his year marks a historic 75th anniversary of the United Nations. The first UN General Assembly brought together only 51 member states and represented a very homogenous picture of the world, far from where we are today. This September things look different in a way we could have never imagined before. Instead of a series of celebratory events and sessions—at the UN headquarters and all across New York City—the official portion of the most high-profile UN event of the year will be reduced to a series of pre-recorded video messages by heads of states. Most of the gatherings and summits of the previous years—from the UN SDG Action Zone to the UN Global Compact Private Sector Forum, to the World Economic Forum Sustainable Development Impact Summit, to Climate Week, Concordia, MIT Solve, and numerous private initiatives convened by leading private sector companies and international organizations—will be virtual.
COVID-19 wreaked unprecedented havoc on our society in every corner of the world, impacting health and economic systems, governance, education, trade, aid and development. While the impact of the pandemic and the lock-downs in developed markets is measured in industrial output drops, rising unemployment, and impact on specific industry sectors, like tourism, hospitality or aviation, the impact across developing and least developed countries is truly unprecedented. Underdeveloped health systems, reliance on the informal economy (nearly 80% in India alone, according to the ILO) and existing poverty levels (one in three people across the African continent’s 54 countries lives below the poverty line) will lead to long-lasting and devastating effect.
UN Secretary-General António Guterres said that “COVID-19 threatens decades of progress made towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals…As we build back in an inclusive and sustainable way, we have a once in a lifetime opportunity to achieve the SDGs. But we cannot do it without business leadership”.
An Accenture and World Economic Forum Report assessed the near- and long-term impact of the pandemic on each of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals, painting a grim picture, but also highlighting opportunities for business to play a meaningful role in driving progress and action—around specific Goals, particularly Education, Gender Equality, Climate, and Rule of Law.
How can we advance Goal 17—Partnerships for the Goals to help address a dire new reality that calls for mobilization and action? And how can we make sure that these impact-multiplying partnerships bring to the table and reach underrepresented groups in the system—from youth to indigenous people to small-holder farmers in sub-Saharan Africa?
There have been a number of recent ambitious initiatives and calls for action:
• Corporate members of the Science Based Targets Initiative, representing a combined market capitalization of over $2.4 trillion and more than 5 million employees are calling for policies that will build resilience against future shocks by supporting efforts to hold global temperature rise to within 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels, in line with reaching net-zero emissions well before 2050.
• Ellen MacArthur Foundation expanded its New Plastics Economy collaborative work with world’s leading consumer goods companies—from Unilever to L’Oréal, Danone and others, governments, and UNEP to eliminate single use plastics and adopt reuse and recycling models.
• Transform to Net Zero was launched by nine leading companies from Maersk to Nike and Wipro, together with the Environmental Defense Fund—as a major cross-sector initiative to accelerate the transition to a net zero global economy. The initiative aims to deliver guidance and business plans to enable a transformation to net zero emissions, as well as research, advocacy, and best practices to make it easier for the private sector to not only set ambitious goals–but also deliver meaningful emissions reductions and economic success.
Most of them have been catalyzed at UN General Assembly and related global gatherings throughout the year. In past years, participation was confined to physical events in New York City, with few resource-constrained organizations—SMEs, regional businesses, or nonprofits able to attend. This year’s digital format hopefully makes the UN General Assembly and its ecosystem more accessible to emerging leaders and markets where action is needed the most. The UN Global Compact is anticipating more than 20,000 virtual participations for its series of summits; Concordia is partnering with UNCDF to bring nearly 2,000 SME leaders and small business owners from least developed countries to its event and partnerships-building track, while WEF will make its Sustainable Development Impact Summit and Uplink platform accessible beyond its traditional member base.
There is hope that the new COVID-induced reality can unleash more innovation in bringing previously unheard voices to the table, and in making partnerships and solutions around the SDGs more inclusive and wide-ranging.
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The Promise of the Virtual 2020 UN General Assembly
UN Photo/Eskinder Debebe.
September 21, 2020
T
his year marks a historic 75th anniversary of the United Nations. The first UN General Assembly brought together only 51 member states and represented a very homogenous picture of the world, far from where we are today. This September things look different in a way we could have never imagined before. Instead of a series of celebratory events and sessions—at the UN headquarters and all across New York City—the official portion of the most high-profile UN event of the year will be reduced to a series of pre-recorded video messages by heads of states. Most of the gatherings and summits of the previous years—from the UN SDG Action Zone to the UN Global Compact Private Sector Forum, to the World Economic Forum Sustainable Development Impact Summit, to Climate Week, Concordia, MIT Solve, and numerous private initiatives convened by leading private sector companies and international organizations—will be virtual.
COVID-19 wreaked unprecedented havoc on our society in every corner of the world, impacting health and economic systems, governance, education, trade, aid and development. While the impact of the pandemic and the lock-downs in developed markets is measured in industrial output drops, rising unemployment, and impact on specific industry sectors, like tourism, hospitality or aviation, the impact across developing and least developed countries is truly unprecedented. Underdeveloped health systems, reliance on the informal economy (nearly 80% in India alone, according to the ILO) and existing poverty levels (one in three people across the African continent’s 54 countries lives below the poverty line) will lead to long-lasting and devastating effect.
UN Secretary-General António Guterres said that “COVID-19 threatens decades of progress made towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals…As we build back in an inclusive and sustainable way, we have a once in a lifetime opportunity to achieve the SDGs. But we cannot do it without business leadership”.
An Accenture and World Economic Forum Report assessed the near- and long-term impact of the pandemic on each of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals, painting a grim picture, but also highlighting opportunities for business to play a meaningful role in driving progress and action—around specific Goals, particularly Education, Gender Equality, Climate, and Rule of Law.
How can we advance Goal 17—Partnerships for the Goals to help address a dire new reality that calls for mobilization and action? And how can we make sure that these impact-multiplying partnerships bring to the table and reach underrepresented groups in the system—from youth to indigenous people to small-holder farmers in sub-Saharan Africa?
There have been a number of recent ambitious initiatives and calls for action:
• Corporate members of the Science Based Targets Initiative, representing a combined market capitalization of over $2.4 trillion and more than 5 million employees are calling for policies that will build resilience against future shocks by supporting efforts to hold global temperature rise to within 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels, in line with reaching net-zero emissions well before 2050.
• Ellen MacArthur Foundation expanded its New Plastics Economy collaborative work with world’s leading consumer goods companies—from Unilever to L’Oréal, Danone and others, governments, and UNEP to eliminate single use plastics and adopt reuse and recycling models.
• Transform to Net Zero was launched by nine leading companies from Maersk to Nike and Wipro, together with the Environmental Defense Fund—as a major cross-sector initiative to accelerate the transition to a net zero global economy. The initiative aims to deliver guidance and business plans to enable a transformation to net zero emissions, as well as research, advocacy, and best practices to make it easier for the private sector to not only set ambitious goals–but also deliver meaningful emissions reductions and economic success.
Most of them have been catalyzed at UN General Assembly and related global gatherings throughout the year. In past years, participation was confined to physical events in New York City, with few resource-constrained organizations—SMEs, regional businesses, or nonprofits able to attend. This year’s digital format hopefully makes the UN General Assembly and its ecosystem more accessible to emerging leaders and markets where action is needed the most. The UN Global Compact is anticipating more than 20,000 virtual participations for its series of summits; Concordia is partnering with UNCDF to bring nearly 2,000 SME leaders and small business owners from least developed countries to its event and partnerships-building track, while WEF will make its Sustainable Development Impact Summit and Uplink platform accessible beyond its traditional member base.
There is hope that the new COVID-induced reality can unleash more innovation in bringing previously unheard voices to the table, and in making partnerships and solutions around the SDGs more inclusive and wide-ranging.
