Leveraging SDG 17 to strengthen and improve the VNR process

Agenda:

Two lively panel debates will invite panelists to share the perspectives of governments, UN agencies, civil society and others with regard to the implementation of key SDG 17 commitments in different regional and national contexts. Panelists will explore the extent to which a full operationalization of these SDG 17 key commitments would greatly enhance the ability of civil society and other stakeholders to engage more effectively with national VNR processes, and ultimately to accelerate the implementation of the SDGs by 2030.

Objectives of Side Event:

This side event will focus on examining how the operationalization of SDG 17’s key commitments on capacity building, multi-stakeholder partnerships, technology transfer and financing for development could significantly increase CSO effectiveness in engaging with VNR follow up and review processes in the context of Building back better from the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) while advancing the full implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

During this side event Forus will also launch its new report entitled “Leveraging SDG 17 & CSO Capacity Development to accelerate SDG implementation.”

Register here: https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_Si3kqt_bSgal1Q4CTIAziQ

More info:

The annual review of SDG 17 by the UN HLPF highlights the importance placed by the international community on the 2030 Agenda’s aim to “Strengthen the Means of Implementation and revitalize the Global Partnership for Sustainable Development.”

The concept of ‘Means of implementation’ describes the interdependent mix of financial resources, technology development and transfer, capacity‐building, inclusive and equitable globalization and trade, regional integration, as well as the creation of a national enabling environment required to implement the new sustainable development agenda, particularly in developing countries.  

SDG 17 has 17 targets to be achieved by 2030, broken down into five categories: finance, technology, capacity building, trade and systemic issues (including policy coherence for sustainable development , multi-stakeholder partnerships etc).

Civil society organisations around the world believe that unless SDG 17’s key commitments are fully operationalised, there is a very real danger of the significant underachievement of the SDGs by 2030, particularly given the devastating impacts of the COVID 19 pandemic in recent years.

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CoNGO Notes: For more information on the NGO Committee on Sustainable Development-Vienna, please visit congocsd.wordpress.com. For more information on the NGO Committee on Sustainable Development-NY, please visit ngocsd-ny.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Financing for Development, please visit ngosonffd.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Social Development, please visit ngosocdev.org.

Episcopal Church events at COP26

Dear UN faith-based and civil society partners in climate action at COP26,

We hope this finds you doing well as COP26 approaches. Please find yourselves warmly invited to join our Episcopal Church events at COP26 on October 28^th, November 6^thand November 12^th. And of course, we will be in touch with you ahead of and during COP26, and beyond.

Our Episcopal Church Presiding Bishop’s delegation to COP26 also would like to share with you this letter sent today to member states, their National Focal Points, the UNFCCC Secretariat and other UN partners, in the hopes that it will help you in our collective advocacy ahead of COP26.

We invite you to share your feedback and news of your own climate action at COP26, so we can advance together and learn from each other.

Peace,

Lynnaia Main | OFFICER, EPISCOPAL CHURCH REPRESENTATIVE TO THE UNITED NATIONS | Mission | The Episcopal Church

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CoNGO Notes: For more information on the Committee of Religious NGOs at the United Nations, please visit rngos.wordpress.com. For more information on the NGO Committee on Financing for Development, please visit ngosonffd.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Sustainable Development- Vienna, please visit congocsd.wordpress.com. For more information on the NGO Committee on Sustainable Development-NY, please visit ngocsd-ny.org.

Expert Mechanism on the Right to Development Online Dialogue with Civil Society

The purpose of this dialogue is to provide a platform for the Expert Mechanism to engage with Civil Society Organizations and Movements (CSOs) on promoting and operationalizing the right to development.

The Right to Development offers a useful framework for advocacy on a wide range of economic, social, cultural and environmental rights, particularly related with inequalities and sovereignty and the duty to cooperate. However, many right-holders and civil society organizations and movements do not use the Right to Development in their advocacy work as widely and effectively as they can. In some cases, civil society groups are unaware of the Right to Development and the possibilities it holds as a tool for legal and social advocacy. Although the Declaration on the Right to Development itself does not create a cause of legal action, many of the elements of the right to development are reaffirmed in binding international law. The right to development is also affirmed in some legally-binding regional human rights instruments.

This EMRTD Dialogue offers a forum to promote the Right to Development among civil society groups, especially grassroots movements and organizations, learn from them, and inform them on the possibilities of the right to development as an instrument of human rights advocacy and development practice. A key focus of the dialogue will be identifying and addressing the conceptual and practical difficulties of using the right to development in human rights advocacy. A related goal of the dialogue is to encourage CSOs’ engagement in the drafting process of a global legally binding instrument on the right to development.

Programme:

Session 1 on The Right to Development Agenda – 16:00-17:00 CET and;
Session 2 on Civil Society Organizations and Movements and their perspectives about Development and the Right to Development – 17h10-19:30 (with a 10-min break included)

Preparatory Documents:

· Declaration on the Right to Development [English/French/Spanish]

· Draft Covenant on the Right to Development [English/French/Spanish]

· EMRTD Position Document on Legally Binding Instrument (LBI)

· EMRTD Thematic Studies

· Right to Development promotional publications of the OHCHR

The dialogue has the following specific aims:

To assess civil society engagement with the right to development in their agendas and activities
To address challenges and barriers that civil society groups face in their engagement with the right to development
To explore strategies for enhancing civil society engagement with the right to development
To share good practices, initiatives, and strategies on using the right to development framework for human rights advocacy and development work
To encourage CSOs’ engagement in the drafting process of a global legally binding instrument on the right to development

French and Spanish translations of the concept note will available shortly on the website. Do not hesitate to contact the Secretariat of the Expert Mechanism on the Right to Development at ohchr-emrtd@un.org in case of questions.

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CoNGO Notes: For more information on the NGO Committee on Sustainable Development-NY, please visit ngocsd-ny.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Sustainable Development-Vienna, please visit congocsd.wordpress.com. For more information on the NGO Committee on Social Development, please visit ngosocdev.org.

World Bank CSO Monthly Call Briefing

Dear Colleagues in Civil Society,

Please save the date for the next CSO Monthly Call. It will take place on Thursday, July 29, 2021, from 10:00 to 11:00 AM EST.

Preliminary Agenda

Speakers:

Dilip Ratha, Head, Global Knowledge Partnership on Migration and Development (KNOMAD), World Bank
Enrique Blanco Armas, Manager, International Development Association (IDA), World Bank

Objectives to discuss:

The latest Migration and Development Brief, that highlights the resilience of remittances flows during the year 2020, despite the COVID-19 pandemic.
An update on the IDA20 replenishment process.

The CSO monthly call will take a break during the month of August and will resume in September.

Kind regards,

World Bank Civil Society Team

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CoNGO Notes: For more information on the NGO Committee on Financing for Development, please visit ngosonffd.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Sustainable Development-NY, please visit ngocsd-ny.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Sustainable Development-Vienna, please visit ngocsdvienna.org.

UNCTAD15 civil society discussion on frontier technologies, the digital economy and development

Join us for a pre-event on the road to UNCTAD15. This discussion is the second part of a series of online discussions with civil society held in preparation for the UNCTAD15 ministerial conference.

The dialogue aims to raise awareness of civil society representatives on the issues of technology transfer, e-commerce and the digital economy. The outcome of the session will be presented to member states as part of the intergovernmental preparatory process for UNCTAD15. Find out more here.

The event is open to the public, but registration is mandatory. Register here!

Questions for discussion

Technology transfer

What would be the elements of an agenda for technology transfer that include civil society’s concerns and aspirations?
What are the challenges and opportunities that frontier technologies can bring?
What are the mechanisms to accelerate technology transfer and ensure that it benefits the most disadvantaged communities?

E-commerce and digital economy

What would be the elements of an agenda for the deployment of e-commerce and digital economy in developing countries that include civil society’s concerns and aspirations?
What are the challenges and opportunities that frontier technologies can bring?
What are the mechanisms to accelerate the adoption of e-.commerce and digital economy, ensuring that they benefit the most disadvantaged communities?

Programme

Opening remarks:

Ms. Shamika Sirimanne, Director, Division on Technology and Logistics, UNCTAD

Keynote address on the agenda for technology transfer that includes civil society’s concerns and aspirations:

Ms. Neth Daño, Coordinator and Asia Director ETC Group, the Philippines

Keynote address on mechanisms to accelerate the adoption of e-commerce and the digital economy leaning no one behind:

Mr. Parminder Jeet Singh, Executive Director, IT for Change

Followed by an Interactive dialogue with civil society representatives:

Moderated by Ms. Chee Yoke Ling, Third World Network

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CoNGO Notes: For more information on the NGO Committee on Financing for Development, please visit ngosonffd.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Education, Learning, and Literacy, please visit facebook.com/NGOCELLatUN. For more information on the NGO Committee on Sustainable Development-NY, please visit ngocsd-ny.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Sustainable Development-Vienna, please visit ngocsdvienna.org.

The Contribution of Development to the Enjoyment of all Human Rights

Dear NGO colleagues,

Please consider yourselves invited to participate in a one-day intersessional seminar on the contribution of development to the enjoyment of all human rights, which will be held online on 28 May 2021, from 11 am to 1 pm and from 3 to 5 pm Central European Standard Time (CEST). The seminar is organized as requested by the Human Rights Council, in its resolution 41/19 (para.14), in order to allow Member States, relevant United Nations agencies, funds and programmes, international organizations, national human rights institutions, civil society organizations and other stakeholders to identify challenges and gaps and share good practices and experiences in this regard.

More information, including the concept note and programme of work is available at this link: ohchr.org/EN/Issues/Development/Pages/contributionofdevelopment.aspx

All participants are required to register at indico.un.org/event/35807. The link to the meeting and instructions about the list of speakers will be made available to the registered participants.

Delegations are reminded to submit copies of their statements prior to delivery to r2d@ohchr.org.

For further details, please contact Mr. Diego Valadares (ext. 79177; dvaladares@ohchr.org) or Ms. Helen Ochero (ext. 89668; hochero@ohchr.org).

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CoNGO Notes: For more information on the NGO Committee on Human Rights, please email the co-chairs at bobbinassar@gmail.com or bknotts@uua.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Sustainable Development-Vienna, please visit ngocsdvienna.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Sustainable Development-NY, please visit ngocsd-ny.org.

Improving Civil Society’s Limited Access to The Green Climate Fund

Following the launch of the paper “Improving Civil Society’s Limited Access to The Green Climate Fund” on 28 April 2021, CIDSE is pleased to invite you to the CSO engagement webinar on the topic, to be held on 05 May 2021. The online seminar will present the findings of this report, which include policy recommendations based on an analysis of GCF policies and lessons learned from five case studies.

Please find more information below:

We are excited to have you join us! As a reminder, this is an opportunity for CSOs big and small, including those in countries where GCF projects may happen.

More info & registration:

https://www.cidse.org/2021/04/28/new-study-cidse-publishes-a-report-on-csos-access-to-the-green-climate-fund-an-analysis-of-policies-and-experiences-from-case-studies/

Agenda:

15:00 Welcome & Introduction

15:10-15:30 Keynote by Thomas Hirsch (Climate and Development Advice) on the results of a new CIDSE report on “improving civil society’s limited access to the green climate fund”, along with policy recommendations. This research is based on an analysis of GCF policies and lessons learned from five case studies

15:30 Introducing the Panel for comments

15:35 Lessons from development finance to strengthen climate finance – Leia Achampong, Senior Policy & Advocacy Officer – Climate Finance, Eurodad – Brussels

15:45 Expanding on experiences from Global South partner – Julius Ng’oma, CISONECC – Civil Society Network on Climate Change, Malawi

15:55 Policy perspective from a former GCF board member or expert interviewees (tbc)

16:05 Q&As from the floor to all speakers

16:25 Conclusion

Press contact: Valentina Pavarotti, CIDSE Communications Manager: pavarotti(at)cidse.org

For those of you who don’t know CIDSE, we are an international family of Catholic social justice organizations working for transformational change to end poverty and inequalities, challenging systemic injustice, inequity, destruction of nature and promoting just and environmentally sustainable alternatives.

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CoNGO Notes: For more information on the NGO Committee on Financing for Development, please visit ngosonffd.org. For more information on the Committee of Religious NGOs at the United Nations, please visit rngos.wordpress.com.

Dialogue on Education: Meeting New Challenges

Education at all levels faced unforeseen challenges due to the COVID-19 pandemic in communities, globally impacting students and educators along with their families. Every aspect of education adjusted to ensure inclusive quality learning continued to be experienced by students with curriculums via virtual engagement which highlighted the importance of digital connectivity for all students. Education is covered in the UN 17 Sustainable Development Goals and is key to the success of the UN2030 Sustainable Development Agenda to “Leave No One Behind.” Our panel will share their reflections and innovative solutions in response to this global crisis. In addition, we will share an overview of our UN75 People’s Declaration for the UN We Need.

RSVP here

Welcome & Moderator

Ms. Margo LaZaro, President and Chair of the NGOCSD-NY; Co-Founder/CSO of the SDG Impact Awards Community, Director of UN Relations-Global Family, Coalition Partner of C4UNWN

Opening Address

H.E. Dr. Michal Mlynar, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of the Permanent Mission of Slovakia to the United Nations

Keynote Address

Mr. Ramu Damodaran, Chief, United Nations Academic Impact (UNAI) Outreach Division, United Nations Department of Global Communications

Meeting New Challenges

Dr. Miriam Westheimer, Chief Program Officer of HIPPY International
Ms. Carolina Andueza, Executive Director of CMPC Foundation & Director of HIPPY Chile
Ms. Judith Cunningham, Founder and CSO of Youth for a Better World-Montessori Model UN and Youth Impact Forum
Ms. Daria Kimuli, Co-Founder of the St. Philip Neri Primary School, Nairobi, Kenya
Mr. Steven Aiello, Founder and Director of Debate for Peace, Tel Aviv, Israel
Mr. Ameen Agbaria, 16 year-old, Youth Delegate of Debate for Peace, Palestinian citizen of Israel
Dr. Carrie Pemberton Ford, Executive Director CCARHT. Senior Fellow of Ethics and Public Life, Margaret Beaufort Institute, University of Cambridge, UK
Ms. Marija Marinovic, Graduate Student of Criminology from the University of Cambridge, UK

Closing Reflections

Dr. Andrea Mlynarova, Lecturer of Mathematics at CUNY Baruch & Hunter College and President of the UN Delegations’ Women’s Club

C4UNWN & the UN75 People’s Declaration

Mr. Jeffery Huffines, Senior Advisor of the Coalition for the UN We Need and Together First

Interactive Dialogue Exchange

Special Student Greeting

Mr. Desderio Njiru, is the Head Teacher of St. Philip Neri Primary School, Nairobi, Kenya

Our Partners:

NGO Committee on Sustainable Development-NY, Coalition for the UN We Need, SDG Relief Fund, Together First, SDG Impact Awards Community, HIPPY International, Global Family, Soroptimist International, World Federalist Movement-Canada, Humanitarian Focus Foundation, Salvation Army International Social Justice Commission, Consortium for Sustainable Urbanization, COVIDxNOW, Empower a Billion Women-EBW, Debate for Peace, Huairou Commission, Youth for a Better World:/Montessori Model UN, Youth Impact! Forum, General Assembly of Partners, NGO Major Group Urban Cluster, Global Family for Love & Peace, ICW, CoNGO, and UNA-USA Council of Organizations

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CoNGO Notes: For more information on the NGO Committee on Social Development, please visit ngosocdev.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Sustainable Development-NY, please visit ngocsd-ny.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Sustainable Development-Vienna, please visit ngocsdvienna.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Education, Learning, and Literacy, please visit facebook.com/NGOCELLatUN. For more information on the NGO Committee on Children’s Rights, please visit childrightsny.org.

Partnerships as Game Changer for a Sustainable Recovery from COVID-19

Dear Colleagues,

The 2021 Partnership Forum of the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) will be held virtually on Monday, 3 May 2021, from 9:00 am to 11:00 am (EST).

Under the theme of “Partnerships as Game Changer for a Sustainable Recovery from COVID-19”, the Forum will examine the critical role of multi-stakeholder partnerships in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) following the outbreak of the COVID-19 global pandemic.

For more information, please kindly refer to the event home page: https://sdgs.un.org/events/ecosoc-partnership-forum-2021

FYI, the 2021 ECOSOC Partnership Forum is scheduled to be webcast via webtv.un.org.

Registration for the Partnerships as Game Changer for a Sustainable Recovery from COVID-19 can be found at this link: https://sdgs.un.org/events/stakeholder-engagement-and-partnerships-during-and-beyond-covid-19-32662

We look forward to your active participation!

UN DESA

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CoNGO Notes: For more information on the NGO Committee on Sustainable Development-NY, please visit ngocsd-ny.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Sustainable Development-Vienna, please visit ngocsdvienna.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Financing for Development, please visit ngosonffd.org.

Civilian Safety in Armed Conflict: Strategies and approaches for direct prevention of violence

Civilian Safety in Armed Conflict: Strategies and approaches for direct prevention of violence

In this first of two webinars exploring existing efforts to improve the safety of civilians during armed conflict, we at PHAP will be discussing “primary” prevention programs, which focus on advocacy, armed actor behavior change, and direct engagement with armed actors, either by the humanitarian organization or by facilitating this engagement by communities. We will hear from civil society organizations and UN agencies about their approaches to primary prevention – what the main considerations are and in which situations they are effective. We will also discuss what other organizations can learn from their approach and the implications this has for the humanitarian community as a whole.

The event will be held virtually, and participants will need to connect via Zoom. Simultaneous interpretation will be provided in Spanish, English, and French. Register here!

Background:

In armed conflict, the humanitarian community continues to witness highly disturbing situations where the safety of civilians is ignored or not addressed, or where civilians are purposely targeted by parties to a conflict. While protection services continue to provide much-needed support to vulnerable and marginalized groups and individuals and respond to protection concerns with remedial service provision, limited progress has been made on contributing to civilians’ safety in armed conflict. As Hugo Slim expressed it in the recent Oxford Lecture Series on Protection: “When you look at protection’s track record through wars, protection is at its weakest here, in this challenge in protecting people from physical harm and unlawful devastating attacks on their persons and homes.”

In the last few years, there has been a push by both humanitarian agencies and donors to examine how we can prevent and protect civilians from physical harm during conflict. Key questions remain: what does prevention mean and look like within our protection of civilians programming? Where does civilian safety “fit” within the humanitarian architecture?

There are, however, several existing approaches to mitigate and reduce risk in armed conflict for the civilian population, including how to prevent violence from happening in the first place and how to strengthen civilian self-protection strategies through community-based initiatives. This two-part webinar series aims to provide an overview of the range of strategies currently undertaken by national and international civil society organizations, UN agencies, and donors, providing examples of good practice, and discuss how such efforts can be advanced and systematized in the wider humanitarian community.

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CoNGO Notes: For more information on the NGO Committee on Disarmament, Peace, and Security, please visit ngocdps.wordpress.com. For more information on the NGO Committee on Financing for Development, please visit ngosonffd.org.

CSOs

Questions for discussion

Technology transfer

Programme

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