Sam Bickersteth, Chief Executive, and Dan Hamza Goodacre, Deputy Chief Executive, introduce a series of CDKN-sponsored dialogues on integrating climate issues into the Sustainable Development Goals.

At the United Nations Sustainable Development Conference in Rio de Janeiro, 2012, the world’s governments agreed to develop a set of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to set the framework for post-2015 development. These will build on the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), which run to 2015. As the detailed work of negotiating these SDGs gets underway, two other important global processes are unfolding in parallel.  Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) are working intensively to come up with a climate agreement in Paris in 2015 that can be agreed, and then ratified, by the majority of the world’s governments.  The successor to the Hyogo Framework for Action (the ‘HFA2’) to build the resilience of nations and communities to disasters is also due to be agreed in 2015.

The coincidence of these global governance milestones presents a critical and rare opportunity for global leaders to send a strong signal to private sector, public sector and civil society that climate change is a priority – and that urgent action on climate change is required to meet these wider sustainable development and disaster management objectives.

Eradicating poverty and managing climate change are two of the most challenging inter- and intra-generational issues of our time. Prime Minister David Cameron has said: "We do need to prioritise, but I would argue if we do want to help the one billion, we need to put climate change" (in the SDGs).

The evidence is stronger than ever that climate-related shocks and long-term changes are hitting sooner and harder than expected, and the poorest countries and people are bearing the brunt of the impacts. Some of the proposed goals of the SDGs, such as water availability, food security and health, are directly affected by climate change impacts; others, including access to education and gender equality, are indirectly affected. The increasing risk of climate-related natural disasters is also likely to pose a significant threat to development and economic growth, and undermine poverty reduction efforts.

The links between climate and development are at the heart of CDKN’s mandate: to assist developing countries to achieve climate compatible development.  To ensure that developing countries’ interests and priorities are heard in debates about the SDGs, CDKN is hosting a series of dialogues.  The dialogues will provide a forum for negotiators, policy-makers, researchers, experts in climate and development, and other stakeholders from developing countries to debate how climate change can be integrated in to the post-2015 development agenda. To facilitate these discussions CDKN has prepared a background note: Integrating climate change into the post-2015 development agenda that outlines the relationship between the SDGs and climate change, explores various approaches for integrating climate in to the post-2015 development agenda, and provides an overview of existing recommendations for the UN Open Working Group on SDGs and others.

The first ‘Climate in the SDGs Dialogue’ is taking place in Jakarta, Indonesia on 19th March. To register to attend this workshop in person, please contact Jessica Darmawan: jessica.darmawan@id.pwc.com

CDKN intends to host similar dialogues in Africa and Latin America and Caribbean for which dates will be confirmed shortly. The outcomes of these dialogues will be drawn together in a policy paper to be launched in London in September 2014.

Download the full background note: Integrating climate change into the post-2015 development agenda

Image courtesy DFID.