8 May 2018
New Zealand University Summit Promotes Partnerships for SDGs
Photo by IISD | Lynn Wagner
story highlights

Victoria University of Wellington organized a one-day SDGs Summit to identify current actions and form partnerships for achieving the SDGs among government, business and civil society actors.

UNESCO, the EU delegation to New Zealand, the Sustainable Business Council, Air New Zealand and several other business sponsored the conference.

A panel discussion about government action on the SDGs featured several representatives from the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet, the Ministry for the Environment, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade.

23 April 2018: Victoria University of Wellington in New Zealand hosted a one-day summit to form partnerships for achieving the SDGs among government, business and civil society actors. The UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), the EU delegation to New Zealand, the Sustainable Business Council, Air New Zealand, seafood company Sanford and several other businesses sponsored the conference.

At the SDGs Summit, held on 23 April 2018, Andrew Becroft, New Zealand Children’s Commissioner, stated that the SDGs are surprisingly little known in New Zealand, and should become part of the decision making process throughout the country. He emphasized that the SDGs are “solid obligations,” and not optional. With reference to SDG target 1.2 on halving the number of people living in poverty, he highlighted the challenge of child poverty in New Zealand. The country has 1.12 million young people under the age of 18, Becroft said, and “the SDGs are their future.”

New Zealand is not yet ready to present a VNR, due to gaps in monitoring of land use and waste issues.

Jeffrey Sachs, director of the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN), gave a keynote address via video link on the role of universities in delivering on the SDGs. Sanford gave a keynote address on identifying risks and opportunities for business strategy using the SDGs. Other addresses provided a UN and indigenous perspective on the SDGs, discussed how various sectors are organized for “bringing Agenda 2030 home,” and reflected on the Netherlands government’s experience of presenting its Voluntary National Review (VNR) of SDG implementation to the UN High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (HLPF). A panel discussion about New Zealand government action on the SDGs featured several representatives from the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet, the Ministry for the Environment, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade.

In response to a question about where responsibility for the SDGs sits within government, Green Party Co-Leader James Shaw stated that key roles are being played by the Finance, Climate Change, and Statistics Ministers. He noted that New Zealand is not yet ready to present a VNR as the required data is still being compiled, and referred to gaps in monitoring of land use and waste issues.

The ‘Newsroom’ website reported that participants proposed the appointment of a minister or independent commissioner for the SDGs. [SDGs Summit Website] [Summit Programme] [Statement by Children’s Commissioner] [‘Newsroom’ Coverage]

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