The Sustainable Development Goals emerged from Rio+20 as a universal, action-oriented framework to end extreme poverty while advancing economic development, social inclusion, and environmental sustainability beyond 2015

Proposal for SDGs at Rio+20

Lecture 13, Chapter 4 of Jeffrey Sachs’ course on Sustainable Development (Columbia University): The Sustainable Development Goals were conceived at Rio+20 as a universal, action-oriented agenda to carry the world beyond the Millennium Development Goals. This means ending extreme poverty and advancing development in a way that balances economic growth, social inclusion, and environmental sustainability, with proposed priorities spanning poverty, planetary boundaries, education, gender equality, health, agriculture, cities, climate and energy, ecosystems, and governance

[embed]

The world has a major problem, and ​that is that we are way off course in our goal of achieving sustainable development. ​We’ve had a 40-year run so far, ​dating back to the first global conference on the environment and ​development in Stockholm in 1972. ​And the simultaneous publication of Limits to Growth which correctly pointed out for ​the world that the challenge of combining economic development and ​environmental sustainability was still an unmet challenge, and an unmet conundrum. ​How can this be done? ​20 years later the world met at the Rio Earth Summit and ​adopted three major treaties that we’ve discussed on climate change, ​on biological diversity, and on combating desertification. ​20 years later, in June 2012, the world met for ​a third time on these great issues. ​Leaders came together from all over the world and took stock.

​And what they realized was a very unsettling and ​powerful set of truths. ​On the one side, all of the evidence pointed out that the diagnosis ​first made back in 1972 was fundamentally correct that ​the problem of combining economic growth, with social inclusion, ​and especially environmental sustainability ​was a challenge that was so ​far unaddressed and getting worse. ​Second, they concluded that the major actions which were hailed at ​the time as historic breakthroughs at the Earth Summit in 1992 had not succeeded. ​I’ve already noted on several occasions the three Fs ​on the report card given by Nature Magazine to the Earth Summit. ​The F for climate change, the F on biological diversity, ​the F given on the treaty on combating desertification, ​not one of them delivered as promised. ​So with that in mind, world leaders at the Rio+20 summit ​in June 2012 resolved once again to join this battle. ​And that’s where we are today.

​What are we to do with the world that is going in one direction ​with very strong momentum? ​Some good of economic growth spreading to many places of poverty ​being reduced in many parts of the world, but a lot that is seriously awry and ​getting more and more dangerous, high inequality. ​Some parts of the world still trapped in extreme poverty and ​cycles of violence and poverty and hunger and disease. ​And with the growing crisis of the global environment, ​whether it is climate change, ​the sixth major extinction of species on the planet, ​the dangers to our cities of pollution, overcrowding, ​lack of infrastructure, we now need, as the leaders ​realized at Rio+20, a new and dramatic approach. ​Well, what did they put on offer? ​How should the world respond? ​The first thing the world leaders said is, we absolutely must not give up.

​And quoting from the final outcome document of ​the conference called The Future We Want, the world leaders said, and ​I quote, we commit ourselves to reinvigorating the global partnership for ​sustainable development that we launched in Rio in 1992. ​We recognized the need to impart new momentum ​to our cooperative pursuit of sustainable development. ​And commit to work together with major groups and other stakeholders such as ​business, NGOs, universities in addressing the implementation gaps. ​They also noted something very important. ​And that is that the most urgent task of all in all of the interconnected ​challenges of sustainable development, of economic development, of social inclusion, ​of environment sustainability is the task that the world did take ​on in the year 2000 when world leaders adopted the Millennium Development Goals, ​and that is the fight against extreme poverty. ​We’ve talked a lot about extreme poverty. ​We should recall why it is the highest priority, the most urgent priority.

​And that’s because it is a matter of life and ​death in the absolute present conditions. ​One can even define extreme poverty as a condition in which ​survival is a daily struggle. ​Remember the people living in extreme poverty ​are wondering where their next meal will come from, whether the next drink of ​water will carry pathogens that could threaten their lives, ​whether the next bite of a mosquito might transmit malaria to them. ​In other words, the challenges of extreme poverty are here and now, and ​life and death. ​And since 7 million children are dying every year before their fifth ​birthday of conditions that are either completely preventable or, ​if not completely preventable, essentially fully treatable, ​we have this crisis, ​the opportunity, the moral challenge in front of us. ​And so when the world leaders met at Rio+20, ​they also noted right at the beginning of the future we want something that I ​regard as completely correct. ​They said and I quote, eradicating poverty is the greatest global challenge facing ​the world today and an indispensable requirement for sustainable development.

​Unless we tackle the end of extreme poverty, we’re not going to ​complete the challenges on the other aspects of sustainable development either. ​Quote, in this regard we are committed to free humanity from poverty and ​hunger as a matter of urgency. ​We reaffirm our commitment to making every effort to accelerate ​the achievement of the internationally agreed development goals, ​including the Millennium Development Goals by 2015. ​So in 2012 the world leaders said we have three years left ​of the 15-year period on the Millennium Development Goals. ​Let’s use those to accelerate progress. ​Let’s remember that the Millennium Development Goals called for cutting ​extreme poverty by half, something already accomplished if we take the developing ​countries as a group, but not accomplished country by country, or region by region. ​And so a lot of work left to do to 2015.

​But then continuing on after 2015 to complete the job. ​Now here’s where I think the leaders made the single most important step at RIO+20. ​They said, and I quote, we recognize that the development of goals could also be ​useful for pursuing focused and coherent action on sustainable development. ​In other words, they looked at the millennium development goals, ​said that was pretty good. ​That helped to mobilize world efforts on fighting poverty. ​We need a similar approach on mobilizing world efforts ​on sustainable development in all of it’s complexity. ​And I quote, we further recognize the importance and ​utility of a set of sustainable development goals, or SDG’s.

​These goals should address and incorporate, in a balanced way, ​all three dimensions of sustainable development and their interlinkages. ​I would summarize as saying that the world leaders agreed to make the transition from ​MDGs to SDGs, from millennium development goals to sustainable development goals. ​Taking a leaf from the millennium development goals, ​the world leaders also made some points about what these new SDGs should be. ​And, I quote again from The Future We Want, ​we also underscore that SDGs should be action-oriented, ​concise, and easy to communicate, limited in number, aspirational, ​global in nature and universally applicable to all countries, ​while taking into account different national realities, capacities and ​levels of development in respecting national policies and priorities. ​We also recognize that the goals should address and ​be focused on priority areas for the achievement of sustainable development, ​being guided by this outcome document, the future we want. ​Governments should drive implementation, ​with he active involvement of all relevant stakeholders as appropriate. ​Well, here you have it.

​What I think is a potentially historic decision to ​move to a new global agenda with a set of universally ​applicable sustainable development goals, and ​to have those goals help guide the world, rich and ​poor countries alike, in a new era, giving new impetus, ​new power new social mobilization, new resources, ​new political will, to a challenge that’s been ​more than 40 years somehow in our awareness, ​20 years under international law, but ​to date not successfully causing a change of direction for the world. ​Now in the outcome of Rio plus 20 and the call for putting sustainable ​development at the very core of the international development agenda. ​UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon honored me and gave me a good challenge also, ​which was to help create a global network of problem solving, ​and I mentioned before, this new, sustainable development solutions network. ​The idea that we need, not only new goals, new political ​motivation and will, but we need an era of intensive problem solving. ​The kind that we’ve been discussing In each of the areas of health, ​and education, sustainable agriculture, sustainable cities, ​sustainable energy systems. ​Conservation of biological diversity and all the rest. ​The SDSN, guided by its leadership council, ​took on a challenge to advise the United Nations and the secretary general in ​particular on what new sustainable development goals might be, ​because these will be negotiated to the year 2015 and then the operational beyond.

​So, the sustainable development solutions network proposed a concise ​set of ten goals that could be a framework of action. ​These are an illustration of course, ​because the government’s meeting in the United Nations, in the General Assembly, ​will ultimately be the ones to choose the goals, but I want to ​discuss what the STSN proposed, because I think that it shows ​the power, the range, and the kind of orientation that the SDGs ​should have and can have to guide us after the year 2015. ​So the SDSN group said ten goals maximum, ​and I think that that’s a reasonable number. ​It’s pretty hard to get all of the objectives of the economic development, ​social inclusion, environmental sustainability, and ​good government within a list of ten goals. ​But to have more than that would take away the concise power of a limited, ​clear, easily understandable set of universal goals. ​So here are the ten proposed by the sustainable development solutions network. ​Goal number one, end extreme poverty including hunger.

​And the more specific definition is, end extreme poverty in all it’s forms, ​in other words, complete the millennium development goals, ​including hunger, child stunting, malnutrition, and ​food insecurity, and give special support to highly vulnerable countries. ​The basic idea of goal number one, and it’s goal number one not by accident ​because it is the highest priority, is to complete the task started ​by the Millennium Development Goals, of ending extreme poverty. ​Now one thing to keep in mind, the World Bank, in its leadership group, ​voted in 2013 to take on this specific objective for ​the bank to contribute to ending extreme poverty by the year 2030. ​So the idea that completing the millennium development goals in the sense ​of ending extreme poverty in all its forms: income, hunger, disease, ​lack of access to basic infrastructure, ​can be accomplished by our generation is becoming official policy. ​SDG number two, achieve development within planetary boundaries. ​Now this ought to make sense by now. ​It says in the subtitle, all counties have a right to development that respects ​planetary boundaries, ensures sustainable production and consumption patterns, ​and helps to stabilize the global population by mid-century.

​So the idea is to give support to continued economic growth, ​especially in the developing countries. ​To give support to convergence that developing countries and ​developed countries should converge in living standards, ​by the developing countries being able to raise their living standards. ​But for this to happen within the planetary boundaries. ​And we know, through all of our discussions that, that means changes in ​the way that we use energy, produce energy, changes in the way that food is ​grown, changes in the way that cities are designed and built and so forth. ​SDG number three, ensure effective learning for all children and ​for youth For their lives and their livelihoods. ​So this is the education goal. ​It is not stated simply as children in school, though that’s important.

​It’s stated as effective learning so that children are imparted with the skills ​that they need to be productive, to be fulfilled in their lives, ​to be good citizens, and to be able to find decent jobs. ​We know that as technology is changing the pathways to ​decent work also require decent skills and good education. ​And SDG 3, as recommended by the Sustainable Development Solutions Network, ​puts the focus on that. ​SDG 4, achieve gender equality, social inclusion and human rights for all. ​The point is clear. ​We know that sustainable development rests on one core dimension of justice, ​fairness, social inclusion and social mobility. ​And we’ve seen that gender discrimination, discrimination against minority groups, ​discrimination against indigenous populations, ​are huge barriers to full participation in economic life and ​to a life satisfaction that is attainable if ​we honor human rights, if we live up to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

​SDG number 5, again, as recommended by the Sustainable Environment Solutions Network. ​Achieve health and wellbeing at all ages. ​So the subtitle of this is to achieve universal health coverage ​at every stage of life, ​with particular emphasis on primary health services including reproductive health. ​To ensure that all people receive quality health services without suffering ​financial hardship. ​All countries will also promote policies to help individuals to make healthy and ​sustainable decisions regarding diet, physical activity and ​other individual or social dimensions of health. ​We saw that it is possible to reduce child mortality dramatically, ​to reduce maternal mortality dramatically, to raise life expectancy, ​to control many diseases at very, very low cost. ​SDG number 6, improve agricultural systems and raise rural productivity.

​And in the more elaborate statement it says, improve farming practices, ​rural infrastructure, and access to resources for ​food production to increase the productivity of agriculture, livestock and ​fisheries, raise smallholder income, reduce environmental impacts, ​promote rural prosperity, and ensure resilience to climate change. ​We saw the challenges facing smallholder farmers. ​We’ve seen the problems of depletion of freshwater, ​depletion of fisheries, the impacts of climate change. ​The need to create new technology-based and ​information-based systems for smallholder farmers. ​To help raise the most impoverished of these families out of poverty and ​to ensure that farm systems are resilient to the changes that are coming and ​more productive. ​So SDG 6 recognizes the centrality of sustainable agriculture and, ​as part of that, the sustainability of the food supply. ​SDG 7, empower inclusive, productive and resilient cities.

​With the longer statement to make all cities socially inclusive, ​economically productive, environmentally sustainable, secure and ​resilient to climate change and other risks. ​Develop participatory, accountable, and ​effective city governance to support rapid and equitable urban transformation. ​We’ve talked a lot about the urban challenge, and we have seen, ​using the illustration of New York City, how cities can plan in detail for ​their sustainability on many dimensions. ​And the recommended SDG 7 ​calls on cities all over the world to take on this challenge. ​SDG 8, curb human-induced climate change and ensure sustainable energy. ​Clear. ​And the longer statement of this goal is to curb greenhouse ​gas emissions from energy, industry, agriculture, the built environment, and ​land use change to ensure a peak of global CO2 emissions by 2020 and ​to head off the rapidly growing dangers of climate change.

​To promote sustainable energy for all. ​We know that we need to cut, approximately by half, world emissions ​by 2050 even as the world economy grows perhaps three-fold between now and then. ​This means the decarbonization of the energy system while at the same time ​ensuring that electricity and modern energy services are available for all. ​A huge challenge, it can be done, but ​it will require much faster action than we have been taking to date. ​Goal number 9, secure ecosystem services and ​biodiversity, and ensure good management of water and other natural resources. ​With the text saying that biodiversity, marine and terrestrial ecosystems ​of local, regional and global significance should be inventoried, in other words, ​measured, managed and monitored to ensure the continuation of resilient and ​adaptive life support systems. ​And to support sustainable development.

​Water and other natural resources are managed sustainably and ​transparently to support inclusive economic and human development. ​In other words, biodiversity, maintaining ecosystem services, ​maintaining the biodiversity that is vital for the functioning of ecosystems. ​And goal number 10, transform governance for sustainable development. ​The public sector business and ​other stakeholders should commit to good governance including transparency, ​accountability, access to information, participation, ​an end to tax and secrecy havens and efforts to stamp out corruption. ​The international rules governing international finance, trade, ​corporate reporting, technology and intellectual property ​should be made consistent with achieving the sustainable development goals. ​The financing of poverty reduction and global public goods, ​including efforts to head off climate change, should be strengthened and ​based on a graduated set of global rights and responsibilities. ​Bottom line, ten goals to orient the world in clear, ​specific ways, measurable ways, concise and understandable ways, ​so that the world can make the shift from our business as usual and increasingly ​dangerous course to a trajectory of sustainable development for all.

​These are the recommendations of the Sustainable Development Solutions Network. ​It’s up to the world’s governments, following the mandate given ​at the Rio+20 summit, to choose the sustainable development goals and ​set a sustainable development agenda for the post-2015 period. ​To make the transition from MDGs to SDGs. ​Can these SDGs be achieved? ​Can this huge effort succeed? ​Let’s take a look.