- English
In 2015, the United Nations adopted 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as part of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. However, extensive research and numerous policy reports suggest that these goals struggle to gain momentum, leading the UN Secretary-General to call for their urgent “rescue.” Several factors have been cited for the slow progress, including weakened multilateral cooperation, global crises such as the Covid-19 pandemic, and rising geopolitical tensions. Moreover, the design of the SDGs and their institutional framework have been criticized for contributing to the slow pace of progress. At the upcoming United Nations Summit of the Future on 22-23 September 2024, governments will adopt a new “Pact for the Future,” which promises numerous actions aimed at advancing global transformation. Yet, these measures may fall short of what is needed to strengthen global sustainability governance.
In this Statement, we—a group of over hundred researchers and practitioners from both the Global North and South—present a roadmap for sustainability governance until 2030 and beyond. This roadmap is designed to complement the Pact for the Future, offering additional strategies and actions crucial for revitalizing progress toward the SDGs. The roadmap was developed through a months-long iterative process as part of the international research conference GlobalGoals2024, held on 29-30 August 2024 in Utrecht, The Netherlands. The drafting process including a pre-conference survey, followed by in-depth discussions in online co-creation workshops and refined by detailed feedback from individual members. While most contributors are academics, the Statement integrates key insights from civil society as well.
- English
In 2015, the United Nations adopted 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as part of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. However, extensive research and numerous policy reports suggest that these goals struggle to gain momentum, leading the UN Secretary-General to call for their urgent “rescue.” Several factors have been cited for the slow progress, including weakened multilateral cooperation, global crises such as the Covid-19 pandemic, and rising geopolitical tensions. Moreover, the design of the SDGs and their institutional framework have been criticized for contributing to the slow pace of progress. At the upcoming United Nations Summit of the Future on 22-23 September 2024, governments will adopt a new “Pact for the Future,” which promises numerous actions aimed at advancing global transformation. Yet, these measures may fall short of what is needed to strengthen global sustainability governance.
In this Statement, we—a group of over hundred researchers and practitioners from both the Global North and South—present a roadmap for sustainability governance until 2030 and beyond. This roadmap is designed to complement the Pact for the Future, offering additional strategies and actions crucial for revitalizing progress toward the SDGs. The roadmap was developed through a months-long iterative process as part of the international research conference GlobalGoals2024, held on 29-30 August 2024 in Utrecht, The Netherlands. The drafting process including a pre-conference survey, followed by in-depth discussions in online co-creation workshops and refined by detailed feedback from individual members. While most contributors are academics, the Statement integrates key insights from civil society as well.
