8 November 2016: Civil society organizations (CSOs) are reflecting on reform of the UN Development System (UNDS), analyzing measurement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in US cities, and evaluating the green economy transition. On access to justice and other issues, the Monsanto Tribunal heard testimony on environmental and health damage caused by Monsanto.

On the UNDS, the German Development Institute (DIE) released a paper recommending the creation of a system-wide executive authority to run the System and make it more effective, effective and professional. Author Max-Otto Baumann proposes: transforming the UN Development Group (UNDG) Chair into a High Commissioner for Sustainable Development to signify that the UNDS is run on behalf of Member States; creating a new executive board of directors with membership from the UN System Chief Executives Board for Coordination (CEB); providing expanded funding through UNDG cost-sharing; and allowing an opt-out mechanism for UN specialized agencies that want to become quasi-equal members of the UNDS, similar to UN funds and programmes.

On SDG implementation, a Global Governance Spotlight Paper by Leida Rijnhout identifies a range of challenges for Europe. Arguing that Europe is not yet ready for the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, she recommends that the EU: develop a Strategy on Sustainable Development for 2030, with a concrete SDG implementation plan that breaks down and contextualizes targets; set and monitor land, water and carbon footprint reduction targets; tackle illicit financial flows and tax havens; promote policy coherence by setting up a structure among various European Commission (EC) Directorates General; and transition to a new economic model that focuses on wellbeing, wealth redistribution and fair resource use.

On cities and the SDGs, the Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN) released a preliminary SDG Index for the 124 most populous cities in the US. The US SDGs Cities Index synthesizes available data on 46 indicators from the proposed global indicator framework, covering 14 of the 17 SDGs. The working paper also identifies data gaps that make it difficult to analyze SDG implementation in the US, including a lack of consistent, available and recent data on some indicators. The Index finds that all US cities “have far to go to achieve the SDGs,” with the top scoring area, Provo-Orem, Utah, achieving 55.45% of the best possible outcome. SDSN invites comments on the working paper through 30 November 2016.

The transition to greener economies has “moved up a gear.”

On the green economy, the Green Economy Coalition’s (GEC) ‘Green Economy Barometer 2016’ report finds that the transition to greener economies has “moved up a gear” with more transitions in developing countries, increased investment in renewable energy, and carbon neutrality targets in Costa Rica, Germany and Sweden. The report cautions, however, that most national green economy plans focus on sectors rather than broader economic reform, and that natural and social capital accounting methodologies have had limited impact. On the poor and marginalized, the report finds: too few strategies consider the impact of green growth policies on the poorest and marginalized; the informal economy is often forgotten in green economy planning processes; and green opportunities and technologies are not well adapted to poor countries or communities. The report concludes that the green economy transition “needs to be broader, deeper and more inclusive,” and provides recommendations on how to move forward.

On access to justice, the Monsanto Tribunal, an international civil society initiative, heard testimony from 30 witnesses and experts from five continents with the aim of delivering a legal opinion on the environmental and health damage attributed to Monsanto. The Tribunal also raised awareness on the inclusion of ecocide into international criminal law. Monsanto Tribunal Chairwoman, Françoise Tulkens, reflected on the Tribunal’s importance, saying “The questions of the access to water and to healthy food … just like the right to a healthy environment are likely to become more important with climate change. It is our duty to set legal tools to face those issues.” A legal opinion on the Tribunal is expected by spring 2017 at the latest.

A parallel People’s Assembly brought together social movements from around the world to plan for the future we want. Both events convened in The Hague, the Netherlands, in October 2016. [An executive authority for the UNDS] [Is Europe ready for the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development] [SDSN Working Paper] [SDSN Consultation Announcement] [GEC Press Release] [Green Economy Barometer 2016] [Monsanto Tribunal Website] [Monsanto Tribunal Newsletter]