The fantasmatic narrative of ‘sustainable development’. A political analysis of the 2030 Global Development Agenda

2021 ◽  
pp. 239965442110182
Author(s):  
Juan Telleria ◽  
Jorge Garcia-Arias

The article offers a critical analysis of the United Nations 2030 Global Development Agenda, whose stated aim is to "transform the world" in such a way that no one is left behind. Drawing on post-Marxist theory, we argue that the 2030 Global Development Agenda is a fantasmatic narrative seeking to conceal the conflictual causes and the antagonistic origins of global development and sustainability issues. Within this fantasmatic narrative, ‘sustainable development’ is the empty signifier that articulates and sustains the agenda’s discourse. Our analysis of the ontological assumptions underpinning the documents that frame the agenda shows that, rather than transforming, the agenda naturalizes and consolidates the existing status quo: a status quo that has created (and continues to perpetuate) the global problems that the agenda aims to solve.

Urban Studies ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 57 (11) ◽  
pp. 2263-2281 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sergio Montero

The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development is marked by the consolidation of sustainability as a key guiding principle and an emphasis on cities as a potential solution to global development problems. However, in the absence of an agreement on how to implement sustainable development in cities, a set of urban policy solutions and ‘best practices’ became the vehicles through which the sustainable development agenda is spreading worldwide. This article shows that the rapid circulation of Bogotá as a model of sustainable transport since the 2000s reflects an increasing focus of the international development apparatus on urban policy solutions as an arena to achieve global development impacts, what I call the ‘leveraging cities’ logic in this article. This logic emerges at a particular historical conjuncture characterised by: (1) the rising power of global philanthropy to set development agendas; (2) the generalisation of solutionism as a strategy of action among development and philanthropic organisations; and (3) the increasing attention on cities as solutions for global development problems, particularly around sustainability and climate change. By connecting urban policy mobilities debates with development studies this article seeks to unpack the emergence, and the limits, of ‘leveraging cities’ as a proliferating global development practice. These urban policy solutions are far from being a clear framework of action. Rather, their circulation becomes a ‘quick fix’ to frame the problem of sustainable development given the unwillingness of development and philanthropic organisations to intervene in the structural factors and multiple scales that produce environmental degradation and climate change.


2015 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
pp. 72-86
Author(s):  
Manzoor Ahmed

This paper provides a background to the on-going discourse on post-2015 global development agenda. It mentions key points from the UN Secretary General’s report on MDG progress and the process of formulating the future development agenda. The recommendations of the High Level Panel on post-2015 agenda and the work of the Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN) are examined from the perspective of Education for Rural Transformation (ERT). It is concluded that the premise and rationale of ERT has received scant attention in the future development agenda discourse. The arguments regarding the pertinence of ERT in combating poverty and promoting sustainable development are noted, drawing on the recent UNESCO- INRULED study on this topic. 


Author(s):  
Ильмира Минигулова

Global problems of modern age make deep problems for the formation of socio-economic and political-legal stability in modern states. The most complex is poverty that provokes the new problems, such as the migration crisis. The international community follows the fundamental principles and norms of international law, tries to wipe out poverty, the practical implementation of this activity is reflected in the Concept of Sustainable Development.


2015 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 30-49 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andreas Brunold

Abstract Since the nineties, the principle of sustainable development has increasingly been adopted by policy makers and civil society in Germany and, of course, in many countries of the world. With the acceptance of this principle, the significance of education for sustainable development (ESD) has also been recognised. Increased awareness of the problems of environmental challenges, globalisation and poverty has meant that the concepts of environmental education, global learning, and education in development policy have been consistently oriented towards more sustainability. This leads to an increased awareness that globalisation processes must be shaped in accordance with the objectives of sustainable development, both nationally and internationally. By encouraging the idea of sustainability to take root in all areas of education systems, the World Decade of Education for Sustainable Development from 2005 to 2014 intended to take significant steps towards greater educational sustainability. The curricula for civic education for sustainable development and global learning in Germany are, therefore of course, very closely linked to global development and globalisation processes, and because of that, they are to be seen within the mandate of the United Nations educational policy. The paper shows, that the learning area of global development objectives is structured in an inter-disciplinary and cross-disciplinary manner. It carries the essential features of a domain: a delimited object area, a specific approach to the world, and the reference to a basic teaching concept in the educational policy traditions of one-world or development-policy education and global learning. Therefore the aim is clear, that these curricula should contribute to the sustainable development goals of the United Nations, towards inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all, as it is mentioned in goal number 4 (United Nations, 2014).


Author(s):  
Alif Khuwarazmi Maulana Julendra ◽  
Silvi Sri Mulyani ◽  
Arfi Mulyasa Insani

The SDGs outline 17 goals that are part of the sustainable development agenda. One of the efforts that can be made to alleviate poverty around the world is by utilizing "endowment funds". In Indonesia, financing innovation to alleviate poverty can be done through cash waqf. However, the facts on the ground show that the huge potential for cash waqf cannot be optimally absorbed. Therefore, this study aims to explore and test empirically the extent to which the Indonesian people intend to optimize the potential of cash waqf in an effort to support financing and achieve the goal of poverty alleviation in Indonesia. This is done by identifying the factors that influence the intention of the Indonesian people to distribute cash waqf and correlating this with the influence of public knowledge about waqf, especially the cash waqf itself. The method used in this study is a quantitative method by collecting primary data from as many as 316 Muslim respondents throughout Indonesia. The questionnaire used is the adoption of Theory Planned Behavior (TPB) with the addition of several variables that affect intention. This approach is used to determine the community's intention to distribute cash waqf. The results of the study indicate the consideration of Indonesian Muslim knowledge in the influence of the intention to do cash waqf, and the results show that there is no significant influence between attitudes (attitudes towards) and people's intention to donate money.


2018 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Susan De Witt

Global consensus has been built around a few key issues, and there have been a slew of unifying declarations and commitments as a result. The climate is changing and those countries in the Paris Accord have committed to reducing carbon output in an attempt to slow it down. The world is inequitable and unstable, and those countries signed up to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals have identified 17 areas in which we need to address global development. It is also becoming clearer to the person on the street that capital markets are not as effective at allocating risk as believed and this is putting everyone in danger. The financial crises over the last few decades are examples of how large miscalculations affect billions of lives, especially those who are most vulnerable to begin with.


Fisheries ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 2021 (6) ◽  
pp. 31-39
Author(s):  
Valery Vorobyov

Global problems and trends in the development of world fisheries and aquaculture are considered. The reasons and factors of the extensive development of the world industrial fisheries and the sustainable development of the production of world aquaculture products are shown. The contribution of fisheries and aquaculture to the GDP of the national economy of the countries is noted. Russia needs to actively develop industrial mariculture, based on the existing significant scientific and practical groundwork and the formation of regional clusters.


Author(s):  
Juan E. Chebly

The purpose of this work is to explore how global public finance prioritization, looking especially at global military spending and defense budgets, in search for a more efficient approach to better deal with the opportunity costs between defense and development. Changing the status quo and business-as-usual approaches to public spending can guarantee resources are re-directed to successfully achieve the sustainable development goals by 2030. The underlying question on how we are going to finance sustainable development still remains. ‘Status quo’ and ‘business-as-usual’ approaches have called the SDGs as an ambitious to-do-list that will be practically unachievable. The main argument behind this approach: the SDGs are too many, too ambitious, and more importantly too expensive to be achieved by the year 2030. This works aims to show evidence that financing the SDGs boils down to proper spending prioritization. There is a funneling of the required 90 billion USD per year from the public sector in order to achieve the UN Agenda 2030. While we as humanity seem to agree on ‘the what’ needs to be done, by agreeing on SDGs agreed by the UN General Assembly in September 2015, there is still a big question mark on ‘the how’ are we to implement the sustainable development agenda. This work shows an original answer to this question.


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