IGES webinar on VLR

From Reporting to Action: How “Voluntary Local Review” can amplify local sustainability?

Monday, 28 June 2021, 19:30 - 21:00 (JST) / 10:30-12:00 (GMT)

In 2018 four pioneer local governments—Kitakyushu, New York, Toyama, and Shimokawa—presented their Voluntary Local Review (VLR) of progress towards achieving the 2030 Agenda. Ever since, the VLR movement has grown, with an increasing number of local and regional governments presenting their own VLR each year. Despite the unprecedented challenges humanity faced in 2020, VLRs have served to ratify commitments by local and regional governments to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Moreover, recent Voluntary National Reviews (VNRs), such as that by Japan in 2021, are recognising and referring to the important role of VLRs. 

Since the VLR movement was launched, the Institute for Global Environmental Strategies (IGES) has made significant efforts to support the creation of the four existing Japanese VLRs (as of June 2020) and engage in global processes to accelerate local action on the SDGs. In 2020, IGES presented the first volume of the “State of the Voluntary Local Reviews” series that provided assessment of the first two years of VLRs and analysis of the VLR launched in 2018 and 2019. 

This webinar celebrates the launching of the second volume of the “State of the Voluntary Local Reviews” report. Entitled “From reporting to action,” the report analyses the progress of VLRs and outlook of the VLRs conducted in 2020. This webinar will share the main findings of the report and bring together cities that conducted a VLR, providing an opportunity for participants to exchange experiences and lessons learnt. Through this open conversation, we aim at highlighting the benefits VLR can bring to local governments, thereby encouraging other local governments to take up this challenge. By covering the development of the VLR movement during 2020, this webinar hopes to be an input to the 2021 high-level political forum (HLPF 2021).

Event Details

Date/time
Monday, 28 June 2021, 19:30 - 21:00 (JST) / 10:30-12:00 (GMT)
Venue

Online

Languages
English / Japanese
(Simultaneous interpretation)

Presentation Materials

Programme

19:30-19:45 Opening Remarks Yasuo Takahashi, Executive Director, IGES  
Atsushi Koresawa, Regional Representative of UN-Habitat Office for Asia and the Pacific PDF (914KB)
Aya Yoshida, Global Issues Cooperation Division, International Cooperation Bureau, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Government of Japan PDF (2.7MB)
 
State of the Voluntary Local Reviews 2021
19:45-19:55  

Introduction to the “State of the Voluntary Local Reviews 2021: From Reporting to Action”
Fernando Ortiz-Moya, Policy Researcher, City Task Force, IGES

PDF (5.1MB)
 
Panel Session with Cities – The Benefits of Conducting a VLR
Moderator: KATAOKA Yatsuka (IGES)
19:55-20:20 1. VLR Experiences
  Bonn
Verena Schwarte
Coordinator, Department of International Affairs and Global Sustainability
PDF (1.6MB)
Buenos Aires
Marina Cammisa
Strategic Coordination and Monitoring Manager
PDF (580KB)
São Paulo
Francisco José João Moura de Castro
Coordinator, International Affairs
 
Taoyuan
Chun-Ting Wu
Chairperson, Research and Evaluation Commission
PDF (2.8MB)
Los Angeles – Video Message
Erin Bromaghim
Director of Olympic and Paralympic Development, Office of Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti and Conrad N Hilton Foundation Fellow on the Sustainable Development Goals

Angela Kim
SDG Programme and Data Manager, Office of Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garzetti
Video
 
20:20-21:00 2. Roundtable Discussion – What has the VLR Meant for your City?
Guiding Questions:
  • How is the VLR changing SDG governance structures in your city?
  • What are the main benefits of conducting a VLR?
  • How can the integration between VNRs and VLRs best help SDG localisation?
Participants Bonn
Verena Schwarte
Coordinator, Department of International Affairs and Global Sustainability
 
Buenos Aires
Marina Cammisa
Strategic Coordination and Monitoring Manager
 
São Paulo
Francisco José João Moura de Castro
Coordinator, International Affairs
 
Taoyuan
Chun-Ting Wu
Chairperson, Research and Evaluation Commission
 
UCLG
Edgardo Bilsky
Director of Research and Intelligence
PDF (723KB)
Discussant Cabinet Office, Government of Japan
Jun Miyasato
Assistant Director to the Counsellor, Bureau for the Promotion of Local Innovation