The UN General Assembly has adopted the theme for its September 2016 session “The Sustainable Development Goals: A universal push to transform the world.”
At the RIO +20 Conference (2012) UN member states decided to launch a process to build on the Millennium Development Goals. On 25 September 2015 the UN General Assembly adopted the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development Goals. There are 17 goals and the 169 targets to measure their achievement. https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/post2015/transformingourworld.
In September 2016 the Secretary General will present the first report on implementing the SDGs 2030 Agenda. During its July 2016 conference the High level Political Forum, as the platform for implementation of the SDGs 2030 Agenda, reviewed the reports of 22 countries who have already started implementing the SDGs.
The SDGs also address the crisis of climate change. In December 2015 the Paris Agreement on Climate Change was adopted. The UN Secretary General has invited UN member states to show their ratification of the Climate Change agreement so it can go into effect as a treaty (55 states must do so for it to be an international agreement). How to address the most important SDGs especially as it affects those farthest behind, so they are not left behind, is the challenge of each country. An Informed population is the first step.
At the July 2016 meeting of the Global C/SSJ JPIC, the focus was on educating our groups in regard to the SDGs and climate change in order to use our influence to achieve greater justice for all.