André Stephan, The University of Melbourne; Alexei Trundle, The University of Melbourne; Dave Kendal, The University of Melbourne; Hayley Henderson, The University of Melbourne; Hesam Kamalipour, The University of Melbourne, and Melanie Lowe, The University of Melbourne
Our cities need to become much more efficient not just to conserve precious resources but to improve the economy, wellbeing and resilience to environmental change and disasters.
Alexei Trundle, The University of Melbourne; André Stephan, The University of Melbourne; Hayley Henderson, The University of Melbourne; Hesam Kamalipour, The University of Melbourne, and Melanie Lowe, The University of Melbourne
Nation states, UN bodies and civil society gathered in Quito for Habitat III to adopt the New Urban Agenda. So how will the UN’s new global urban roadmap transform our cities over the next 20 years?
A number of African states are taking positive steps to combat violence against girls and child marriage. But social and cultural barriers can nullify national laws and strategies.
Progress in terms of water and sanitation has traditionally favoured those with money. But the hope with the SDG’s is that this gap will be plugged in the future.
The millennium development goals were laudable but the approach to achieving them was flawed. An integrated, bottom-up approach is needed if the sustainable development goals are to be met by 2030.
Africa should focus on the feasible reforms of the UN and de-emphasise its demand for improved representation on the Security Council voting reforms, given the complex politics around these issues.
Involving the public in data collection - through crowd sourcing - to produce critical public services such as maps and transit apps helps build new conversations on how the system can be improved.
It is more important than ever that the locus of control of education development is driven by African public intellectuals who can speak truth to power
An index developed to gauge progress towards the sustainable development goals and their targets shows that nine of the world’s worst performing countries are in Africa.
The world is steadily transitioning to a multipolar systemic balance of power. The UN Security Council needs to reflect and be a truer representative of the emerging voices of a contemporary “UN”.
When Australia joins the 71st UN General Assembly, it will reflect on its progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals. But where do we start to achieve these complex and interlinked ambitions?
Two years of marathon negotiations have finally yielded agreement in last-minute meetings in New York on the New Urban Agenda to be adopted at the Habitat III summit in Quito in October.
The draft agenda for the UN urban development conference in Quito neglects the food systems on which the wellbeing of the world’s 4 billion city dwellers depends.
Hayley Henderson, The University of Melbourne; Alexei Trundle, The University of Melbourne; André Stephan, The University of Melbourne; Hesam Kamalipour, The University of Melbourne, and Melanie Lowe, The University of Melbourne
More than 25,000 delegates will meet in Quito in October to set out a New Urban Agenda for the UN, to be implemented over the next 20 years. But Australia is yet to play a major role in the process.