2022.11.10 THU

15:00 - 16:30

Actions to Strengthen Synergies between the Paris Agreement on Climate Change and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development

Organizer

United Nations University Institute for the Advanced Study of Sustainability (UNU-IAS)

Seminar abstract

To meet the 1.5 degree target of the Paris Agreement and achieve the SDGs by 2030, it is critical to strengthen synergistic action. This was the focus of the Third Global Conference on Strengthening Synergies between the Paris Agreement and the SDGs, held at the United Nations University (UNU) in Tokyo, Japan on 20-21 July 2022. It stressed the need to incorporate the 2030 Agenda's principle of "leaving no one behind" in the implementation of decarbonisation policies, building partnerships among various stakeholders including youth, and enhancing knowledge and capacity development to identify synergies and trade-offs. This session will engage experts from various sectors to discuss concrete actions to strengthen these synergies and achieve both targets.

Speakers

【Local Speakers】

• Hiroshi Ono（Ministry of the Enviroment of Japan） Vice-Minister for Global Environmental Affairs
• Shinobu Yume Yamaguchi（United Nations University Institute for the Advanced Study of Sustainability (UNU-IAS)） Director
• Akio Takemoto（United Nations University Institute for the Advanced Study of Sustainability (UNU-IAS)） Programme Head
• Sangmin Nam（United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP)） Director, Environment and Development Division
• Rajani Ranjan Rashmi（The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI)） Distinguished Fellow
• Suneetha M. Subramanian（UNU-IAS） Research Fellow
• Yussuf’ Tunji Kelani（Earth Advocacy） Executive Director

【Online Speakers】

• Bahareh Seyedi（United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UNDESA)） Senior Sustainable Development Officer, Division for Sustainable Development Goals
• Craig Alec Native（Aarhus Municipality, Denmark） Sustainable Systems Design + Research — Children and Young
• Ayadi Mishra（UN Decade Youth Task Force） Youth Representative

Session Summary

On 10 November 2022, UNU-IAS hosted an event at the Japan Pavilion as part of the Sharm el-Sheikh Climate Change Conference (COP27). The event discussed actions to strengthen synergies between the Paris Agreement on Climate Change and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
In welcoming remarks, Hiroshi Ono (Vice-Minister for Global Environmental Affairs, Japan) underlined the importance of advancing the outcomes of the Third Global Climate and SDGs Synergies Conference, which was held at UNU in July 2022. Stressing the need for youth empowerment, he highlighted the new UNU-IAS postgraduate degree specialisation on the Paris Agreement.
Shinobu Yume Yamaguchi (Director, UNU-IAS) presented an overview of the specialisation, noting that it would be the first of its kind to be offered by a UN organisation. She emphasised the commitment of UNU-IAS to achieving the SDGs and the Paris Agreement targets by empowering stakeholders through education and capacity-building programmes.
A scene-setting presentation was delivered by Akio Takemoto (Programme Head, UNU-IAS), who also moderated a panel discussion engaging UN agency and government representatives, as well as youth and academics who shared experiences and lessons learned on synergistic actions and youth empowerment.
Bahareh Seyedi (Senior Sustainable Development Officer, Division for Sustainable Development Goals, UNDESA) provided a summary of the key challenges and recommendations identified at the Third Global Climate and SDGs Synergy Conference. She highlighted the importance of advancing climate action and the SDGs agenda through intergovernmental processes at conferences such as COP27.
Discussing synergistic actions between climate and nature-based solutions (NbS), Sangmin Nam (Director, Environment and Development Division, ESCAP) emphasised that while the Asia–Pacific region was aiming for carbon neutrality, emissions were still expected. He pointed out that technical viability and increased finance for NbS would be key to achieving carbon neutrality, adding that demographic changes due to population ageing must be considered as NbS require a labour force.
Rajani Ranjan Rashmi (Distinguished Fellow, The Energy and Resources Institute) noted that while energy demand was growing, it was crucial to implement decentralised solar solutions to achieve India’s 45% emission reduction target by 2030. He stressed the need to reduce the carbon footprint through sustainable production and consumption practices.
Noting that equitable and integrated policy approaches were key to addressing interrelated issues, Suneetha M. Subramanian (Research Fellow, UNU-IAS) referred to the One Health agenda as an example of the climate and biodiversity sectors working together to maximise synergies while minimising tradeoffs.
Craig Alec Native (Sustainable Systems Design + Research — Children and Young, Aarhus Municipality, Denmark) introduced Aarhus City’s Youth Council initiative, an example of youth empowerment providing tools to integrate youth activism into lifestyle and awareness-raising.
Emphasising the need for meaningful youth engagement, Ayadi Mishra (Youth Representative, UN Decade Task Force) introduced participatory approaches from India, and noted that both bottom-up and top-down approaches were needed to bring youth, indigenous people, policymakers, and others together.
Yussuf’ Tunji Kelani (Executive Director, Earth Advocacy) remarked that African countries were bringing young people together through agricultural initiatives to implement climate mitigation and adaptation strategies.
Discussion focused on job creation for just transition, education and empowerment (including inter-generational empowerment), global comprehensive resources, integration of sustainable development into school systems, and a whole-society approach.

Message and Results

• ・The event provided an important opportunity to advance the outcome of the Third Global Climate and SDGs Synergy Conference held in July in Tokyo. The event also marked an important step forward for inputting the outcomes into the international intergovernmental process. The experts shared knowledge on ways to accelerate synergistic actions among stakeholders.
• ・The experts pointed out the importance of synergistic actions through nature-based solutions (NbS), the one-health approach, and sustainable consumption and production patterns. Also, the importance of meaningful youth engagement was highlighted, and the best practice of youth engagement in the policy processes was shared.
• ・UNU-IAS will actively promote to strengthen the evidence base for synergistic action and youth empowerment through new UNU-IAS postgraduate degree specialisation on the Paris Agreement(starting in Fall 2023) and its education and research programmes.

https://ias.unu.edu/en/news/news/event-at-cop27-discusses-synergistic-action-for-climate-biodiversity-and-the-sdgs.html