Feature

It’s now or never: achieving the SDGs hinges on effective crises response

Still recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic, the world now finds itself confronted with numerous crises on several fronts—financial shocks, the war in Ukraine, food insecurity, climate emergency and energy access, rising poverty and inequality.  Years of progress in achieving many of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) have been all but wiped out. Thus, the need for global solidarity and international cooperation has become ever more urgent.

Saving the ocean to protect our future

The time is now to scale up ocean action, for the sake of our lives and the future of our planet. This month, the global community will ‘set sail’ towards the 2022 UN Ocean Conference convened in the Portuguese capital of Lisbon on 27 June - 1 July. The stakes are high, and the ambition is to turn the tide in favor of our blue planet.

Science – our best bet to achieve the SDGs?

Science has pushed the boundaries of what is possible throughout history. From mapping DNA to the invention of electricity to the adoption of penicillin in modern medicine; science has shattered barriers and expanded human potential. With just eight years left to 2030, we must act now to accelerate needed transformations. Science is likely our best bet to achieve the 17 Sustainable Development Goals.

Urgent SDG funding needed to bridge ‘great finance divide’

Since the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) were adopted in 2015, financing has been one of the key sticking points in delivering the goals by 2030—and the inequalities caused by the COVID-19 crisis have made this challenge even greater. 

Better data - for people and planet

With the help of trusted data, our world can track progress on development targets. How is the world faring when it comes to eliminating extreme poverty, combating climate change or achieving gender equality? Reliable and timely statistics hold some of the answers. During the COVID-19 crisis, data have also played a critical role in efforts to save lives.

On 28 February to 2 March and 4 March, statisticians from across the globe will come together virtually at the UN Statistical Commission to advance this work further.

Population growth, environmental degradation and climate change

More than a third of 50 recently surveyed Nobel laureates cited “population rise / environmental degradation” as the biggest threat to humankind. Second on the list was “nuclear war”, cited by 23 per cent of the laureates, while no other issue was selected by more than 10 per cent of respondents.

The eight events you can’t miss in 2022

Mark your calendars, clean your webcams and pack your bags – these are the eight sustainable development events you cannot miss in 2022.

1. The state of our economy explained

On 13 January, UN DESA experts will reveal their latest estimates of the state and future of the global economy. See if the tenuous recovery from the pandemic is taking hold and if the promises of building back better and greener are being fulfilled.

2. Focus on Least Developed Countries

Don’t let others write the rules of the Internet for you

The year’s most important meeting on the future of Internet is gathering this month. Here is why you should take part.

From the “Black Death” epidemics of old, to the Spanish Flu of the early 20th century, humanity has experienced several pandemics in the past. However, COVID-19 is the first global pandemic to visit our “global village” – a world interconnected by the Internet.

What to look out for at COP26

The world’s scientists, activists, indigenous peoples, children and now even a dinosaur are all telling us that this year is a “make or break” for our planet’s climate. And the COP26 climate change conference, which just kicked off in Glasgow, must be a turning point in our pattern of greenhouse gas emissions or we risk – very literally – breaking our climate.

Shifting gears for sustainable transport

A farmer carrying her produce to the local market, a ship being loaded with medical supplies, a child seated on a school bus – the movement of people and goods from point A to point B, whether going from a village to a town or across a continent or ocean, shapes sustainable development.