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GUEST ARTICLES
Realizing Fossil Fuel Subsidy Reform Through Trade Agreements
With 2017 rapidly drawing to a close, several international summits this year can still significantly advance sustainable development. Hopeful observers will naturally look closely at any progress made at the 23rd UN Climate Conference in Bonn in November, as well as the upcoming UN Environment Assembly in Nairobi in December.
Improving the Accountability Cycle: Recommendations for Stronger VNR Guidelines
Voluntary National Reviews (VNRs) are central to the institutional mechanisms proposed to review the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and track their progress. Two years into the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, after two review cycles at the UN High-level Political Forum for Sustainable Development (HLPF), sixty-four countries have presented their VNRs: 22 in 2016 and 43 in 2017, with Togo having presented twice. After the 48 volunteer countries present their VNRs in 2018, more than half (54%) of all UN Member States will have undergone at least one round of review, and 8 Member States will have volunteered to be reviewed at least twice at the global level.
Moving Ahead with REDD+ to Combat Climate Change
The forest is no place for impatience. From a great oak tree rising out of a tiny acorn, to tropical palm cover spreading across the Amazon basin, forests need time to grow. So does the successful climate-change mitigation programme Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD+). Make no mistake: REDD+ is maturing as countries build the necessary systems to reap the results-based rewards of participation. But, much work and fresh challenges lie ahead as countries move from readiness to implementation.

POLICY BRIEFS
Photo by IISD/ENB | Kiara Worth SDG 13 Update: Joining Up NDC and SDG Planning
The thirteenth goal of the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) framework stands out from the other sixteen goals because it alone is followed by an asterisk. For this SDG, the international community agreed to “take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts”, while “*acknowledging that the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change is the primary international, intergovernmental forum for negotiating the global response to climate change.”

FEATURED
ENVIRONMENT-AIR POLLUTION Lancet Commission Report Links Pollution Control to SDG Implementation
19 October 2017: Pollution was responsible for around nine million premature deaths in 2015, according to a Lancet Commission report on pollution and health, which aims to reduce air, soil and water pollution by communicating their health and economic costs, providing solutions to policymakers and “dispelling the myth” that pollution is an inevitable consequence of development.
UN Photo/Gill Fickling Mounting Evidence on Conflict-induced Famine Prompts Discussion on Famine as Crime Against Humanity
19 October 2017: Several recent reports and events have raised awareness that conflicts and natural disasters are pushing the world off track towards reaching SDG 2 (End Hunger and all forms of malnutrition). Amid mounting evidence that hunger, malnutrition and obesity are on the rise, the UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Food has urged the international community to address famine as a crime against humanity.
Featured Image - 93 IPBES Launches Primers on Upcoming Assessments
October 2017: The Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) has launched a series of primers. The short briefing documents contain key information about the five landmark assessments set for launch at the sixth annual session of the IPBES Plenary, to be held in March 2018, in Medellín, Colombia.
Photo by IISD | Lynn Wagner ICAO Conference Agrees on 2050 Vision for Sustainable Aviation Fuels
16 October 2017: Reducing emissions from international aviation is particularly challenging as the options for alternative propulsion technologies and fuels are limited. Efforts by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) have therefore focused on alternative fuels for aviation. ICAO members have now adopted a 2050 Vision for the further development and deployment of such fuels.

NEWS
Featured Image -161 CTCN Promotes Climate Action and SDGs through Technology, Financing Solutions
24 October 2017: The Climate Technology Centre and Network (CTCN), UN Environment (UNEP) and the Central American Bank for Economic Integration (CABEI) convened a workshop to help advance climate action through technology and financing in Central America. The CTCN and the UN Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) issued calls for proposals under five technical assistance projects that promote several Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
UN Photo/Martine Perret US Government Accountability Office Urges President to Manage Climate Risks
24 October 2017: The US Government Accountability Office (GAO), the auditing arm of US Congress, issued a report calling for the Executive Office of the President to use information on economic effects of climate change to help identify significant risks and formulate appropriate federal responses.
UN Photo/Eskinder Debebe UNESCO Report Addresses Accountability on SDG 4
24 October 2017: The UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization’s (UNESCO) Global Education Monitoring (GEM) series has released a report that examines ways institutions and people can be held accountable for reaching Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 4 on quality education. The report asserts that universal quality education is a shared responsibility among governments, schools, teachers, parents and other stakeholders.
Photo courtesy of SDG Fund UN and Stakeholders Discuss Human Rights and SDG 3
24 October 2017: The UN Deputy High Commissioner for Human Rights, Kate Gilmore, said most maternal and infant mortality can be easily prevented with the right services, policies and priorities, and there is no excuse for not providing people essential life saving services. Gilmore made these remarks in advance of her participation in a dialogue on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and Human Rights, with a focus on SDG 3 (good health and well-being).
Photo by IISD/ENB | Pamela Chasek On UN Day, Sri Lanka Launches SDG Action Campaign
24 October 2017: On the 72nd UN Day, UN Sri Lanka and the Sri Lanka Ministry of Education, in partnership with the Hatton National Bank, launched the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) Action Campaign to educate and encourage students from across the country to design and implement SDG projects in their communities. The Campaign will provide seed funding and mentoring to kickstart 25 sustainability projects across the island.
Photo by IISD/ENB | Kiara Worth ESCAP, STEPI Report Calls for ‘Innovative Financing’ for SDG Implementation
23 October 2017: The UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) and the Science and Technology Policy Institute (STEPI) have launched a report on innovative financial models that can help meet financing needs for implementing the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in the region. The report proposes a range of approaches including impact investing, green public procurement, social enterprises and private-sector investment models that nudge private money toward sustainable development.
UN Photo/Mark Garten Special Rapporteur Urges Action Against Discrimination in Education
23 October 2017: The UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Education, Koumbou Boly Barry, has called on UN Member States to fight discrimination to ensure that all children have access to education, fulfilling Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 4 (quality education). The UN reports that 263 million children around the world are not receiving education, due to a range of factors, including being migrants or refugees, or because of their cultural, linguistic or ethnic background.
Photo by IISD/ENB | Kiara Worth UN Report Identifies Options for Integrating Pre-2020 Climate Action and SDGs
23 October 2017: In preparation for the UN Climate Change Conference, the UN Climate Change Secretariat has issued a report, titled ‘Climate Action Now: Summary for Policymakers,’ outlining concrete examples of successful climate policy implementation around the world, and ways to replicate and scale up such action between now and 2020.
URBANIZATION UN, Mayors Shine Spotlight on Sustainable Urban Development
23 October 2017: Recent developments on cities and human settlements show that sustainable urbanization continues to be addressed in conjunction with climate action at all levels, from the national to the local. These developments include the UN General Assembly (UNGA) Second Committee's discussion on the New Urban Agenda (NUA) and the role of urbanization in sustainable development. In addition, the UN Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat) and partners are implementing projects that focus on basic services and low emission development strategies (LEDS) in cities.
UN Photo/R Marklin UNFCCC Publications Contribute to Technology Mechanism Assessment, Promote Energy Efficiency in Emission-intensive Sectors
20 October 2017: In preparation for the UN Climate Change Conference in November, the UNFCCC Secretariat published a technical paper titled, ‘Experience, lessons learned and best practices in conducting reviews of various arrangements under the Convention and the Kyoto Protocol relevant to the periodic assessment of the Technology Mechanism.’ The Technology Mechanism’s policy arm Technology Executive Committee (TEC) issued a brief promoting industrial energy and material efficiency in emission-intensive sectors.
UN Photo/Martine Perret Global Handwashing Day Highlights Need for Behavior Change on Hygiene
20 October 2017: Agencies marked Global Handwashing Day on 15 October, with calls for preventing disease outbreaks through better hygiene, including washing hands with soap. The Water Supply & Sanitation Collaborative Council (WSSCC) noted that handwashing promotion has yet to transform habits, and called for more research into the prospects for behavioral change.
Photo by IISD/ENB | Sean Wu Asia-Pacific Policymakers Seek to Strengthen Civil Registration, Statistics for SDGs
20 October 2017: The UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) convened a high-level meeting on civil registration and vital statistics, which discussed ways in which governments can improve policy and practice around registering births and deaths and assigning legal identity. Civil registration contributes to several Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) targets, including target 16.9 on legal identity, and target 17.18 on improving the quality, timeliness, reliability and disaggregation of statistical data.
Photo by IISD/ENB | Kiara Worth World Telecommunication Conference Addresses ICTs' Contribution to the SDGs
20 October 2017: The World Telecommunication Development Conference 2017 (WTDC-17) addressed the future of the telecommunication and information and communication technology (ICT) sector and its contribution to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). WTDC-17 resulted in the Buenos Aires Declaration and the Buenos Aires Action Plan, which sets the priorities and programme of the International Telecommunications Union's Telecommunication Development Sector (ITU-D) over the next four years.
Photo by IISD | Lynn Wagner Student Sustainability Knowledge Highest on SDGs 2, 8, 11, 14, 15, 16
17 October 2017: The Higher Education Sustainability Initiative’s (HESI) Sustainable Literacy Test (Sulitest) finds students’ knowledge about the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) is relatively homogenous across all 17 SDGs, with variations noted from highest to lowest. The Sustainability Literacy Test is an online training and assessment tool that aims to raise awareness on sustainability and assessing sustainability literacy to help decision-makers make informed decisions to build a sustainable future.

CURRENT & UPCOMING EVENTS SEE MORE »
IPBES 10th Bureau and MEP Meeting
22-26 October 2017 | Bonn, Nordrhein-Westfalen, Germany
Thirteenth Meeting of the Persistent Organic Pollutants Review Committee (POPRC-13)
22-26 October 2017 | Rome, Lazio, Italy
CMS COP 12
22-28 October 2017 | Manila, Philippines
Asia-Pacific Forestry Commission
23-27 October 2017 | Sri Lanka
GEO Week 2017
23-27 October 2017 | Washington D.C., US
Clean Cooking Forum 2017
24-26 October 2017 | New Delhi, Delhi, India
Second Meeting of the Regional Conference on Social Development in Latin America and the Caribbean
25-27 October 2017 | Montevideo, Uruguay
Towards a Pollution-Free Planet: North American Multi-Stakeholder Consultation for UNEA-3
26 October 2017 | Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Africa Regional Conference on Migration
26-27 October 2017 | Addis Ababa, Adis Abeba, Ethiopia
2017 Solar World Congress
29 October - 2 November 2017 | Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
11th Meeting of the Inter-Agency and Expert Group on Gender Statistics (11th IAEG-GS)
30-31 October 2017 | Rome, Lazio, Italy
EAT Asia-Pacific Food Forum
30-31 October 2017 | Jakarta, Indonesia
ESCWA Regional Capacity-building Workshop: Water-Energy Nexus Operational Toolkit: Technology Transf...
30-31 October 2017 | Amman, Jordan
Latin American Learning Conference on a Holistic Implementation of the 2030 Agenda
30 October - 1 November 2017 | Cartagena de Indias, Bolivar, Colombia
Seventh Session of the Governing Body of the ITPGR
30 October - 3 November 2017 | Kigali, Rwanda
39th Session of the UNESCO General Conference
30 October - 14 November 2017 | Paris, Ile-De-France, France