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SDSN Portugal Organizes High-Level International Conference: ‘Paving the Way to the Pact of the Future’

By SDSN

SDSN Portugal will gather high-level speakers from across the SDSN network to discuss and convene inputs for the upcoming UN Summit of the Future.

SDSN Portugal, in collaboration with SDSN, and under the auspices of the President of the Portuguese Republic, is organizing the international conference entitled “Paving the Way to the Pact of the Future” that will take place on 17 and 18 June, 2024 in Lisbon, Portugal.

The hybrid conference will address selected themes from the UN Agenda in preparation for the Summit of the Future to be held in New York in September 2024. These include: (1) The challenges inherent in a sustainable future; (2) Transforming education; (3) Valuing what counts beyond GDP; and (4) Meaningful involvement of young people in decision-making processes and policy-making.

Confirmed speakers, with more to be included in the coming weeks, include:

  • Professor Jeffrey Sachs, President of the SDSN
  • Mayor Ricardo Rio, Mayor of Braga, Portugal
  • Elisa Ferreira, European Commissioner for Cohesion and Reforms
  • Maria João Rodrigues, President of the Foundation for European Progressive Studies
  • Massamba Thioye, Director of the UN Climate Change Innovation Hub
    David Donoghue, former Irish Ambassador to the UN and negotiator of the Irish Peace Process
  • Peter Schmidt, President of the Agriculture, Rural Development and Environment (NAT) Section of the European Economic and Social Council
  • Carla Gomes, Director of the Cornell University AI for Science Institute, Institute for Computational Sustainability
  • Manuel Guilherme Júnior, Rector of Eduardo Mondlane University, Mozambique
  • John Thwaites, President of the Monash Institute for Sustainable Development and the Climateworks Centre

In addition, the conference will include the launch of SDSN’s flagship Sustainable Development Report 2024, which annually shows the progress of the UN 193 Member States in meeting the SDGs. In-person registration for the conference is open, and the conference will be livestreamed on SDSN’s youtube channel.