Amidst daunting reports on slow SDG progress, participants to an Asia-Pacific regional workshop discussed new evidence on how decision makers can initiate and manage transformations towards integrated and accelerated SDG implementation.
According to the Earth Negotiations Bulletin (ENB) summary report of the meeting, the event aimed to disseminate the findings of the second Global Sustainable Development Report (GSDR) – a review of scientific and other evidence on transformation processes that provides a framework to assess and manage transformation processes. The workshop brought together policymakers, civil society representatives, academics, and other stakeholders to share experiences and discuss practical applications to support SDG transformations.
GSDR findings
During the first part of the event, members of the Independent Group of Scientists (IGS) – the panel charged by the UN with writing the GSDR – outlined the report’s main findings. They explained that the first GSDR, released in 2019, outlined six entry points describing areas for action where transformative shifts can have impacts on multiple SDGs: human well-being and capabilities; sustainable and just economies; food systems and healthy nutrition; energy decarbonization with universal access; urban and peri-urban development; and global environmental commons. The report also identified four levers through which policymakers and other stakeholders can activate the transformative potential of these entry points:
- Governance;
- Economy and finance;
- Science and technology; and
- Individual and collective action.
IGS members noted that the second GSDR, published in 2023, added capacity building as a fifth lever.
The report also developed a dynamic framework, they said, showing how transformations evolve through three stages: emergence, during which new technologies and behaviors appear in niche areas; acceleration, during which adoption expands towards a tipping point that destabilizes the existing system; and stabilization, during which new technologies and behaviors become the new normal.
Summarizing the key message of the two reports, IGS member Ambuj Sagar underlined that transformations are both possible and inevitable and that they must be managed to realize integrated and accelerated SDG implementation.
Participants shared national experiences, with several describing ongoing transformations or potential entry points in their countries. Others noted that the GSDR framework will be useful in further aligning policies with the SDGs.
Building transformation capacity
The second part of the workshop concentrated on capacity building. Participants highlighted the need to ensure that support for capacity building continues throughout the entire transformation process and to safeguard capacities against institutional and political changes. They also noted that civil society’s role as knowledge holder on capacities should be better recognized and supported.
National application and VNR reporting
During the final section of the event, focusing on Voluntary National Reviews (VNRs), participants agreed that the GSDR framework can inspire a more analytical and forward-looking approach focusing on lessons learned to inform the strengthening and adjustment of national targets and priorities.
Two key themes emerged during the workshop: ensuring that transformations are inclusive; and keeping transformations on track towards sustainable outcomes.
On inclusiveness, participants highlighted that transformation benefits must reach all members of society, especially marginalized groups who must be protected against trade-offs. They also discussed how to engage and address the needs of populations that depend on existing unsustainable systems to prevent the emergence of broad social movements opposing change.
On achieving sustainable outcomes, participants highlighted the need to prevent partial transitions that lock in solutions that are unsustainable, such as replacing high-emission energy sources with lower-emission fossil fuels. The Asia-Pacific Regional Launch and Dissemination Workshop of the 2023 GSDR convened from 22-24 October 2024 in New Delhi, India. It was co-organized by the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA), Germany’s Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, Nuclear Safety and Consumer Protection (BMUV) within the framework of the International Climate Initiative (IKI), and the German Development Agency – Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH. It was the third in a series of regional GSDR dissemination workshops following workshops on Africa and Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC). [ENB Coverage of GSDR 2023 Regional Dissemination Workshop]