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, 18 April 2019 POLICY BRIEFS SDG Knowledge Weekly: Public, Private and Blended Finance Update This week' SDG Knowledge Weekly looks at recent developments in the finance world, with the 2019 Spring Meetings of the World Bank Group and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) having been held from 12-14 April, in Washington, DC, and the 2019 Financing for Development (FfD) Forum underway from 15-18 April, at UN Headquarters in New York, US. FEATURED It’s Not the Boxes that Count, but the Arrows: GSDR Scientists Call for Focus on Levers of Change 12 April 2019: The 15 independent scientists who are preparing the 2019 edition of the Global Sustainable Development Report (GSDR) briefed UN Member States and stakeholders on preliminary findings of their report, and the process through which they have reached their conclusions. The 2019 GSDR will be the first GSDR edition to be issued by an independent group of experts, and the first that will inform the UN’s summit-level global review of the 2030 Agenda. Finance Ministers Establish Coalition to Accelerate Climate Action 14 April 2019: A Coalition of the Willing comprising finance ministers from more than 20 developed and developing countries has pledged to drive stronger collective action on climate change and its impacts. The Coalition will pursue a set of six ‘Helsinki Principles’ that promote national climate action, especially through fiscal policy and the use of public finance. NAP Expo Fosters Partnerships for National Adaptation Planning 12 April 2019: The sixth NAP Expo sought to promote the exchange of experiences and foster partnerships to advance National Adaptation Plans (NAPs). The Expo convened under the theme, ‘Raising Adaptation Ambition by Advancing NAPs,’ during Korea Global Adaptation Week, which sought to identify innovative ways to raise ambition to build resilience to the impacts of climate change. UN Secretariat Issues Questions and Answers on 2019 VNRs April 2019: The UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA) has issued an updated list of questions and answers (Q&A) on Voluntary National Reviews (VNRs) to help countries prepare for their reporting on the 2030 Agenda’s implementation at the 2019 session of the UN High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (HLPF) in July 2019. NEWS SDSN Shares Findings on Local SDG Data Collection 15 April 2019: The Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN) has published a synthesis report that shares findings from an initiative that promotes sub-national SDG monitoring in support of the 2030 Agenda’s “leave no one behind” principle. The report showcases impacts related to broadening political support for the global sustainable development agenda, encouraging action in the absence of national leadership and promoting inclusion. Arab Forum Reviews SDG Progress, Crafts Messages for HLPF 12 April 2019: The Arab Forum for Sustainable Development (AFSD) reflected on progress towards the five SDGs that will be reviewed at the July 2019 session of the UN High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (HLPF), in addition to Goal 17, which is reviewed each year. AFSD-19 focused on the theme, ‘Empowering People and Ensuring Inclusiveness and Equality in the Arab Region.’ Forest and Farm Facility Launches Partnership in Togo in Support of SDGs 12 April 2019: The Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN’s (FAO) Forest and Farm Facility (FFF) and the Government of Togo have launched a partnership to strengthen forest and farm producers in tackling poverty and coping with climate change. The FFF aims to contribute to achieving at least 11 of the 17 SDGs. UN-Water Publishes Inventory of UN Global Water and Sanitation Work 11 April 2019: UN-Water has published an inventory of water and sanitation work undertaken by 32 UN bodies and 41 partner organizations, including independent entities that are hosted at the secretariats of various UN bodies. The inventory provides an overview of global work on water and sanitation across the whole UN system. The publication is intended to help promote coherence and coordination of activities relating to global goals on water and sanitation, in particular SDG 6 (clean water and sanitation) and SDG target 11.5 on water-related disasters. Workshop on the “Blue COP” Explores Climate-Ocean Linkages 11 April 2019: Organized by the Because the Ocean Initiative, the Technical Workshop titled, ‘Before the Blue COP,’ focused on the state of knowledge concerning climate and ocean change, synergies and gaps in climate and ocean actions, and national perspectives on the ocean-climate nexus. NAP Global Network: Private Sector Engagement Critical to Climate Adaptation Efforts 10 April 2019: Private sector engagement is necessary to ensure the strengthening of climate resilience and the successful implementation of National Adaptation Plans (NAPs), according to a report published by the NAP Global Network. The report titled, ‘Engaging the Private Sector in National Adaptation Planning Processes,’ was launched during NAP Expo 2019 in Songdo, Republic of Korea. UN-Habitat Presents Guide on Addressing Human Settlements in NAPs 10 April 2019: The UN Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat) has published a guide on addressing human settlements in National Adaptation Plans (NAPs) as a supplement to the UNFCCC’s Technical Guidelines on the NAP Process. The guide titled, ‘Addressing Urban and Human Settlement Issues in National Adaptation Plans,’ was presented at NAP Expo 2019 to gauge interest in, and respond to country requests on, strengthening the human settlement components in the NAP planning process. In Advance of HLPF 2019, Experts Review Progress on SDG 10 3 April 2019: Participants took stock of progress towards SDG 10 (reduced inequalities) at the Expert Group Meeting (EGM) on SDG 10, and discussed key points for consideration during the upcoming in-depth review of SDG 10 at the 2019 High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (HLPF). Forest Europe Publication Advocates for Integrating Health Benefits into SFM April 2019: The Forest Europe Expert Group on Human Health and Well-being published a book that summarizes current knowledge on the health benefits of forests and integration of social aspects of forests into sustainable forest management (SFM). The publication presents evidence on the health benefits of forests, and shares concepts and approaches for utilizing the beneficial effects of forests. It highlights that the capacity of forests to contribute to health and well-being enables the forestry sector to be considered in key national objectives and strategies as well as World Health Organisation (WHO) action plans and the SDGs. SAIs from Netherlands, MENA Countries Contribute to Guidance on SDG Preparedness April 2019: The International Organisation of Supreme Audit Institutions (INTOSAI) prepared an updated guide to support governments as they prepare for SDG implementation that details the INTOSAI seven-step model for reviewing government SDG preparedness and provides questions to guide Supreme Audit Institutions (SAIs) in implementing the model. The guide also reflects on the experiences of seven SAIs that collaborated within the Sharaka programme in reviewing government SDG preparedness. Report Seeks to Improve Impact of Biodiversity-related Data on Decision Making March 2019: A recent report titled, ‘Better Data, Better Decisions: Increasing the Impact of Biodiversity Information,’ reveals ten key messages aiming to improve the flow of data from those who collect and manage it, to those who need to use it to inform decision-making processes. Global Chemicals Outlook II Chapter Highlight: Overview of the Global Chemical Industry April 2019: The first chapter of the Global Chemicals Outlook II (GCO II), which was recently released by the UN Environment Programme (UNEP), presents an overview of the global chemical industry through data, historic trends, production volume and capacity and related forecasts. Trade in ESTs Offers Triple-Win Opportunities for Environment, Prosperity, Development 27 March 2019: Increasing trade in environmentally sound technologies (ESTs) can promote economic development, job creation and innovation, while fostering economic and climate resilience, according to a report published by the UN Environment Programme (UNEP). CURRENT & UPCOMING EVENTS SEE MORE » Financing for Development (FfD) Forum 2019 15-18 April 2019 | New York City, US Africa Regional Forum on Sustainable Development 2019 16-18 April 2019 | Marrakesh, Marrakech, Morocco Regional Consultation on the Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework for Central and Eastern Europe 16-18 April 2019 | Belgrade, Serbia Earth Day 2019 22 April 2019 | worldwide Forum of the Countries of Latin America and the Caribbean on Sustainable Development 2019 22-26 April 2019 | Santiago, Region Metropolitana, Chile 18th Session of the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (PFII) 22 April - 3 May 2019 | New York City, US UNGA High-level Event on Multilateralism 24 April 2019 | New York City, US Nature Champions Summit 24-25 April 2019 | Montreal, Quebec, Canada ‘Our Forests, Our Future’ Conference 25-26 April 2019 | Brussels, Belgium 2019 ECOSOC Special Meeting on International Cooperation in Tax Matters 29 April 2019 | New York City, US UNEP and Open University MOOC on Marine Litter 29 April 2019 | virtual UNGA Multi-stakeholder Hearing for High-level Meeting on UHC 29 April 2019 | New York City, US 2019 Water for Food Global Conference 29-30 April 2019 | Lincoln, NE, US Climate Action Pacific Partnership Conference 29-30 April 2019 | Suva, Central, Fiji Global Workshop on Ecosystem-based Adaptation in Transboundary Basins 29-30 April 2019 | Geneva, Geneve, Switzerland UNECE Resource Management Week 2019 29 April - 3 May 2019 | Geneva, Geneve, Switzerland 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). Click here for further information on the IISD's SDG Knowledge Hub .