September 2016: Civil society organizations (CSOs) and others have addressed the role of green growth in achieving inclusive growth and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, and announced a series of national-level dialogues on leaving no one behind. In Australia, a group of CEOs released a statement in support of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

The International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED) and partners reported on a conference on integrating the informal economy into inclusive green growth and sustainable development. ‘Informality and inclusive green growth’ finds that US$6.22 trillion, or 10% of global gross domestic product (GDP), goes to the green economy every year, but only 15 out of 50 national green economy plans mention the informal economy in their plans of actions. The paper stresses the informal economy as a key strategy for resilience, and discusses how to advance the 2030 Agenda’s focus on inclusion and leaving no one behind through opportunities to integrate the informal economy into green growth strategies.

CIVICUS, Development Initiatives and Project Everyone will coordinate 30 ‘National Level Dialogues for the Leave No One Behind Partnership.’ The dialogues aim to: build a national multi-stakeholder coalition on the leave no one behind agenda; identify key recommendations for decision-makers; create an accountability process; and support innovation solutions towards the SDGs. From August to October 2016, dialogues will take place in Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Fiji, India, Jamaica, Nepal, Nigeria, the Philippines, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda and Zimbabwe. A second set of dialogues in additional countries will convene from September through November.

The Nordic Council of Ministers’ web magazine, ‘Green Growth the Nordic Way,’ shares lessons learned and project results from the Nordic Prime Ministers’ Green Growth initiative. The initiative has contributed to growth creation without an increase in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions or increases of other pollutants, it reports, and also has created a larger market for green solutions and enabled the Nordic Region to lead the EU in green growth solutions and improvement of joint infrastructure.

A group of Australian CEOs released a ‘Statement of Support for the SDGs’ on the UN Global Compact’s website. In the letter, 33 CEOs recognize the critical contribution of business towards achieving the SDGs through responsible business operations, new business models, investment, innovation, technology and collaboration, among other actions. They outline their contributions to the SDGs through driving economic growth, reducing their environmental footprints, strengthening community relationships, and creating positive impact through supply chains. The CEOs conclude that the private sector “can do more,” and state their commitment to continue to incorporate the SDGs into their strategies, invest in priority areas, and collaborate with governments, civil society and academia to realize the SDGs. The group launched its statement at the Australian SDGs Summit.

Also at the Australian SDGs Summit, the Australian Council of Social Services (ACOSS) and the Australian Council for International Development (ACFID) were expected to release a commitment on behalf of civil society to the SDGs, while the Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN), hosted by Monash University, planned to launch a commitment on behalf of the academic community. [Informality and Inclusive Green Growth] [Leave No One Behind Dialogues] [Green Growth the Nordic Way] [CEO Statement of Support for the SDGs] [UN Global Compact Press Release] [ACFID Press Release] [Australian SDGs Summit Website]