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SDSN Switzerland’s ambitious vision for the 2030 Agenda

By Idahan

SDSN Switzerland’s discussion paper outlines important considerations for the effective national implementation of Agenda 2030. The paper includes comments and recommendations to create a transformational and multidisciplinary sustainable development strategy for Switzerland based on scientific knowledge.

SDSN Switzerland defines the following priority areas:

  • Reduce the ecological footprint resulting from unsustainable consumption and production processes in Switzerland
  • Align institutions and governance to Agenda 2030
  • Encourage sustainable, private and public investment, including funding for international cooperation
  • Develop evidence-based, social, economic, technological and institutional innovations in conjunction with society itself

Through five chapters, the discussion paper promotes a scientific and multidisciplinary approach for effective action on the SDGs in Switzerland by defining:

  1. Switzerland’s responsibility, emphasising the need for an integrated transformative approach grounded in local and international geopolitical realities.
  2. Conceptual challenges, highlighting the difficult questions that can only be answered sufficiently with inputs from numerous sectors, stakeholder groups and tiers of government.
  3. Policy coherence for sustainable development, calling for the adoption of scientific approaches and tools to measure policy coherence in Switzerland.
  4. Financing for sustainable development, suggesting that financial systems be modified to harmonise policies with sustainable development and establish Switzerland as a centre for Sustainable Finance.
  5. Science as an important partner, acknowledging that the scientific community provides invaluable knowledge that can be used in decision-making processes and calls for the improvement of existing scientific methods that measure and assess SDG implementation.

Read the full discussion paper available in English, French and German:
Switzerland and the Agenda 2030

SDSN Switzerland is hosted by the Centre for Development and Environment (CDE) at the University of Bern and the Biovision Foundation for ecological development. The network will be officially launched in February 2018.