Click here to visit the IISD's SDG Knowledge Hub knowledgebase.  SDG UPDATE A compilation of items recently posted to the SDG Knowledge Hub Thursday, 28 June 2018 GUEST ARTICLES Three Things to Know about Partnerships for Development If the countries and people of the world are going to meet the ambition of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), we will need to meet SDG 17. This last (but not least) of the Goals emphasizes partnerships as an important means of achieving sustainable development. One crucial form of partnership is collaboration between development practitioners and academics – to ensure that development work is grounded in evidence, and that research is informed and guided by practice. Mainstreaming Biodiversity into Sustainable Food Systems – We Need to Measure It  The UN commented this week on the release of the 2018 Sustainable Development Goals Report that when it comes to meeting the 17 ambitious SDGs, progress is uneven and not moving fast enough. For example, the Goal to end hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition, and promote sustainable agriculture (SDG 2) – appears already out of reach, given the recent global increase in undernourished people. NEWS GEF Council Adopts US$63.4 Million Work Program 26 June 2018: The Council of the Global Environment Facility (GEF) has approved a Work Program comprising eight projects and one program concept that amounted to US$63.4 million, including GEF project financing and Agency fees. Secretary-General Announces Head of Transition Team for UN Development System 26 June 2018: UN Secretary-General António Guterres has appointed the leader of a transition team to provide "strategic leadership and oversight" to all aspects of the repositioning of the UN development system, following the adoption of UN General Assembly (UNGA) resolution 72/279. The repositioning process aims to better align the UN's operational activities for development with the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. UNITAR Partners with Danone to Advance Climate Change Education, Sustainable Change 26 June 2018: The UN Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR) has launched a multi-year partnership with Danone, a global food and beverage company, to build a core set of knowledge to help promote conservation, restoration and safeguarding of the planet, and to empower Danone employees to take concrete action to drive sustainable change. EU Event Addresses Linkages Between Climate Change and Security 22 June 2018: An EU high-level event titled, ‘Climate, Peace and Security: The Time for Action,’ brought together ministers, UN officials and subject experts to discuss security threats brought on by climate change. The meeting focused on countries’ shared responsibility to prepare for climate risks and to take action in mitigating them. "Sea Change" Refugee Compact Discussed in New York 22 June 2018: Governments received an update on negotiations on the global compact on refugees, which is being led by the office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). Volker Turk, Office of the UNHCR, said that the compact – if adopted in a form similar the current draft – will represent a “sea change in how the world engages with refugees and host communities,” and have a transformative impact on those directly affected. HLPF Blog Posts Highlight Smart Cities, DRR, Inclusivity in SDG Implementation 20 June 2018: María Soledad Cisternas Reyes, the UN Secretary-General’s Special Envoy on Disability and Accessibility, has called for planning and participative management in all countries to address the needs of the 15% of the world's population with physical, mental, intellectual or sensory impairments. Writing on the blog published in the lead-up to the 2018 session of the UN High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (HLPF), Reyes stresses that supporting persons with disabilities will solidify contemporary democracies and reinforce the sustainability of development. C40, UCCRN and Partners Quantify, Sound Alarm on Climate Threats to Urban Residents 19 June 2018: Cities and partners have issued a joint technical report, highlighting data analyses and case studies developed by the Urban Climate Change Research Network (UCCRN). It calls attention to urbanization trends, particularly in Asia and Africa, and illustrates the breadth and magnitude of climate change impacts on cities. CURRENT & UPCOMING EVENTS SEE MORE » 18th Melaka International Youth Dialogue: Youth Engineering a Sustainable Urbanisation 24-28 June 2018 | Malaysia 54th Meeting of the GEF Council and 6th GEF Assembly 24-28 June 2018 | Da Nang, Viet Nam 5th International Marine Conservation Congress 24-29 June 2018 | Kuching, Sarawak, Malaysia 30th ESCWA Ministerial Session 25-28 June 2018 | Beirut, Beyrouth, Lebanon Inter-regional Expert Group Meeting: Placing Equality at the Centre of the 2030 Agenda 27-28 June 2018 | Santiago, Region Metropolitana, Chile Oslo Tropical Forest Forum 27-28 June 2018 | Oslo, Norway World Cement Association Global Climate Change Forum 27-28 June 2018 | Paris, Ile-De-France, France Caribbean Urban Forum 2018 27-29 June 2018 | Kingston, Jamaica Climate Chance – Africa 2018 28-29 June 2018 | Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire LANDac Conference 2018 28-29 June 2018 | Netherlands Webinar: Fossil Fuel Subsidy Reform and the SDGs – Opportunities for Advocacy around the HLPF 30 June 2018 | virtual First Meeting of the Informal Advisory Group on Ecologically or Biologically Significant Marine Area... 30 June - 1 July 2018 | Montreal-Est, Quebec, Canada 20th Meeting of the GCF Board 1-4 July 2018 | Incheon, Republic of Korea ECOSOC Coordination and Management Meeting 2-3 July 2018 2-3 July 2018 | New York City, US 16th Annual Colloquium of the IUCN Academy of Environmental Law 2-6 July 2018 | Glasgow, Scotland, UK Twenty-Second Meeting of the Subsidiary Body on Scientific, Technical and Technological Advice 2-7 July 2018 | Montreal, Quebec, Canada Funding for the IISD's SDG Knowledge Hub has been provided by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation and the International Development Research Centre (IDRC) The IISD's SDG Knowledge Hub is a knowledgebase tracking implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, including its 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). 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