As the United Nations Summit to adopt the post-2015 development agenda draws near, it is more important than ever for countries to discuss how they may apply lessons learned from implementing the Millennium Development Goals to the implementation of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Recognising the importance of regional cooperation, the Asia-Europe Environment Forum (ENVforum) shared its research findings in the Greater Mekong Sub-region (GMS) Workshop on Sustainable Development Goals in Hanoi, Viet Nam.
This workshop was co-organised by the Institute of Strategy and Policy on Natural Resources and Environment (ISPONRE), the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and Hanns Seidel Foundation (HSF) Viet Nam. It highlighted best practices among countries in the GMS region with regards to protecting the environment and implementing SDGs. In particular, the workshop promoted regional collaboration to identify and overcome institutional barriers to natural capital-related SDG implementation and monitoring.
The ENVforum presented its findings from its research series “Sustainable Development Goals and Indicators for a Small Planet (Part I, Part II).” The ENVforum discussed the importance of governance and financing in the implementation of SDGs at the national and local levels, and also shared research from its national case study in Viet Nam, which focuses on considerations for SDG implementation in relation to poverty and inequality, sustainable agriculture, and energy and climate change. This cooperative research initiative will also be published in the upcoming ENVforum publication “Sustainable Development Goals and Indicators for a Small Planet – Part III: Means of Implementation”.
