Bioversity International researcher Silvia Wood explains the process of developing the post-2015 Sustainable Development Goals and areas of interest and intervention that the researchers from CGIAR and the Ecosystem Services Partnership could take. Presented at the 7th Annual Ecosystem Services Partnership Conference in Costa Rica, September 8-12, 2014. Find out more about the Bridging Agriculture and Conservation Initiative: http://www.bioversityinternational.org/about-us/news/bridging-agriculture-conservation/

1. Landscape Approaches &
Ecosystem Services in the
post-2015 SDGs
Sylvia Wood
‘Bridging Agriculture and Conservation Initiative’

2. Sustainable Development Goals
Part of a larger, longer process…
• Called for out of the Rio+20 UN Sustainable Development
Meeting 2012
• Build on the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs)
• SDGs are a set of internationally recognized goals which will
guide the global development agenda from 2015-2030
• limited in number
• aspirational
• easy to communicate

3. Target 7.A:
Integrate the principles of sustainable development into country
policies and programmes and reverse the loss of environmental
resources
• Forests are a safety net for the poor, but they continue to disappear at an alarming rate.
• Global emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2) have increased by more than 50 per cent since
1990.
• Afforestation and the natural expansion of forests have reduced the net loss of forest from an
average of 8.3 million hectares annually in the 1990s to an average of 5.2 million hectares
annually between 2000 and 2010.
Target 7.B:
Reduce biodiversity loss, achieving, by 2010, a significant
reduction in the rate of loss
• Protected ecosystems covered 14 per cent of land and coastal marine areas worldwide by
2012.
Target 7.C:
Halve, by 2015, the proportion of the population without
sustainable access to safe drinking water and basic sanitation
• The world has met the target of halving the proportion of people without access to improved
sources of water, five years ahead of schedule, but 748 million people still lack access to an
improved source of drinking water.
• Over a quarter of the world’s population has gained access to improved sanitation since 1990,
yet one billion people still resort to open defecation, but 2.5 billion in developing countries still
lack access to improved sanitation facilities.

4. “Forests are a safety net for the poor, but they
continue to disappear at an alarming rate
Forests are disappearing at a rapid pace, despite
the establishment of forest policies and laws
supporting sustainable forest management in many
countries. The largest net loss of forests has
occurred in South America and Africa—around 3.6
million hectares and 3.4 million hectares per year,
respectively, over the period from 2005 to 2010.
Close to 75 per cent of the world’s forests are
covered by national forest programmes. However,
in many cases, deforestation is caused by
factors beyond a programme’s control. One of
the primary drivers of deforestation is the
conversion of forests into agricultural land to
feed the world’s growing population”

5. Learning from the MDGs
Criticism:
MDGs did not sufficiently include environmental sustainability in its targets –
emphasis on social and economic issues meant too little attention to the third
dimension of sustainable development – the environment.
Learning:
“More integrated approaches between agriculture and forest sectors are
needed to make real progress in reversing the loss of natural resources,
including forests, and to fulfil international commitments related to climate
change mitigation, biodiversity conservation and sustainable land
management.”
Change:
SDGs are expected to adopt an approach that fully integrates the social,
economic and environmental dimensions of sustainable development.

6. Sustainable Development Goals
for 2015-2030
• Many parallel processes have been concurrently
developing proposals for goals, targets and
indicators for the SDGs
Open Working
Group

8. • July released Outcome Document
• Proposal for the SDGs to UN Secretary General
• Presented to the UN General Assembly in Sept 2014
• 17 Aspirational Goals
• 169 Targets
http://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/owg.html

9. . 2.3 by 2030 double the agricultural productivity and
the incomes of small-scale food producers….
. 2.4 by 2030 ensure sustainable food production systems
and implement resilient agricultural practices that increase
productivity and production, that help maintain ecosystems,
that strengthen capacity for adaptation to climate change,
extreme weather, drought, flooding and other disasters, and that
progressively improve land and soil quality
• 2.a increase investment, including through enhanced international
cooperation, in rural infrastructure, agricultural research and
extension services, technology development, and plant and livestock
gene banks to enhance agricultural productive capacity in developing
countries, in particular in least developed countries
. 2.c. adopt measures to ensure the proper functioning of food
commodity markets and their derivatives, and facilitate
timely access to market information, including on food reserves, in
order to help limit extreme food price volatility
OWG Goal 2: End
Hunger, Achieve
Food Security and
Improved Nutrition
and Promote
Sustainable
Agriculture
Targets

10. OWG Goal 6.
Ensure availability
and sustainable
management of
water and
sanitation for all
Targets
. 6.3 by 2030, improve water quality by reducing pollution,
eliminating dumping and minimizing release of hazardous
chemicals and materials, halving the proportion of untreated
wastewater, and increasing recycling and safe reuse by x%
globally
. 6.4 by 2030, substantially increase water-use efficiency
across all sectors and ensure sustainable withdrawals
and supply of freshwater to address water scarcity, and
substantially reduce the number of people suffering from water
scarcity
. 6.5 by 2030 implement integrated water resources
management at all levels, including through transboundary
cooperation as appropriate
. 6.6 by 2020 protect and restore water-related
ecosystems, including mountains, forests, wetlands, rivers,
aquifers and lakes
. 6.b support and strengthen the participation of local
communities for improving water and sanitation
management

11. OWG Goal 14.
Conserve and
sustainably use the
oceans, seas and
marine resources for
sustainable
development
Targets
. 14.1 by 2025, prevent and significantly reduce marine pollution
of all kinds, particularly from land-based activities,
including marine debris and nutrient pollution
. 14.2 by 2020, sustainably manage, and protect
marine and coastal ecosystems to avoid significant
adverse impacts, including by strengthening their resilience
and take action for their restoration, to achieve healthy and
productive oceans
. 14.7 by 2030 increase the economic benefits to SIDS and
LDCs from the sustainable use of marine resources, including
through sustainable management of fisheries,
aquaculture and tourism
. 14.a increase scientific knowledge, develop
research capacities and transfer marine technology taking
into account the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission
Criteria and Guidelines on the Transfer of Marine Technology,
in order to improve ocean health and to enhance the
contribution of marine biodiversity to the development of
developing countries, in particular SIDS and LDCs

12. OWG Goal15.
Protect, restore and
promote sustainable
use of terrestrial
ecosystems,
sustainably manage
forests, combat
desertification, and halt
and reverse land
degradation and halt
biodiversity loss
. 15.1 by 2020 ensure conservation, restoration
and sustainable use of terrestrial and inland
freshwater ecosystems and their services, in
particular forests, wetlands, mountains and drylands, in
line with obligations under international agreements
. 15.4 by 2030 ensure the conservation of mountain
ecosystems, including their biodiversity, to enhance
their capacity to provide benefits which are
essential for sustainable development
. 15.9 by 2020, integrate ecosystems and
biodiversity values into national and local
planning, development processes and poverty
reduction strategies, and accounts
. 15.a mobilize and significantly increase from all
sources financial resources to conserve and
sustainably use biodiversity and ecosystems
. 15.b mobilize significantly resources from all
sources and at all levels to finance sustainable
forest management, and provide adequate incentives
to developing countries to advance sustainable forest
management, including for conservation and reforestation
.

13. SDSN
1. Support the High-Level Panel, OWG and other post-2015 SDG
processes
2. Thematic Groups to identify long-term pathways to sustainable
development
3. Promote testing, demonstration, development of promising new
“solutions”
4. Build a global Knowledge Center Network for local and regional
problem solving
5. Global online university for sustainable development
http://unsdsn.org

14. SDSN
Mission: Mobilizes scientific and technical expertise from academia, civil
society, and the private sector in support of sustainable development problem
solving at local, national, and global scales.
Aim: to accelerate joint learning and help to overcome the compartmentalization
of technical and policy work by promoting integrated approaches to the
interconnected economic, social, and environmental challenges confronting the
world.
Regional/National SDSN networks
SDSN Membership
Solutions Initiatives
National Gov’t
How can we achieve Solutions Initiatives
our SDG targets?
SDSN
Universities, research Institutes, NGOs
http://unsdsn.org

15. SDSN Thematic Groups

16. SDSN Regional Networks
The purpose of Regional SDSNs is to mobilize universities, research centers,
civil society organizations, business, and other knowledge centers around
practical problem solving for sustainable development. Each Regional SDSN
has its own priorities focusing on all or a subset of the following objectives:
1. Engaging in the global discussion on shaping the next generation of post-
2015 development goals, including help to national governments to
participate and lead in the global negotiations;
2. Promoting Solution Initiatives for sustainable development in the region or
beyond that can have a transformative impact on sustainable development;
3. Promoting education for sustainable development;
4. Assisting governments in diagnosing local, national, and regional
sustainable development challenges and in devising long-term strategies.
http://unsdsn.org

17. SDSN Membership and Academic Network
http://unsdsn.org

18. OWG Goal 2: End
hunger, achieve
Food Security and
Improved Nutrition
and Promote
Sustainable
Agriculture
Developing Indicators and Metrics
OWG Goal 6.
Ensure availability
and sustainable
management of
water and sanitation
for all

19. OWG Goal 14. Conserve
and sustainably use the
oceans, seas and marine
resources for sustainable
development
OWG Goal15.
Protect, restore and
promote sustainable use
of terrestrial ecosystems,
sustainably manage
forests, combat
desertification, and halt
and reverse land
degradation and halt
biodiversity loss
Developing Indicators and Metrics
More Innovative, cross-cutting
Indicators are needed!!
http://unsdsn.org/

20. Thank you!