Background
On 21 September, 9:00-11:30 a.m. EDT, the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs, the International Chamber of Commerce and the UN Global Compact will co-host the 7th SDG Business Forum virtually, in connection with #UnitingBusiness LIVE, during the High-Level Week of the 77th Session of the UN General Assembly.
The annual SDG Business Forum is a platform for high-level representatives of the private sector, governments and other stakeholders to discuss the role of business in addressing the current interlinked global challenges and co-creating long-lasting solutions for a more sustainable future. This year, the SDG Business Forum will also be an opportunity for business leaders to hear from members of the Independent Group of Scientists (IGS) that have been appointed by the Secretary-General to prepare the 2023 Global Sustainable Development Report (GSDR), which will inform the midterm review of SDG implementation at the General Assembly next year.
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Master of Ceremony:
- Gillian Tett, Editor-at-Large, Financial Times; Co-Founder of Moral Money
9:00 – 9:20 Opening Session
- António Guterres, Secretary-General, United Nations
- Li Junhua, Under-Secretary-General of Economic and Social Affairs, United Nations
- Sanda Ojiambo, Assistant-Secretary-General and CEO of United Nations Global Compact
9:20 – 10:00 Session I: Business Action to Protect Global Environmental Commons
Keynotes:
- Erika Mouynes, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Panama
- Christophe Béchu, Minister for the Ecological Transition and Territorial Cohesion, France
- Nancy Shackell, Senior Research Scientist, Bedford Institute of Oceanography; Member of the IGS for 2023 GSDR
Panel discussion moderated by Kelly Ann Naylor, Vice Chair of UN-Water
- Amita Chaudhury, Group Head of Sustainability (ESG), AIA
- Martin Powell, Global Head of Urban Development, Siemens
- Elim Sritaba, Chief Sustainability Officer, Asia Pulp and Paper (APP)
10:00 – 10:40 Session II: Business Response to Cascading Crises
Keynotes:
- Jeppe Kofod, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Denmark
- Gennadiy Chyzhykov, President, ICC Ukraine
- Ambuj Sagar, Vipula and Mahesh Chaturvedi Professor of Policy Studies and the Founding Head of the School of Public Policy, Indian Institute of Technology Delhi; Member of the IGS for 2023 GSDR
Panel discussion moderated by Riefqah Jappie, Representative of the International Trade Centre to the United Nations in New York
- Vitalii Vereschagin, Chief Executive Officer, Caparol Ukraine
- Solange Ribeiro, Deputy Chief Executive Officer, Neoenergia
10:40 – 11:20 Session III: Business Practices for Sustainable, People-Centered and Just Economies
Keynotes:
- António Vitorino, Director General of International Organization of Migration (IOM)
- Norichika Kanie, Professor, Keio University Graduate Schhol of Media and Governance; Member of the IGS for 2023 GSDR
Fireside chat on multistakeholder social activism initiatives to shape just economies:
- Gillian Tett, Editor-at-Large, Financial Times; Co-Founder of Moral Money
- Jeremy Heimans, Co-Founder and CEO of Purpose
11:20 – 11:30 Closing Session
- Mariama Djambony Baiji, Young Leader for the SDGs, CEO of DNA SARL
- John Denton, Secretary-General, International Chamber of Commerce
- Amina J. Mohammed, Deputy Secretary-General, United Nations
