National Councils for Sustainable Development Workshop at HLPF 2019
On 8 July 2019, the day before the July 2019 High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development meeting at the United Nations in New York, Stakeholder Forum for a Sustainable Future, on behalf of the German Council for Sustainable Development (RNE), and co-sponsored by UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA), convened a one-day workshop for representatives from established National Councils for Sustainable Development and other types of multi-stakeholder platforms at global, national and sub-national levels, as well as some Governments who have multi-stakeholder platforms. The EEAC Network – through it’s coordinator – contributed to the session by presenting the network and its work.
The workshop initiated a global dialogue to exchange experiences, lessons learned, identify good practice, and revealed gaps in cross-sectoral and cross-governance exchange that could be more effectively addressed by councils and platforms at all levels; and it assessed how National Councils for Sustainable Development and other types of multi-stakeholder platforms could help countries and governments deliver the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
In addition, participants considered the presentation of a Global Forum of National Councils for Sustainable Development and other similar multistakeholder bodies at the SDG Summit in September 2019. In support of this idea, the workshop organizers aimed to determine whether there is sufficient interest in such a platform on the part of the UN Member States and other stakeholders. This process is now (August/September 2019) ongoing.