Felix Dodds comments on sustainable development, coffee & life

Guest blog:  Mary Omble Wuya  is a gender and development expert, social scientist and researcher with over ten years experience.  She combines trainings and experience to deliver effectively and efficiently in areas of development and social science research. Author of   Reducing the Truama of Gender Based Violence: Gender Based Violence The issue of displaced persons in recent times has been a global problem especially in third world countries. The displacement across the globe is due to communal violence, economic dislocations natural disaster, internal armed conflicts, land/border conflicts, floods and drought, ethno religious conflicts and terrorist attacks.   Global experiences have shown that most displaced persons are vulnerable to threats to security and physical integrity, loss of contact with children and family members, inadequate and insecure shelter, discrimination in aids distribution, psycho-social stress, sexual and gender-based violence. ...

Today the World Benchmarking Alliance will be launching in and around the UN General Assembly One year ago, the New York Public Library provided a beautiful backdrop for the start of the WBA’s global consultations during the 72nd United Nations General Assembly. Today, the library will act as the platform from which we take the next step. Over the past 12 months, we have seen first-hand that together we are greater than the sum of our parts. From New York to Nairobi, Buenos Aires to Bonn, we have listened to and worked with a wide-reaching network of individuals to mobilise a global community of over 10,000 advocates and supporters, including over 70 Allies. While this is a good start, we know that the real work is just beginning, as we strive to scale our efforts and deepen our impact. The Alliance brings together a broad, balanced group of stakeholders with SDG 17 (Partnership for the Goals) at its core. Allies represent a large mix of voices aligned with the universali...

By Minu Hemmati and Anna Holthaus, MSP Institute With the year 2020 fast approaching, Strategic Approach to International Chemicals Management (SAICM) and its stakeholders are currently developing pathways for the international management of chemicals and waste , building and re-building the platform for Beyond 2020 .   We therefore have a unique window of opportunity over the coming years to increase attention and achieve results regarding integrating gender issues. There are various gender aspects and women’s issue relevant to chemicals, and chemicals and waste management (e.g. Hemmati & Bach 2017 ). Most of these issues are not receiving the attention they should in order to ensure the best possible decisions in policy-making and effective implementation. Why Gender and Chemicals ? 1. Gender, as a social category , is linked to gender-specific norms of behaviour, roles in society as well as the development of ‘feminine’ and ‘masculine’ identities, which in turn...

Signposts to the 2015 new Development Goals Having just attended the Sustainable Development Goals Open Working Group and the consultation with Major Groups held the week before I wanted to share a number of reflections with this blog. Major Group Consultation On Friday November 22 nd what was billed as an “Intersessional Meeting between Major Groups and other stakeholders and the Open Working Group on SDGs” turned out to mostly Major Groups talking to themselves. It was an excellently put together day with four sessions covering: Rights-based SDGs that encompasses all dimensions of Sustainable Development; How the Sustainable Development Goals can eliminate inequalities and poverty; Good governance, enabling environment and institutions at the core of implementing SDGs Designing SDGs that foster human development within planetary boundaries (including climate change and natural resources management). Looking around the room I could see the two Co-chairs of the...