What is the Summit of the Future
The Summit of the Future 2024, a four day long summit that is based at the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). SDGs were agreed on to develop and spread peace, prosperity as well as strong social relations, and unbreakable ties in the present and into the future. The SDGs are 17 crucial milestones that the UN and agreed member states desire to achieve worldwide by 2030. SDGs are separated into three dimensions. Social, Economic, and Environmental, which include:
(1) no poverty,
(2) zero hunger,
(3) individual well-being,
(4) access to quality education,
(5) gender equality,
(6) clean water and sanitation,
(7) clean energy,
(8) economic growth,
(9) advancements in infrastructure, innovation, and industry,
(10) reduced inequalities,
(11) sustainable cities,
(12) responsible consumption and production,
(13) climate action,
(14) sustainable use of marine resources,
(15) protecting life on land,
(16) peace and justice,
(17) partnership for all above.
The SDGs were adopted by member states in 2015 and since then the positive results of multilateral action has been visible for some SDGs. These developments on depleting humanity’s problems include decreased poverty, increased gender equality, and climate action.
While it is safe to say that the UN-led multilateralism has been somewhat successful, as the UN publishes, it has failed to stay on expected track in 2024. Consequently, the UN is hosting the Summit of the Future during the UNGA to discuss the ongoing efforts for SDGs, propose new ideas to accelerate ongoing effort, and advance on the current ideas to generate more effective and faster outcomes. Moreover, in response to the underperforming SDGs efforts, the Secretary-General, published his proposals accross UN’s 12 Commitments (refer to pages 74-75), in 2020, to accelerate the process of SDGs. In summary, these proposals aim to achieve a collective relationship that is built on trust and equality with the goal of promoting peace, safety, protection, and climate action under the guidance of the international law and justice.
When is it? And who is participating?
The Summit of the Future will be hosted between 20-23 September, 2024 in the New York Headquarters of United Nations during the UNGA. The participation will be vast, ranging from world leaders, state actors, NGOs, international organizations, and charities, etc. It is expected to be an unprecedented opportunity to promote multilateralism and create a better future for younger generations.
What to expect? What will be discussed
The Summit is split between two parts. First half is given to the “Action Days” and the other half is the summit days. While the main events will be held on the summit days, the Action Days hold a considerable part of the whole organization. On the first day of the Action Days, an opportunity will be given to the youth to express their thoughts, expectations, and concerns about the future and multilateralism. Youth are seen as a key participants in efforts to develop multilateralism. They challenge conventional thinking, hold leaders to accountable and are focused on generations that come after us, because they stand to lose the most if global leaders fail to achieve SDGs. The events of this day will be held by the UN Youth Office.
The next day will focus on multistakeholder partnership and action – paving a way towards a next chapter of multilateralism that is more inclusive and networked. To achieve, the Action Day 2 will address three priority themes. Digital Futures, Peaceful Futures, and Sustainable Futures for All. These themes will be guided, respectively, by Office of the Special Envoy on Technology (OSET), International Telecommunication Union (ITU), and United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). The latter half will include the discussion off the twofold aim of the summit, accelerating efforts to meet the existing international commitments and taking concrete steps to respond to emerging challenges and opportunities. These aims will be achieved through the “Pact for the Future” which is a revised version of the original 12 Commitments.
What does the Future look like
The future, according to the UN Common Agenda Report, could shape in the opposites depending on the choices that the world leaders make. On on side of the spectrum, where states isolate each other from international order, we may experience deadly pandemics because of ever-evolving COVID-19, unequal access to vaccinations in less developed countries, and poor healthcare systems throughout the world, uninhabitable planet caused by rising emission levels, heatwaves, floods, droughts, and tropical cyclones due to climate change, and social breakdown due to increased poverty, rising conflicts, and underfunded humanatarian aid. On the other side, however, with a successful multilateral cooperation of countries, the United Nations believe that we can achieve a sustainable recovery from the pandemic, stabilization of climate change, and better structured social relations between all with solidarity, well-educated generations, and strong commitment to the universality and indivisibility of human rights.
Therefore, The Secretary General Urges the World to Take Action, So That Future Generations Can Have Better Futures
“Now is the time to;
- “Re-embrace global solidarity
- Renew the social contract between governments and their people within societies
- End the infodemic plaguing our world
- Correct glaring blind spot
- in how we measure economic prosperity and progress
- Think for the long term, to deliver more for young people and succeeding generations and to be better prepared for the challenges ahead.
- A stronger, more networked and inclusive multileateral system, anchored within the United Nations.”
