International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN)
Let me first of all, extend my own felicitations to you on your election as Co-chairs of the
Opening Working Group. We are confident that under your leadership, the process for the
establishment of the Sustainable Development Goals will be brought to fruition.
As has been said by many speakers, the process of formulating the SDGs will be complex.
The basis for establishing the SDGs has been defined in the Outcome Document The Future
We Want. Para 75 clearly states that the SDGs will need to be formulated in a manner that
integrates the three dimensions of sustainable development viz. social, economic and
environmental. The SDGs will also have to be action-oriented, concise and easy to
communicate; limited in number; aspirational; global in nature; and applicable universally to
all countries.
a) First, we need to ensure that the imperative to conserve and sustainably use nature
is put at the center of our concerns. Nature must be perceived as real capital, an asset and a
pre-requisite for socio-economic development, rather than an impediment to it. Wellmanaged,
healthy and diverse ecosystems and the biological resources they encompass are
indispensable for sustainable development. Nature can contribute solutions to global
challenges in food, water and energy security, climate change, and poverty eradication. The
Sustainable Development Goals framework should therefore incorporate a nature-based
solutions approach anchored on existing scientific data which proves that nature, when
properly invested in and well managed, increases social and economic resilience and
generates benefits. The Sustainable Development Goals should be an opportunity to
As President of the General Assembly said in his statement, addressing the issue of
environmental sustainability should become a core national interest of every Member State.
The issue of environmental sustainability therefore needs to be integrated more
comprehensively. The process for the Sustainable Development Goals should be a vehicle
to further the integration of the three pillars of Sustainable Development by looking at nature
and the services it provides for human well being as a critical asset for social and economic
development. In this regard, the vision that IUCN would like to share with the global
community is one of "a just world that values and conserves nature for a sustainable future".
To achieve this vision, there are some critical considerations that need to be taken into
account in shaping the Sustainable Development Goals:
It is recognized that poverty eradication, changing unsustainable patterns of consumption and
production, and protecting and managing the natural resource base of economic and social
development are the overarching objectives and essential requirements for sustainable
development. Development efforts have to be centered around the issues of poverty,
inequality, concern for our ecological boundaries, social inclusion and equity, including
gender empowerment. The aspirations of the people for economic growth in developing
countries must be met. And the social dimension must also retain its importance with
eradication of poverty as the overarching goal.
IUCN, the International
Union for
Conservation of
Nature, helps the
world find pragmatic
solutions to our most
pressing environment
and development
challenges by
supporting scientific
research; managing
field projects all over
the world; and bringing
governments, NGOs,
the UN, international
conventions and
companies together to
develop policy, laws
and best practice.
IUCN is the world's
oldest and largest
global environmental
network. IUCN is a
democratic union with
more than 1,000
government and NGO
member organizations,
and some 10,000
volunteer scientists in
more than 150
countries. IUCN's work
is supported by 1,100
professional staff in 62
countries and
hundreds of partners
in public, NGO and
private sectors around
the world.
replicate and scale up such successful actions. All stakeholders who engage in the SDGs
process should ensure that environmental sustainability does not become a stand-alone goal
confined in itself, but rather a key element which cuts across all the goals.
b) Secondly, when shaping the SDGs, we need to build on existing commitments
already made. One such commitment is the Strategic Plan for Biodiversity 2011-2020 and its
Aichi Biodiversity Targets adopted in Nagoya in 2010 by the Parties to the Convention on
Biological Diversity. The Aichi Targets address core areas of Sustainable Development, with
Target 2 explicitly requiring governments, to integrate by 2020 biodiversity values into
national and local development and poverty reduction strategies and planning processes. The
majority of the countries of the world committed to fulfill the Aichi Targets and the biodiversityrelated
conventions have joined the CBD and embraced the Strategic Plan as an overarching
framework for common action. This Plan should therefore be integrated to the set of
sustainable development goals to be agreed to and implemented in the next decades.
c) Thirdly, it will be essential that the SDGs are based on scientific and rigorous
interdisciplinary assessment of the latest evolution in economic, social and environmental
areas and how these areas relate to each other for the sustainability and resilience of our
societies and our economies. It will be important to engage the scientific community in the
process of defining the SDGs and monitoring their implementation. Existing experts'panels
and platforms, such as the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) and the
newly established Intergovernmental science-policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem
Services (IPBES) should be drawn upon, as well as inputs from all relevant knowledge
systems, including those of indigenous and local communities.
Co-chairs: IUCN has taken the lead in integrating environmental and development concerns
in its activities around the world. Sustainable development itself is at the core of these
activities. It was IUCN that first presented the concept of Sustainable Development in 1980 in
a report termed The World Conservation Strategy prepared jointly by IUCN, WWF and
UNEP. We therefore stay committed to supporting the work on sustainable development and
offer our services to the United Nations for the development of SDGs, in the same spirit and
with the same vigour as we did for the Rio+20 preparatory process. Here, we are
encouraged to see that the Open Working Group has been established as an inclusive and
transparent process that is open to all Member States and to various stakeholders and civil
society, and the inter-governmental organizations like IUCN having received a standing
invitation to participate in the work of the General Assembly.
I thank you, Co-chairs
Opening Working Group. We are confident that under your leadership, the process for the
establishment of the Sustainable Development Goals will be brought to fruition.
As has been said by many speakers, the process of formulating the SDGs will be complex.
The basis for establishing the SDGs has been defined in the Outcome Document The Future
We Want. Para 75 clearly states that the SDGs will need to be formulated in a manner that
integrates the three dimensions of sustainable development viz. social, economic and
environmental. The SDGs will also have to be action-oriented, concise and easy to
communicate; limited in number; aspirational; global in nature; and applicable universally to
all countries.
a) First, we need to ensure that the imperative to conserve and sustainably use nature
is put at the center of our concerns. Nature must be perceived as real capital, an asset and a
pre-requisite for socio-economic development, rather than an impediment to it. Wellmanaged,
healthy and diverse ecosystems and the biological resources they encompass are
indispensable for sustainable development. Nature can contribute solutions to global
challenges in food, water and energy security, climate change, and poverty eradication. The
Sustainable Development Goals framework should therefore incorporate a nature-based
solutions approach anchored on existing scientific data which proves that nature, when
properly invested in and well managed, increases social and economic resilience and
generates benefits. The Sustainable Development Goals should be an opportunity to
As President of the General Assembly said in his statement, addressing the issue of
environmental sustainability should become a core national interest of every Member State.
The issue of environmental sustainability therefore needs to be integrated more
comprehensively. The process for the Sustainable Development Goals should be a vehicle
to further the integration of the three pillars of Sustainable Development by looking at nature
and the services it provides for human well being as a critical asset for social and economic
development. In this regard, the vision that IUCN would like to share with the global
community is one of "a just world that values and conserves nature for a sustainable future".
To achieve this vision, there are some critical considerations that need to be taken into
account in shaping the Sustainable Development Goals:
It is recognized that poverty eradication, changing unsustainable patterns of consumption and
production, and protecting and managing the natural resource base of economic and social
development are the overarching objectives and essential requirements for sustainable
development. Development efforts have to be centered around the issues of poverty,
inequality, concern for our ecological boundaries, social inclusion and equity, including
gender empowerment. The aspirations of the people for economic growth in developing
countries must be met. And the social dimension must also retain its importance with
eradication of poverty as the overarching goal.
IUCN, the International
Union for
Conservation of
Nature, helps the
world find pragmatic
solutions to our most
pressing environment
and development
challenges by
supporting scientific
research; managing
field projects all over
the world; and bringing
governments, NGOs,
the UN, international
conventions and
companies together to
develop policy, laws
and best practice.
IUCN is the world's
oldest and largest
global environmental
network. IUCN is a
democratic union with
more than 1,000
government and NGO
member organizations,
and some 10,000
volunteer scientists in
more than 150
countries. IUCN's work
is supported by 1,100
professional staff in 62
countries and
hundreds of partners
in public, NGO and
private sectors around
the world.
replicate and scale up such successful actions. All stakeholders who engage in the SDGs
process should ensure that environmental sustainability does not become a stand-alone goal
confined in itself, but rather a key element which cuts across all the goals.
b) Secondly, when shaping the SDGs, we need to build on existing commitments
already made. One such commitment is the Strategic Plan for Biodiversity 2011-2020 and its
Aichi Biodiversity Targets adopted in Nagoya in 2010 by the Parties to the Convention on
Biological Diversity. The Aichi Targets address core areas of Sustainable Development, with
Target 2 explicitly requiring governments, to integrate by 2020 biodiversity values into
national and local development and poverty reduction strategies and planning processes. The
majority of the countries of the world committed to fulfill the Aichi Targets and the biodiversityrelated
conventions have joined the CBD and embraced the Strategic Plan as an overarching
framework for common action. This Plan should therefore be integrated to the set of
sustainable development goals to be agreed to and implemented in the next decades.
c) Thirdly, it will be essential that the SDGs are based on scientific and rigorous
interdisciplinary assessment of the latest evolution in economic, social and environmental
areas and how these areas relate to each other for the sustainability and resilience of our
societies and our economies. It will be important to engage the scientific community in the
process of defining the SDGs and monitoring their implementation. Existing experts'panels
and platforms, such as the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) and the
newly established Intergovernmental science-policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem
Services (IPBES) should be drawn upon, as well as inputs from all relevant knowledge
systems, including those of indigenous and local communities.
Co-chairs: IUCN has taken the lead in integrating environmental and development concerns
in its activities around the world. Sustainable development itself is at the core of these
activities. It was IUCN that first presented the concept of Sustainable Development in 1980 in
a report termed The World Conservation Strategy prepared jointly by IUCN, WWF and
UNEP. We therefore stay committed to supporting the work on sustainable development and
offer our services to the United Nations for the development of SDGs, in the same spirit and
with the same vigour as we did for the Rio+20 preparatory process. Here, we are
encouraged to see that the Open Working Group has been established as an inclusive and
transparent process that is open to all Member States and to various stakeholders and civil
society, and the inter-governmental organizations like IUCN having received a standing
invitation to participate in the work of the General Assembly.
I thank you, Co-chairs