The future is now : science for achieving sustainable development

Abstract

The present Global Sustainable Development Report was prepared following the decision of the United Nations Member States at the 2016 high-level political forum for sustainable development. The report draws upon an extensive and diverse knowledge base, including numerous published articles in scholarly literature; and international assessments, like the Secretary General’s Sustainable Development Goals progress report (2019), the Global Environment Outlook 6 (GEO-6) regional assessments (2019), the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) special report (2018), the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) global assessment (2019), the International Labour Organization (ILO) and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) reports on the future of work (2019) and others. It benefitted from five regional consultations with academic, policy, business and civil society communities; an extensive series of inputs received following an online call; a review by approximately one hundred experts coordinated by the International Science Council (ISC), the InterAcademy Partnership (IAP) and the World Federation of Engineering Organizations (WFEO); and comments on an earlier draft from United Nations Member States and accredited stakeholders.