity, focused in particular on the needs of the poorest and most vulnerable and with the participation of all countries, all stakeholders and all people. The interlinkages and integrated nature of the Sustainable Development Goals are of crucial importance in ensuring that the purpose of the new Agenda is realized. If we realize our ambitions across the full extent of the Agenda, the lives of all will be profoundly improved and our world will be transformed for the better (UN, 2015). Timeline and Events for a Real-World Campaign (2019 to 2023) We are nearly in December 2018 and are VERY LATE in our preparations if you consider the first NGO and other stakeholder meeting and paper on Rio+20 was produced in November 2008. The first set of SDGs was put forward by the UN DPI NGO Conference in 2011 (17 of them). We can utilize the next two years to prepare for a mobilisation at the 2019 Heads of State and Government High Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development and the 2020 United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. Both are critical meetings. There are other anniversaries coming up that can also be used to help to build political momentum. For example, 2020 is the 75th anniversary of the creation of the United Nations. 2020 is also the 50th anniversary of Earth Day, which represents to most people the birth of the environmental movement with the creation of Greenpeace and Friends of the Earth that year. We are living through perhaps the most challenging time for multilateralism since the 1930s. This campaign should underscore how multilateralism can help shape a fair, just, equitable and sustainable planet for everyone. Too often, politicians criticize multilateralism for their own domestic political gains. The Brexit campaign in the UK shows how the lack of a positive narrative on multilateralism feeds a belief that you can do away with key institutions. The next two years must be a concerted effort to re- establish a positive narrative on multilateralism. Phase 1 A Sixteen-Month Campaign for the Planet and Us Campaigns too often lead up to a UN event or another and then reduce in intensity once the event is over because the media moves on to the next issue, as do the stakeholders and governments. I am suggesting the launch of this 16-month campaign on the SDGs and climate take place at the 2019 HLPF. This campaign would extend into the 2020 UNFCCC meeting, focusing on expanding solutions and partnerships for the SDGs. Beginning in September 2019 and extending into 2020, we should dedicate each month to a different SDG (beginning with climate).

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