Giving Compass' Take:

• For the last two weeks, the attendees of the High-Level Political Forum (HLPF) at the United Nations evaluated the current state of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and recognized that no country is on track to achieve them. 

• How can the private sector and philanthropists help to advance progress on the SDGs? 

• Read about the Brookings study that looks at areas of improvement within the people-focused SDG targets. 

Over the past two weeks, governments and leaders from the private sector and civil society offered a number of learnings, challenges, and recommendations at the High-level Political Forum (HLPF), the annual gathering place at the United Nations to measure and discuss progress on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

They did so in the hopes of better understanding – and finding ways to increase – current rates of progress toward the global goals. The forum highlighted a number of key takeaways; now the question is: How do we translate these into lasting impact for people and the planet?

  1. Now that SDG progress is coming into focus, we’re seeing what’s truly at stake: The stakes are high: no country is on track to achieve all the SDGs and a small number of countries are home to concentrated pockets of individuals who are being left behind.
  2. The connections between the well-being of people and planet need more attention: This year’s HLPF focused on reviewing several of the environmental SDGs. We must do more to promote development that is sustainable, protects the environment, and promotes economic growth. For example, we need to accelerate action on sanitation, land conservation, ocean protection, and access to clean cooking fuels and technologies.
  3. The global goals come alive in local action: In an increasingly urban world – with 6 billion people expected to live in urban areas by 2050 – cities and local communities are on the frontlines of the SDGs.  To achieve sustainable and equitable development globally, we must focus as much on local-level action as on national-level action.
  4. The private sector is engaged and ready to step up ambition: The past year has seen a surge of private sector engagement on the SDGs, and the commitment of the private sector was palpable throughout the HLPF.

Read the full article about progress with the SDGs by Kaysie Brown at United Nations Foundation