13 steps towards ending poverty and climate change

Start by asking the tough questions: This year sees several important negotiations processes coming to a head – the post-2015 process on the SDGs, the UNFCCC process on climate change, the UN’s third Financing for Development conference in July. These processes are still being progressed as separate streams, so how we are going to bring them closer together? When we get down to the tangible elements like finance, how can we improve coherence between different funding streams, and better connect finance with countries’ sustainable development priorities? Aaron Atteridge, research fellow, Stockholm Environment Institute, Stockholm. @SEIresearch

See climate change and poverty as two sides of the same coin: Eradicating poverty alongside building resilience and restructuring the global economy to hold global temperatures below 2C are mutually reinforcing goals that, acted on together, can provide prosperity and security for this and future generations. Nelson Muffuh, head of outreach, United Nations post-2015 development planning team, New York. @nmuffuh

Fight gender inequality: Women, if included in the economy, would add productivity. And many of the forces that propel poverty into the future – adolescent fertility, infant mortality, sexual violence, disease transmission, and hostility, to name a few – are best addressed by working to improve the economic autonomy of women. Linda Scott, chair for entrepreneurship and innovation, Oxford University, Oxford. @ProfLindaScott

Recognise the conflict between economic development and the environment: Growth of a particular country is directly proportional to the amount of emissions it spews in the atmosphere. This is the reason why rich countries are reluctant to agree to some elements of a climate change deal which they see as denying them competitive advantage in development. But sacrifices have to be made; rich countries who have caused the damage should honour their commitment under the climate change convention, while growing economies should recognise the impact of their actions on present and future generations. Mithika Mwenda, secretary general, Pan-African Climate Justice Alliance, Nairobi. @mithika_mwenda

Don’t get distracted by geopolitics: The real danger is the talks [at the UN general assembly in September] either get bogged down in power games between different blocs of countries or that the escalating global security issues – Syria, Ukraine, extremism – push the talks down the agenda and we end up with warm words on paper and no follow-on action. We need to stay focused. Linda McAvan, member of the European Parliament, Brussels. @LindaMcAvanMEP

Accept that this is a moral fight: The 17 proposed goals comprise big words but are we merely setting goals that we will never reach? Is it all wishful thinking? The three fundamental issues in the world are avarice, arrogance and apathy, and to tackle them we need more than technical solutions or political quick-fixes. We need a moral force that can help us build a new world. Yeb Sano, climate commissioner for the Philippines, Manila. @yebsano

Find the funding to make change a reality: The first thing we need is for developed countries to recommit to their 0.7% [aid targets]. The European commission has suggested the EU as a whole commit should 0.7%. Then we must focus on improving domestic resource mobilisation – measures to support tax collection and tackle tax evasion and avoidance are crucial. Without a solid domestic tax base, no country can sustainably promote development for all its people and eradicate poverty. Finally, we need to get more private sector investment. We must work with emerging and middle-income countries, who are increasingly involved as donors, to develop a genuine UN framework so that the international aid system is better coordinated and not fragmented. Linda McAvan

Look beyond 2015: It’s tempting to focus all our energies on securing the deals in September (SDGs) and December (climate talks) this year, but our success in changing the course of sustainable development will be judged not just on what is declared this year but what’s delivered by 2030. So we need the public pressure, the political buy-in, and engagement far beyond the New York negotiating spaces if we are to see these deals defining sustainable development for the coming decades. Helen Morton, post-2015 lead, Save the Children, New York. @SavetheChildren

Learn from the MDGs: Why do we need new goals when a number of millennium development goals haven’t been met? Should we abandon those goals and simply set new ones? No. What we need to do is figure out why they weren’t achieved and change the methodologies used. [An important lessons we must learn is that] we shouldn’t try to force universal solutions as the environmental settings, needs and challenges of countries differ. Given Edward, head of research and information, Tanzania Youth Vision Association, Dar es Salaam. @givenality

Put trade reform on the agenda: The SDGs and climate change negotiations often appear quite disconnected from other global regimes – such as trade and financial markets – which have a major impact on people’s livelihoods and their vulnerability. One might argue that trade issues are bound up within quite a number of the goals as they are now, but there could certainly be value in putting trade issues and the impact of trade more specifically on the SDG agenda. Aaron Atteridge

Focus on the root causes: We must set in motion profound changes in how we organise our economies and societies. Without these changes development cannot be truly sustainable. This means tackling the systems and structures that keep people poor within and beyond countries. Justice, rule of law and accountability are key to ensuring that people access opportunities, co-exist peacefully, and above all meaningfully contribute as agents of their own development. Nelson Muffuh

Beware of the dominance of the private sector: My fear is that the same interests which have derailed [previous climate talks] have returned to haunt this important process. Voices of people continue to be drowned by corporate interests, whose sole aim is profit. Phasing in a community-controlled renewable energy future, in place of fossil-fuel, should be our objective. Evidence of such successes abound: Christian Aid has done a study which demonstrates that such a future is possible. Mithika Mwenda

Let citizens lead: The post-2015 development agenda will ultimately take form in the villages, towns and cities – the places where people actually live [and not in the UN headquarters in New York where the new goals will be decided]. To be effective new targets and indicators should also be tailored to the needs at the sub-national, local and community level, through participatory and multi-stakeholder processes led by local authorities, in both cities and rural areas. Nelson Muffuh

Invest in the technology that will deliver the goals: There’s, rightly, lots of discussion around the “data revolution”. If we want to live in a world in 2030, where ”no one is left behind”, and crucially, where “no target is considered met unless met for all” then we need to ensure that countries have the capacity and capability to monitor and make accessible data that’s disaggregated across all social and economic groups. This may sound technical but it’s truly transformative and would change development as we know it. Imagine us living in a world where inequality isn’t an inevitable outcome of development progress. Helen Morton

Read the full Q&A here.

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