Click here to visit the IISD's SDG Knowledge Hub knowledgebase.  SDG UPDATE A compilation of items recently posted to the SDG Knowledge Hub Tuesday, 3 July 2018 POLICY BRIEFS SDG Knowledge Weekly: Food Systems and Nutrition This brief reviews recent reports and discussions on food systems and nutrition, which exemplify linkages among seemingly disparate pieces of the 2030 Agenda. The publications underline the importance of ensuring that the SDGs bring about a more sustainable global food system without detracting from other goals or targets. FEATURED Co-facilitators Circulate Revised Migration Compact Before Final Round of Negotiations 29 June 2018: Ahead of the sixth and final scheduled round of intergovernmental negotiations on the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration, the co-facilitators from Switzerland and Mexico have circulated the third revised draft of the compact. In their letter accompanying the draft, the co-facilitators announce their intention to present a "final text" by 11 July, and conclude the negotiation process by the morning of 13 July. Deputy Secretary-General Briefs Governments on Resident Coordinator Reform 27 June 2018: The UN Deputy Secretary-General briefed UN Member States on initial steps underway to "reinvigorate" the Resident Coordinator (RC) system. The planned changes are mandated in a UN General Assembly (UNGA) resolution on reforming the UN development system in line with the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. UNHCR Issues Final Draft of Global Compact on Refugees 26 June 2018: The office of the UN High Commissioner on Refugees has issued the final draft of the global compact on refugees, providing the basis for the final round of negotiations in Geneva. Among the changes in the final draft, the document indicates that the Global Refugee Forum will convene every four years, beginning in 2019. NEWS Congress Highlights Bamboo and Rattan’s Contribution to SDGs 27 June 2018: The Global Bamboo and Rattan Congress 2018 (BARC 2018) highlighted the value of bamboo and rattan-based activities in achieving international policy objectives, including the SDGs and commitments under the Paris Agreement on climate change. The Congress showcased new and emerging technologies for processing and using bamboo fiber and composite materials, highlighting its potential as a renewable natural resource. UNEP Report Assesses National Biodiversity Strategies and Action Plans (NBSAPs) July 2018: Second-generation National Biodiversity Strategies and Action Plans (NBSAPs) are “more targeted” than first-generation NBSAPs, according to a report by the UN Environment Programme (UNEP, or UN Environment). The report assesses country progress in NBSAP development and national implementation and country readiness to meet the Aichi Biodiversity Targets. ODI Examines 'Leave No One Behind' Reflections in VNRs 29 June 2018: Analysts from the Overseas Development Institute (ODI) report that they are encouraged by countries’ engagement with the Voluntary National Review (VNR) process so far, even though the presentations made at the 2016 and 2017 sessions of the UN High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (HLPF), for the most part, only “met minimum requirements for action on the goals.” The ODI briefing note also finds that the dearth and diversity of reporting on "leave no one behind" (LNOB) mean that trends, approaches and lessons of success and failure have been difficult to identify. GEF Assembly Discusses Partnerships for Implementing 2030 Agenda 29 June 2018: The sixth meeting of the Global Environment Facility (GEF) Assembly took note of the Report on the GEF-7 Replenishment, the Sixth Overall Performance Study of the GEF, and the Report of the Scientific and Technical Advisory Panel, in addition to considering other issues. Participants at the Assembly also participated in roundtable discussions on how to accelerate action on: food, land-use and restoration; sustainable cities; blue economy; partnerships for implementing the 2030 Agenda; science-based targets for the Earth; circular economy; and marine plastics. UN Climate Change Annual Report 2017 Website Goes Live 27 June 2018: UN Climate Change has launched a web version of its first-ever annual report. The new website includes videos, photos and infographics illustrating the key 2017 achievements and highlighting linkages among the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, the Paris Agreement on climate change and the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR). North African Experts Recognize Lack of Coordination Mechanisms for SDG Delivery 26 June 2018: Participants from the Maghreb countries discussed SDG implementation in North Africa, during an event organized by the UN Economic Commission for Africa's (UNECA) Office for North Africa. Experts reflected on Maghreb countries' progress towards the SDGs, shared challenges in implementation and considered coordination mechanisms to facilitate SDG implementation. Regional Platform Advances Sendai Framework Implementation in the Americas 25 June 2018: Ministers and senior officials from the Americas and the Caribbean called for more progress on implementing the region’s roadmap for disaster resilience during the Sixth Regional Platform on Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) in the Americas. UN Public Service Awards Recognize Eight Governance Innovations for SDG Implementation 23 June 2018: The 2018 UN Public Service Awards recognized public institutions in Austria, Colombia, Indonesia, Kenya, Republic of Korea, Spain, Switzerland and Thailand for contributions to the SDGs. Since 2016, the Awards have been aligned with the SDGs, with an emphasis on implementation initiatives and operationalizing the leave no one behind principle. UNFCCC Executive Secretary Urges OPEC Countries to Transition to Renewable Energy 21 June 2018: Addressing the seventh Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) International Seminar, UN Climate Change Executive Secretary Patricia Espinosa called on oil producing countries to transition to renewable energy to enable a low-carbon future and help mitigate the worst climate change impacts, including more severe and frequent droughts, flooding and storms. NASA/ESA Study Reveals Accelerating Antarctic Ice Loss 20 June 2018: Antarctica’s ice sheet is melting more rapidly than previously thought, causing sea levels to rise faster today than at any time in the past 25 years, according to a study funded by the US National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and the European Space Agency (ESA) that was published in the scientific journal Nature. SDG Advocates Advance Education for All, CEO Engagement in Africa 13 June 2018: The Education Above All Foundation has announced that it will provide a quality education for ten million of the world’s most marginalized children. Sheikha Moza Bint Nasser, founder and chairperson of the Education Above All Foundation (EAA) and a member of the UN’s Advocates Group of Eminent Personalities on the SDGs, made the announcement at a high-level event attended by other SDG advocates including Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, President of Ghana and co-Chair of the SDG Advocates. REN21 Renewables Report: Heating, Cooling, Transport Lag Behind Power Sector in Energy Transformation 4 June 2018: While the renewable energy transformation is underway for the power sector, the heating, cooling and transport sectors, which account for 80% of total energy demand, are lagging behind and require accelerated action to meet SDG 7 (affordable and clean energy) and the goals of the Paris Agreement on climate change, according to a status report on the renewables, published by the Renewable Energy Policy Network for the 21st Century (REN21). UNECE/FAO Report: Wood Energy Can Help Achieve SDG 7 24 May 2018: The UN Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO) have published a report highlighting the contribution that wood energy can make to achieving SDG 7 (affordable and clean energy). The study titled, ‘Wood Energy in the ECE Region: Data, Trends and Outlook in Europe, the Commonwealth of Independent States and North America,’ highlights wood energy as the “overlooked renewable energy giant of the world.” ICAO Adopts Standards and Recommended Practices to Reduce Emissions from International Aviation 27 June 2018: The Council of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) has adopted a set of Standards and Recommended Practices (SARPs) that provide mandatory actions by States and airline operators to implement ICAO’s Carbon Offsetting and Reduction Scheme for International Aviation (CORSIA). CURRENT & UPCOMING EVENTS SEE MORE » 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 Learning From the Past to Inform the 2050 Vision 3 July 2018 | Montreal-Est, Quebec, Canada Global Compact on Refugees: Sixth Consultation 3-4 July 2018 | Geneva, Geneve, Switzerland Asian Ministerial Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction 2018 3-6 July 2018 | Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia 1st Global Land Degradation Neutrality Forum 4-5 July 2018 | Seoul, Seoul-T'Ukpyolsi, Republic of Korea GEO Blue Planet Symposium 4-6 July 2018 | Toulouse, Midi-Pyrenees, France Interactive Civil Society Hearing on Non-Communicable Diseases 5 July 2018 | New York City, US International Conference: Saving Our Common Home and the Future of Life on Earth 5-6 July 2018 | Vatican City, Holy See World Forum on Intermediary Cities 5-7 July 2018 | Morocco Eco Forum Global Guiyang 2018 6-8 July 2018 | Guizhou, China Forest-based Transformation towards Sustainable and Resilient Societies: Lessons Learned and Success... 8 July 2018 | New York City, US Seminar on Transformational Change for the Biodiversity Agenda 8 July 2018 | Montreal-Est, Quebec, Canada World Cities Summit 2018 8-12 July 2018 | Singapore 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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