UN’s Summit of the Future, EU regions and cities preparing for SDG upgrade

The UN’s Summit of the Future takes place on 22-23 September in New York, hosted by the UN General Assembly. It provides a high-level forum to determine the next steps in achieving all 17 sustainable development goals in the march towards a sustainable future. 

Born from the United Nations Common Agenda report, the proposal of a Summit of the Future aims to clearly define how Member States prepare for the challenges of the future while dealing with the needs of the present.

Culminating in an ‘action-oriented outcome document called the Pact for the Future’ the details of which will be deliberated in the lead-up to, and during the summit.

A draft of the Pact says, “We are at a moment of acute global peril” and there’s an opportunity with advances in knowledge and technology to deliver a better future for all.

The challenges ahead are said to “far exceed the capacity of any single State to manage alone” but can only be addressed through strong and sustained international cooperation, enhanced cooperation, a multilateral system fit for the future, a readiness to address the political, economic, environmental, and technological changes in the world, and with the agility to adapt to an uncertain future.

The advance paper says multilateral institutions especially the Security Council and “the international financial architecture” have struggled to address the scale of the challenges they face and live up to the world’s expectations of them. Too often, it says, international commitments are made and left unfulfilled.

Targeting SDGs at local level 

At a local level, the Council of European Municipalities and Regions (CEMR) is working hard to make a noticeable dent in the sustainable development goals (SDGs) through many of its ongoing initiatives and project collaborations which focus on five thematic areas – governance, democracy, and citizenship: international engagement and cooperation; environment, climate, and energy; economic, social, and territorial cohesion; and local and regional public services.

The scope of the association means it brings together one million democratically elected European politicians, in 60 member associations from 40 countries delivering impactful projects.

From a climate change perspective, CEMR has long been seen as a vital instrument of change, it has also been involved with the Covenant of Mayors, the world’s largest movement for local climate and energy actions, from its launch in 2008. Since then, the EU renamed it the ‘Covenant of Mayors for Climate & Energy’.

Its mission is to decarbonise cities and provide secure, sustainable, and affordable energy to residents. While its latest target is reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 40% by 2030. CEMR is responsible for the ‘coordination of the promotion and mainstreaming’ of initiatives in the member states.

Global Gateway

The European Commission’s Civil Society and Local Authorities Dialogue Platform was launched earlier this month. It is a tool to allow civil society and local authorities to provide feedback on the Global Gateway, the EU’s strategy to “boost smart, clean and secure links in digital, energy and transport sectors and to strengthen health, education and research systems across the world.” PLATFORMA, the pan-European coalition of towns and regions – and their national, EU and global associations, is one of the local authorities’ associations that is part of it.

The Global Gateway plan targets multiple SDGs including SDG 9 – industry, innovation and infrastructure, SDG 8 – decent work and economic growth and SDG 17 – partnerships for the goals.

Digitalisation 

Together with the European Federation of Public Service Unions (EPSU) CEMR initiated the Local, Social, and Digital project intending to address challenges from the digital transition and evolving work patterns highlighted by the COVID-19 crisis.

From coordination to funding, the project is enhancing the understanding and capacity of employers, trade unions, and workers’ representatives on issues related to digitalisation and automation, with an annual conference to highlight the challenges posed by the evolving landscape.

Digital transformation at the local and regional level contributes in some fashion to all 17 SDGs.

Reaction to Ukraine 

Russia’s aggression towards Ukraine saw the creation of a Members Task Force informing international municipalities how to offer help to the country or provide services and support to fleeing refugees, and two years on the local and regional support remains.

In its statement on the second anniversary of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine CEMR said it intends to continue empowering local and regional governments in Ukraine through international municipal partnerships and other decentralised cooperation instruments.

This support is provided within the context of the Bridges of Trust project, the Eastern Partnership programme, and the European Alliance of Cities and Regions for the Reconstruction of Ukraine.

The Summit of the Future 2024 will take place on 22-23 September 2024. The outcome will be the Pact for the Future.

[By Fiona Alston I Edited by Brian Maguire | Euractiv’s Advocacy Lab ]

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