Expert Voices

Reflections from the SDG Pavilion at COP29

The SDG Pavilion organized by UN DESA on the sidelines of the UN Climate Change Conference has become an annual stop for many interested in climate and SDG synergies. We spoke with two veterans of the past six SDG Pavilions—Ariel Alexovich, Sustainable Development Officer in UN DESA’s Office of the Under-Secretary-General, and Nadine Salame, Senior Programme Management Assistant in the Division for Sustainable Development Goals—about their recent experience at COP29 in Baku, Azerbaijan. 

Advocating for better data to measure sustainable development

This month, the United Nations will hold the fifth World Data Forum attracting 3,000 participants to Medellin, Colombia to discuss the latest progress in data and statistics to advance sustainable development. The Forum will champion four themes - innovation and inclusivity, data use and value, trust and protection and partnership and coordination across four days and over 100 different events. Ahead of this biennial event, UN DESA’s Ian Rutherford tells us more.

Digital government: Delivering services and the SDGs

Have you experienced the ease of switching from paper forms to online forms and tracking their progress? E-government offers many such conveniences, ensuring the most vulnerable can access essential services. With the launch of the new E-Government Survey 2024, Vincenzo Aquaro, Chief of Digital Government Branch in UN DESA’s Division for Public Institutions and Digital Government, describes the benefits and challenges of e-government.

Climate and SDG synergies: the linchpin for an equitable future

The evidence is clear: climate goals are inextricably tied to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). With so many linkages between the health of our planet and complex challenges like conflict and food security, what can we do to navigate toward progress holistically? Ahead of the Fifth Global Conference on Strengthening Synergies between the Paris Agreement and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, UN DESA’s Bahareh Seyedi explains.

Growing or shrinking – what do the latest trends tell us about the global population?

Two years ago, our world marked the milestone of 8 billion people living on this planet. What has happened since then? How many lives are expected to see the light of day? Where do people settle down and how long do they live? Ahead the World Population Prospects 2024 launch on 11 July, we asked UN DESA’s Guangyu Zhang what we can anticipate from the new report.

“Our goal is to make global SDG data accessible and understandable for everyone”

Later this month, UN DESA will be releasing the latest data tracking progress of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). What goes into the work of collecting, monitoring and analyzing the data and what can we expect the latest report to show? Ahead of the launch, we spoke with UN DESA’s Heather Page who explains.

“Forests play a pivotal role in addressing the triple planetary crisis”

Forests cover nearly one-third of all land on Earth. They sustain us in numerous ways and are critical in global efforts to address the triple planetary crisis. Ahead of the UN Forum on Forests and the 4th International Conference on Small Island Developing States (SIDS4) this month, we asked UN DESA’s Peter Gondo about the Forum, the role of forests in small islands and why we need healthy forests for our survival.

Urgent action needed to secure financing for our shared future

That the global community is seriously off track to achieve the global goals is nothing new. Neither is the fact that part of the reason lies in a lack of financing investments at the required scale. But what are the solutions? And what can we expect from the financing for development events happening at the UN this month? To find out, we spoke with UN DESA’s Mariangela Parra-Lancourt.

Why the Multidimensional Vulnerability Index (MVI) matters

What is the Multidimensional Vulnerability Index (MVI), what does it measure and why is it important for countries in special situations? Ahead of the Fourth International Conference on Small Island Developing States (SIDS4) this coming May, Ambassador Walton Webson, Permanent Representative of Antigua and Barbuda to the United Nations, explains.

What is the Multidimensional Vulnerability Index (MVI) and what does it measure?

“Data and statistics inform every decision we make”

Data plays a key role in global efforts to improve people’s lives on a healthy planet. UN DESA’s Statistics Division is leading efforts, working together with statisticians and data experts from across the world. Ahead of the annual UN Statistical Commission this month, UN DESA’s Linda Hooper tells us more about this important work.

Can you give our readers some insights into how data plays a role in global efforts to improve our world?