Early spring in Eastern Maryland where I’m based is famously fickle. This year, we’ve had our fair share of warm, sunny days, interspersed with sudden cold snaps that have brought hail and snow. When the weather is bad, my kids like to do jigsaw puzzles. I’m always impressed with how they gradually organize disjointed pieces into a bigger whole – a peaceful scene, a landscape, or an animal – and how proud they are of their accomplishment.
Much like a jigsaw puzzle, multilateral governance is a composite of many complementary pieces. Making sense of how everything fits together takes patience, persistence, and creativity.
As geopolitical and literal headwinds continue to blow, grab hot beverage as we do a puzzle together!
Multilateralism in action
In 2024, world leaders adopted the Pact for the Future, which aims to ensure international institutions continue to deliver in a changing world. The Pact covers issues ranging from peace and security to sustainable development, climate change, and the transformation of global governance.
As a recent interactive briefing highlighted, the Pact’s implementation is well underway. During the briefing, the President of the UN General Assembly (UNGA) announced she will convene a one-day Pact interim assessment event to take stock of implementation efforts by Member States and the UN system.
To support youth’s meaningful participation in this and other intergovernmental processes, the UN launched a set of principles for meaningful, representative, inclusive, and safe youth engagement, developed under Action 37(d) of the Pact. It’s the UN’s response to accusations of “youthwashing” its negotiations and activities, though the guidance is non-binding.
Implementation of the Pact for the Future intersects with the UN80 reform process, and the UNGA President has called for ensuring coherence and mutual reinforcement between Pact follow-up and the UN80 Initiative.
As a reminder, the UN80 reform initiative seeks to:
- achieve efficiencies and improvements (Workstream 1);
- review mandate implementation (Workstream 2); and
- introduce structural changes and programme realignments (Workstream 3).
Consultations on mandate creation, implementation, and review for an efficient and effective UN are in their final stretch, with a draft resolution put forward to formalize the currently ad hoc group reviewing how the UN implements its mandates. The UNGA is expected to adopt the final resolution on 31 March 2026.
Following the election of a new Chair in February, the plastic pollution talks now have a roadmap to follow. Chair of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC) on Plastic Pollution Julio Cordano (Chile) circulated a letter announcing a series of activities and meetings, along with the guiding principles, working modalities, and the way forward on the text. According to the letter, the Committee’s next formal meeting (INC-5.4) should take place at the end of 2026 or in early 2027.
The International Seabed Authority (ISA) Council continued negotiations on the draft exploitation regulations for mining the deep seabed. The ISA’s job is to balance efforts to preserve deep-sea ecosystems against the push to extract the mineral resources that might support the clean energy transition. A further revised consolidated text, reflecting changes made during this session and the upcoming intersessional period, will be published by 1 June 2026, to be considered by the Council at the second part of the ISA’s 31st session in July.
Delegates to the 70th session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW70) adopted a set of conclusions aimed at strengthening access to justice for all women and girls and advancing gender equality worldwide. Traditionally adopted by consensus, the process for this year’s Agreed Conclusions reflected the current zeitgeist of geopolitical uncertainty and pushback against “gender” as a non-binary concept. The text was adopted by a recorded vote of 37 in favor, one against, and six abstaining. Supporting the Commission’s deliberations was a UN report on ensuring and strengthening access to justice for all women and girls.
Getting HLPF ready
The July session of the UN High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (HLPF) will address the theme, ‘Transformative, equitable, innovative and coordinated actions for the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and its Sustainable Development Goals for a sustainable future for all.’
In preparation for the HLPF, the UN’s five Regional Commissions convene annual regional forums on sustainable development to assess regional progress and exchange knowledge, best practices, and policy solutions to support the implementation of the 2030 Agenda. This year’s first forum was held for the Asia-Pacific region. The UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) Executive Secretary stressed the need to consider how regional cooperation could provide solutions in a rapidly evolving world.
The UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA) and partners organized a series of Expert Group Meetings (EGMs) on the Goals under review by HLPF 2026 and their interlinkages with other SDGs. The Goals undergoing in-depth review this year are SDG 6 (clean water and sanitation), SDG 7 (affordable and clean energy), SDG 9 (industry, innovation and infrastructure), SDG 11 (sustainable cities and communities), and SDG 17 (partnerships for the Goals). In a briefing for Member States and stakeholders, DESA highlighted that EGM summaries provide a source of evidence to support Member States in their preparations for the HLPF, including the development of the ministerial declaration.
Negotiations on the ministerial declaration are in full swing. The first informal consultation was held on 10 March. Drawing on a set of guiding questions provided by the co-facilitators, Member States exchanged initial views on the draft. Canada, Australia, and New Zealand called for the declaration to align with the UN80 reform initiative in being “…realistic within a resource-constrained environment.”
Among the many resources that will feed into and support the deliberations during HLPF 2026 are:
- The Sustainable Development Solutions Network’s (SDSN) 2026 Europe Sustainable Development Report (ESDR), which warns of a weakening political emphasis on the SDGs in Europe; and
- A paper by members of the Committee of Experts on Public Administration (CEPA) on ‘Measuring Effective Governance for Sustainable Development,’ which explores options for data-based measurement across countries and across time, identifies institutional quality gaps, and proposes “evidence-based approaches to leveraging administrative capacity as a strategic resource in times of reduced development financing.”
This year, the UNGA will also review the arrangements for the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) and the HLPF. In a second round of informal consultations, Member States shared their reflections on a draft elements paper. The draft identifies key headings and general topics and aims to serve as starting points for further deliberations.
Data to drive progress
In March, we reported on various publications and initiatives that can support the implementation of the SDGs, the Pact for the Future, and other global commitments.
The 2026 Financing for Sustainable Development Report (FSDR) by the Inter-agency Task Force on Financing for Development (currently available as an advance, unedited version) assesses the macroeconomic and global backdrop to the 2025 Fourth International Conference on Financing for Development (FfD4) and its impact on development financing, and gauges early implementation efforts of the Sevilla Commitment. The report also maps the actions and commitments in the Sevilla Commitment against related initiatives in the Sevilla Platform for Action.
As part of our coverage of efforts to complement and go beyond Gross Domestic Product (GDP), we published a policy brief summarizing the core processes and emerging recommendations on such metrics, including highlights from the March 2026 session of the UN Statistical Commission (UNSC). Among other outcomes, the UNSC endorsed a global framework for disaster-related statistics, which goes beyond GDP in equipping countries to measure not only direct damage from disasters, but also exposure, vulnerability, and capacity to cope. Timed to align with the UNSC’s March session was a guest article from ESCAP on strengthening rice production statistics.
In a related Beyond GDP Update, we explored recent policy and research developments that focus on alternative metrics to define and measure progress, including work of the UN Secretary-General’s High-Level Expert Group (HLEG) on Beyond GDP. The HLEG is expected to release its final recommendations next month.
In preparation for the 15th meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (CMS COP15), currently underway in Campo Grande, Brazil, the Secretariat published the latest available evidence of significant changes in the conservation status of migratory species. The report finds that 49% of CMS-conserved migratory species populations are in decline (up 5% since 2024), and 24% of species are in danger of extinction – 2% more than in 2024. At the same time, the status of seven CMS-listed species has improved, including the saiga antelope, scimitar-horned oryx, and Mediterranean monk seal.
Raising ambition for climate action
The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) issued its annual assessment of the state of the global climate, which finds that 2015-2025 is the warmest period on record. At about 1.43°C above the 1850-1900 average, 2025 was the second or third warmest year on record. For the first time, the report includes the Earth’s energy imbalance among the key climate indicators.
With climate change impacts showing no signs of letting up, the Brazilian Presidency of the 2025 UN Climate Change Conference (UNFCCC COP 30) issued the COP 30 Executive Report, highlighting outcomes and the commitments that will guide its work in the months leading up to COP 31. Brazil reiterated its commitment to developing roadmaps on just transition and deforestation and to continuing work on consolidating the Baku to Belém Roadmap, with a view to mobilize USD 1.3 trillion per year in climate finance.
Has sea level rise impacted your life? Following up on the UNGA’s first High-level Meeting to Address Existential Threats Posed by Sea Level Rise in 2024 and the Assembly’s decision to hold a one-day high-level plenary meeting during its 81st session to further consider sea level rise, DESA launched a global online consultation to gather inputs from stakeholders. People are invited to share recommendations, experiences, and priorities related to addressing sea level rise and its risks and impacts. The consultation is open until 15 April 2026.
As I wrap up this ICYMI update, I look out of the window and see the sun shining on my yellow daffodils. In these challenging times, I like to reflect on things that bring me joy, if only for a moment. I hope this snapshot of March’s SDG news helps you piece it all together to see the big picture.