A leading Monash scientist, who is the first and only Australian among the handful of global experts appointed by the UN to write the Global Sustainable Development Report 2023, (GSDR) has travelled to New York where she will co-present the report to the Deputy UN Secretary- General this week.
Associate Professor Shirin Malekpour, from the Monash University Sustainable Development Institute has been working on the report for four years. This year marks the half-way point to the deadline set for achieving the 2030 Agenda and Sustainable Goals.
The report, which informs the UN’s political declaration marks the beginning of a new phase of accelerated implementation of the 2030 Agenda and will influence discussions on the state of the planet and human society at the SDG Summit 2023.
Associate Professor Malekpour is available to discuss the findings of the UN Global Sustainable Development Report 2023 and Australia’s progress towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Associate Professor Malekpour will speak at the special edition Global Policy Dialogue on 14 September ahead of the SDG Summit 2023 and will be part of the selected panel at the International Conference for Sustainable Development.
Associate Professor Shirin Malekpour, Monash Sustainable Development Institute
Contact: Via WhatsApp from New York: +61 458 366 208 or +61 433 903 503 Shirin.Malekpour@monash.edu
The following quotes can be attributed to Dr Malekpour:
“Global scenario projections show that business-as-usual will not achieve the SDGs by 2030 or even 2050. This would mean a future world that is more unequal with large populations still living in extreme poverty and with greater vulnerability to shocks and crises which undermine global stability and prosperity.
“We have passed the era of SDG pledges - now is time for tangible action plans. I hope to see the recommendations of the report adopted in the political declaration at the SDG Summit, through commitments to concrete plans for accelerated progress in the next few years.”
Monash research central to the report’s findings and advice to countries
As we cross the halfway point to 2030, the report provides guidance to countries on what can be done to accelerate progress towards the goals.
The report’s findings draw on research undertaken by Associate Professor Malekpour and colleague Dr Cameron Allen at MSDI which has synthesised the latest knowledge on global pathways to the SDGs and how governments and other actors can overcome common roadblocks to acceleration. While there is no blueprint, there are many opportunities if governments choose to take decisive action.
Dr Allen’s research has also evaluated Australia’s current progress on the SDGs and used national modelling to project how different policies and scenarios could accelerate Australia’s progress towards the SDGs by 2030. This has gained considerable global interest from countries seeking to advance national progress on the SDGs.
Dr Cameron Allen, Monash Sustainable Development Institute
Contact: +61 435 928 492 or Cameron.Allen@monash.edu
Dr Allen is currently based in Australia
The following quotes can be attributed to Dr Allen:
“At the current rate, 2030 will see 575 million people living in extreme poverty, 600 million people facing hunger, and 84 million children and young people out of school. Our planet will overshoot the Paris climate agreement’s 1.5 °C ‘safe’ guardrail on average global temperature rise. And it will take 300 years to attain global gender equality.
“However, ambitious pathways exist where decisive action by governments accelerates global progress on the SDGs by 2030 with many goals achieved by 2050. Such pathways combine a mix of ambitious policies including for climate action, progressive income redistribution, healthy nutrition, clean energy, sustainable agriculture, and biodiversity protection.
“For Australia, progress tends to lag behind on environmental goals (such as climate change and biodiversity) as well targets relating to inequality and affordability - as such, strong gains can be made on the SDGs through policies to accelerate progress in these areas.”
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