16 May 2014: The World We Want 2015 Policy and Strategy Group has launched the World We Want 2015 Trends page, a tool for “visualizing” the ongoing global conversation and related data on the post-2015 development agenda and Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
The launch took place during an event titled ‘Visualizing People’s Voices: Data by People for People,’ which took place on 16 May 2014, at UN Headquarters in New York, US.
On behalf of UN General Assembly (UNGA) President John Ashe, Special Adviser Nicholas Pron cited the “unprecedented level of consultation” achieved through this initiative, as “people from all corners of the world and all corners of society had the chance to express their priorities and concerns and to have a say in the design of the upcoming framework.”
Corinne Woods, UN Millennium Campaign Director, noted that The World We Want website is co-owned, co-shared, co-designed and co-implemented by civil society and the UN. Rosa Lizarde, Group Co-Chair, said the Group had partnered with various parts of civil society, including women, youth, disabled, girls and faith-based organizations. She explained that they made the platform more user-friendly and more accessible, inviting people to consume the data and use the visualization tool. She noted that governments turn to the website for data mining, with the data then feeding into political processes, which need to be rooted in people’s voices. Lizarde also highlighted that the visualization is based on several data sets, including IISD’s coverage of the first eight sessions of the Open Working Group on SDGs. She said civil society members who attend an OWG meeting and give a statement, or submit one online, will influence the related data, visible in the “bubbles” corresponding to each topic.
Amina Mohammed, Special Adviser to the UN Secretary-General on Post-2015 Development Planning, stressed the need for “New York” to listen to the local level, especially to the villages and to the voice of indigenous people, and that the heavy lifting of the agenda will fall on youth, who need to be engaged in the process. Ahmad Alhendawi, UN Secretary-General’s Envoy on Youth, underlined that young people participate only when they feel that their participation is meaningful. He said the majority of the people who engaged with The World We Want platform in the past three years were youth. [World We Want 2015 Trends Page] [Visualization Tool] [Webcast of Launch Event] [IISD RS Sources]