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FEATURED
Photo by IISD | Lynn Wagner Countries Reach Final Stage of Preparation for 2019 VNRs
1 July 2019: Most of the 47 countries scheduled to present voluntary national reviews (VNRs) of SDG progress during the July 2019 session of the UN High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (HLPF) have released their full VNR reports. Issuance of these reports marks one of the last steps before countries present their VNRs at the 2019 HLPF.
Featured Image - 230 Japan Presents SDG Action Plan at G20 Meetings
21 June 2019: Japan has presented its 'Expanded SDGs Action Plan 2019' as part of its Group of 20 (G20) presidency. The Plan addresses health, education, women’s empowerment, energy, quality infrastructure, disaster risk reduction (DRR) and climate change, and marine plastic debris.

NEWS
Photo by Peter Berko HLPF Background Note Summarizes LDC, LLDC Status, Trends and Challenges
June 2019: In advance of the July 2019 session of the UN High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (HLPF), the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA) released a background note on the ‘Perspectives of Least Developed Countries (LDCs) and Landlocked Developing Countries (LLDCs).’ The note provides an introduction to the topic, status and trends, and proposes two guiding questions for discussion.
Photo by IISD/ENB | Kiara Worth HLPF Background Note Presents SDG 16 Trends, Proposes Guiding Discussion Questions
June 2019: A background note for the review of SDG 16 (peace, justice and strong institutions) identifies the Goal as a “universal challenge” requiring action for implementation and follow-up in both developed and developing countries. The authors underscore the importance of a whole-of-society approach to achieve SDG 16. The note was issued in advance of the July 2019 session of the UN High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (HLPF), which will hold an in-depth review of several SDGs.
Photo by IISD/ENB | Kiara Worth Stimson Center Presents 2020 Proposals on Fragility, Climate Governance
26 June 2019: Ahead of the UN’s 75th anniversary in 2020, the Stimson Center, a US-based think tank, presented proposals to strengthen the UN, address climate, peace and security challenges, and reinvigorate global governance. The report provides a roadmap for maximizing results at the UN General Assembly's (UNGA) high-level meeting to mark the anniversary in September 2020.
Photo credit: Anastasia Palagutina/Unsplash North Africa Adopts 2019-2020 Roadmap for SDG Implementation
20 June 2019: Participants at the Sixth Meeting of the Sub-Regional Coordination Mechanism (SCRM) for North Africa agreed on a revised joint roadmap to support SDG implementation in 2019-2020, following on the creation of a draft roadmap in 2018. The SCRM is coordinated by the UN Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA). The SRCM also adopted a framework to implement and monitor progress on the roadmap.
URBANIZATION G20 Countries Seek to Accelerate Energy Efficiency Progress through Cooperation
18 June 2019: The International Partnership for Energy Efficiency Cooperation (IPEEC) has released a report on energy efficiency in G20 economies that presents an update on the G20 Energy Efficiency Leading Programme (EELP) and an overview of technical work undertaken during the year.
Featured Image -224 'Movement Map' Shows Canadian CSOs Working on SDGs
14 June 2019: The British Columbia Council for International Cooperation (BCCIC) has launched a ‘Movement Map,’ which displays 11,651 civil society organizations (CSOs) in Canada working to support SDG implementation. The map seeks to illustrate the scale and scope of SDG activities.
Photo by IISD/ENB | Kiara Worth Discussion Note Identifies Climate-SDG Synergies Ahead of SDG 13 Review
June 2019: The UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA) has published a background note in preparation for the review of SDG 13 (climate action) that will take place during the July 2019 session of the UN High-level Forum on Sustainable Development (HLPF). The publication notes that progress on SDG 13 is falling short of what is needed to meet the global targets by 2030, and invites reflection on key areas of focus.
Photo by IISD/ENB Publication Provides Foundation for HLPF Review of SDG 17
June 2019: The UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA) has published a background note on financing the SDGs, in preparation for the July 2019 session of the UN High-level Forum on Sustainable Development (HLPF). The July session will conduct an in-depth review of SDG 17 (partnership for the Goals). According to the note, the review session will consider recommendations for implementing ideas contained in the outcome document of the UN Economic and Social Council's (ECOSOC) 2019 Forum on Financing for Development Follow-up (FfD Forum).
Photo by IISD/ENB | Kiara Worth South Africa Launches Green Transport Strategy
June 2019: South Africa has launched the country’s first Green Transport Strategy (GTS) to promote a transport system that is environmentally friendly and helps boost economic growth and create jobs.
Photo credit: Anastasia Palagutina/Unsplash Ambitious Agenda Set for UN Climate Summit’s Preparatory Meeting
June 2019: A preparatory meeting for the UN’s 2019 Climate Action Summit will convene in Abu Dhabi, UAE, to assess the progress of nine coalitions to develop transformative initiatives for announcement at the Summit. According to the agenda for the meeting, which takes place from 30 June to 1 July 2019, it will also include a series of Leaders’ Roundtables, the first climate and health ministers’ meeting, and sessions to examine synergies among the initiatives presented.

CURRENT & UPCOMING EVENTS SEE MORE »
30th Session of UNESCO IOC Assembly
26 June - 4 July 2019 | Paris, Ile-De-France, France
41st Meeting of the Open-ended Working Group of the Parties to the Montreal Protocol
1-5 July 2019 | Bangkok (Krung Thep), Thailand
International Conference on Youth, Ocean and SDG 14
1-5 July 2019 | Malacca, Melaka, Malaysia
Ninth Trondheim Conference on Biodiversity
2-5 July 2019 | Trondheim, Sor-Trondelag, Norway
23rd Meeting of the GCF Board
6-8 July 2019 | Incheon, Republic of Korea
ECOSOC Integration Segment 2019
8 July 2019 | New York City, US
Open-ended Online Discussions on the Post-2020 Implementation Plan for the Cartagena Protocol on Bio...
8-19 July 2019 | virtual
Driving Transformative Change: Foreign Affairs and the 2030 Agenda
9 July 2019 | New York City, US
Peer Learning Summit: Engaging the Private Sector in National Adaptation Planning Processes
9-11 July 2019 | Rotterdam, Zuid-Holland, Netherlands
High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (HLPF) 2019 Convened by ECOSOC
9-18 July 2019 | New York City, US
2019 Global Multi-stakeholder SIDS Partnership Dialogue
10 July 2019 | New York City, US
Higher Education Sustainability Initiative (HESI) 2019
10 July 2019 | New York City, US
Launch of State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World (SOFI) 2019
15 July 2019 | New York City, US
UNGA Informal Plenary: Gender Equality and Women's Leadership for a Sustainable World
15 July 2019 | New York City, US
25th Session of the ISA Council (Part II)
15-19 July 2019 | Kingston, Jamaica
25th Session of the ISA Assembly
22-26 July 2019 | Kingston, Jamaica