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Pressrelease 13 June 2017. Stockholm. The Swedish independent think tank Global Utmaning (Global Challenge) organises an international conference 20 June 2017 on “Localizing Global Agendas – Social focus key to leave no one behind”. Among the speakers are Jeffrey Sachs, Director SDSN and Center for Sustainable Development at Columbia University (via link) , Kerry Constatible, First Officer for the 2030 Agenda at the UN Secretary General’s Office and Karolina Skog, Sweden’s Minister for the Environment.
The world’s leaders have pledged common action to adopt several global agendas for sustainable development; such as the 2030 Agenda, COP21 and the New Urban Agenda. In order to successfully realise the agendas, local implementation will be key.
–Through this conference we want to highlight good examples, strategies and success factors at local level in the cities, and particularly focus on the importance of the social dimension. The role of sustainable cities, global health issues, and the importance of young people’s influence as well as financing will be crucial, says Johan Hassel, CEO at the think tank Global Utmaning.
Social dimension of sustainable development
The motto of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the 2030 Agenda is to “leave no one behind”. This is a challenge for Sweden and most countries in order to achieve sustainable development, with large and growing income gaps, segregation, xenophobia and lack of gender equality. The think tank therefore puts a strong emphasis on the social dimensions of the global agendas.
Cities – focus for implementation
Although Sweden’s climate footprint is among the highest in the world, Sweden is considered to be the country with greatest opportunity to achieve the 2030 Agenda. Therefore, Sweden can also be a role-model. The perspective needs to be local; It is within cities and municipalities that the conversion to sustainable development will take place in practice. Thus, the Swedish government needs to support local companies, municipalities and organizations.
– It is important to see how the agendas are interlinked. The 2030 Agenda’s SDG11 on sustainable cities says a lot about what needs to be done. The New Urban Agenda says more about how. If we highlight the synergies, these principles can be very useful in the practical work, says Elin Andersdotter Fabre, responsible for Sustainable Cities at Global Utmaning.
Keynote from Jeffrey Sachs
Researchers and experts from WHO, UN-Habitat, UN Secretary General’s office, Bertelsmann Stiftung, Stockholm Resilience Centre and Karolinska Institute will participate at the conference. Jeffrey Sachs, Director, SDSN, and Director, Center for Sustainable Development, Columbia University, USA, will give an introduction via link. Sachs is a leading figure of the SDGs, and was Director of the UN Millennium Project.
National Urban Forum
The conference also incorporates a National Urban Forum, co-organised with UN-Habitat it is the first after the adoption of the New Urban Agenda. National Urban Policies have been identified by the UN as a key element in the implementation of the global agendas and National Urban Forum provide the necessary setting and multi-stakeholder platform for policy formulation. The purpose of the Swedish National Urban Forum is therefore to co-produce a National Urban Policy initiative, leading policy makers and stakeholders together, to ensure both adequacy, quality, and legitimacy.
The think tank will also launch the publication 12 Pathways to Global Health – from Evidence to Policy. It highlights social challenges and opportunities in the 2030 Agenda, calling for a local focus of global health issues, as well as emphasising the need for political leadership to defend the rights of adolescents and women, in order to leave no one behind.
Read more about the program and the speakers: https://localizingglobalagendas-2.confetti.events/
Press contacts:
Johan Hassel
CEO Global Utmaning
johan.hassel@globalutmaning.c3177.cloudnet.cloud
+46 70 312 43 18
Elin Andersdotter Fabre
Project Manager Sustainable Cities
elin.fabre@globalutmaning.c3177.cloudnet.cloud
+46 70 223 32 47
Global Utmaning (Global Challenge) is an independent think tank that promotes long-term solutions to crises and challenges in the ecological, economic and social systems through collaboration between research, business, politics and civil society.
The think tank is a node within international networks, working with strategic analysis, policy solutions and advocacy through policy dialogues, seminars and reports.
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