SDG Blog

Action, agility and accountability will help us deliver on the global goals

By Li Junhua, Under-Secretary-General of UN DESA

I joined UN DESA in September 2022, and what a whirlwind four months it has been.

I am keenly aware that my term started at a time when a confluence of global crises has set us back in advancing the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

The Sustainable Development Goals and a Longevity Agenda

By Professor Andrew Scott, Department of Economics, London Business School and Research Fellow, Center for Economic and Policy Research 

The world population has reached 8 billion, a fourfold increase since the early 20th century. Achieving long-run prosperity for all in the face of this increase has been a motivating force for the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals.

8 billion people, 8 billion opportunities

By Dr. Natalia Kanem, Executive Director, United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) 

On November 15th, the world’s population will hit 8 billion.

From the Internet Governance Forum to Our Common Agenda

By Krzysztof Szubert, High Representative of the Prime Minister for European Digital Policy, Member of the UN IGF Leadership Panel, Republic of Poland

Last December, Poland was the proud host of the United Nations Internet Governance Forum (IGF). The global, multi-stakeholder platform that we all know, was this time held under quite unusual circumstances, as we all had to face the COVID pandemic rules and restrictions. At the same time, we wanted the IGF annual meeting to be available and accessible to everyone who would like to join the global discussion. And we did it!

Crisis in education for SDGs: The long-term impact of COVID-19 and the digital transformation

By Eun Mee Kim, President of Ewha Womans University

Population trends are both a key driver and a consequence of development

By Anastasia J. Gage, Professor at the Department of International Health and Sustainable Development, School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine, Tulane University and member of the UN High-level Advisory Board on Economic and Social Affairs

Now is the time to save our ocean and protect our future

By Liu Zhenmin, Under-Secretary-General of UN DESA and Secretary-General of the 2022 UN Ocean Conference

Our ocean is a beautiful blue wonder. It regulates our climate, fills our lungs with oxygen and provides food and jobs for millions of people around the globe.

Most of us have a connection to the ocean. And we all depend on it for our survival. In fact, according to the latest SDG data, more than 3 billion people rely on the ocean for their livelihoods.

An inclusive vision of computing will help us accelerate progress on the SDGs

By Josiah Hester, Assistant Professor, Northwestern University, and Director of the Ka Moamoa Ubiquitous and Mobile Computing Lab

Financing for the way forward for sustainable development

By Mr. Mahmoud Mohieldin, UN Secretary-General's Special Envoy on Financing the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development

As we enter the third year of the pandemic, the world faces gross inequalities, a climate crisis and an economic depression not seen in decades. Worse still, the conflict in Ukraine will be a major blow to the global economy. Once again, developing countries least able to cope with the impacts of these interrelated and cascading crises will be hit hardest.

Healthy forests offer a path to a better climate and greener future for all

By Ms. Juliette Biao Koudenoukpo, Director, United Nations Forum on Forests Secretariat, UN DESA

The world we live in is beset with crises of epic proportions – from the global pandemic that has upended life as we knew it, to the looming threats of irreversible climate change and biodiversity extinction, coupled with rising pollution and unsustainable consumption and production.