The ESDN and the 2030 Agenda implementation

EESC Conference on Next steps for a sustainable European future – 7 July 2016

Wolfram Tertschnig ESDN co-chair, Austrian Federal Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, Environment

and Water Management

What is the ESDN good for?

• Since 14 years, the European Sustainable Development Network (ESDN) serves as informal network of public administrators and other experts dealing with sustainable development (SD) strategies in Europe.

• Members of the ESDN are government officials responsible for SD policy formulation and

implementation: 170 Members from 36 countries (also open to non-European government officials)

• All EU-MS represented, plus Switzerland, Iceland, Montenegro, Norway, Serbia, etc.

• The ESDN currently also has 125 Associated Partners registered as experts dealing with SD

• Since 2006, ESDN is supported by the ESDN Office at the WU Institute for Managing Sustainability in

Vienna

• The ESDN Steering Group oversees network-related operations. Currently, the ESDN Steering Group consists of representatives from seven European countries (Austria, Belgium, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, and Switzerland; EC present at “observer” level)

The ESDN as a knowledge base

Some data on the ESDN website (www.sd-network.eu)

http://www.sd-network.eu/http://www.sd-network.eu/http://www.sd-network.eu/

The ESDN proposition on the 2030 Agenda

7 ESDN Recommendations:

1. Political commitment for the new 2030 Agenda for SD is crucial;

2. SDGs should be integrated in an overarching Sustainable Development policy framework in the EU (and its Members States) and in other European countries;

3. Immediate action in the EU is necessary to implement the 2030 Agenda for SD, complemented by progressive milestones and a long-term vision for 2050;

4. National implementation is key: the need and potential for peer learning is clear

5. The EU and all other European countries should enhance horizontal integration and policy coherence;

6. Stakeholder engagement, participation and partnerships are essential;

7. The EU should adapt the global SD indicator set and complement it with its own measures

A message from the 2015 ESDN Conference

How are MS putting Agenda 2030 into action (1)

Dutch Presidency Workshop on implementing the 2030 Agenda (19 April 2016)

Common activities in the Member States...

assigning responsibilities for different parts of the implementation process: who is in charge of

the overall coordination, who for particular aspects, and who holds the overarching responsibility

mapping exercises of current policies in relation to the SDGs & targets, t.b.f. by gap

analyses

concrete proposals for decisions on how to adjust/adapt national policies and governance

frameworks to the 2030 Agenda

move forward together with the EU in a mutually supportive manner

Current coordination at national government level usually is at…

• Prime Minister’s office;

• Foreign Ministry;

• (Ministry of Sustainable Development; of Environment; of Finance etc.)

How are MS putting Agenda 2030 into action (2)

Challenges:

1. Appropriation by all relevant departments/line ministries

2. Creating awareness and ownership

3. Advocating a coherent European approach in mobilizing stakeholders

(vs. the member state role)

4. Develop new instruments or revise the scope existing mechanisms

5. Integrated vs. silo approaches

6. Outreach and communication

7. Adapting international indicators to national context

8. Link up to the EU level: gaps, vertical coordination mechanisms, coherence, etc.

First voluntary reviews of European Countries

22 countries, incl. 7 European countries (Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Montenegro, Norway and Switzerland) presenting Voluntary National Reviews at HLPF in NY, July 2016.

Based on the Exec. Summaries of European countries reports, 3 main tendencies:

Developing institutional responsibility and strengthening coordination

between ministries;

Undertaking mapping and gap analysis; and

Link 2030 Agenda implementation with renewed/revised national SD

strategies and corresponding governance frameworks

Is The European Union still leading by example?

• DG Environment was re-organized to strengthen SDG implementation

• EESC May 2016 proposal for a European SD Forum

• European Parliament: Resolution of 12 May 2016 6. Calls on the Commission to come forward with a proposal for an overarching Sustainable Development Strategy encompassing all relevant internal and external policy areas, with a detailed timeline up to 2030, a mid-term review and a specific procedure ensuring Parliament’s full involvement…; stresses …that the EU and its Member States have made a commitment to implementing all the goals and targets fully, in practice and in spirit;

7. Insists that the new EU Sustainable Development Strategy and associated implementation policies should be subject to a broad consultation with all stakeholders, including national parliaments, local authorities and civil society, through an inclusive process;

• Eurostat will present the EU approach to deliver on the “global indicator framework” this fall; However: We are still waiting for the new “SD initiative” the Commission announced in its 2016 work plan.

• Will the “overarching communication” of the Commission due in October go beyond a mere mapping exercise of existing EU policies?

• What is the timeline for further initiatives / proposals specifically addressing the governance framework (at EU institutions´ level and the EU-MS interphase, resp.)

• When will the “Falkenberg Report” on the EU SDS, commissioned by President Juncker last year, emerge?

A European peer learning Mechanism (1)

“Developing the ESDN peer learning approach to support the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for SD and the SDGs

Experiences and needs for peer learning and peer review processes”

54 participants from 17 countries

• encouraged ESDN to establish a joint peer learning mechanism for policy-makers and selected stakeholders of European countries

• shared view of importance and urgency of action from the EU level, although several positive things are happening in Europe at national and sub-national levels

• expected that ESDN further develops its role as “clearing house” for mutual learning and sharing of good practices

Recent 14th ESDN Workshop in Berlin on 14 June 2016

A European peer learning Mechanism (2)

Annual ESDN Peer Learning Platforms: first ideas based on ESDN Workshop

for national policy-makers of European countries

to exchange experiences and good practices

on the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for SD and the SDGs

30-40 participants at each workshop

A European peer learning Mechanism (3)

ESDN Peer Visits (back to back with the platforms):

once per year in one European country “Host country”

to visit policymakers from other countries “Visiting countries”

to exchange experiences and good practices on the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for SD and the SDGs

talking face-to-face with policy-makers and stakeholders from the host country

in-depth exchange

Broadening the knowledge base

ESDN activities on 2030 agenda implementation:

• ESDN Office will start collecting information on national and sub-national processes and governance mechanism from ESDN countries As part of updating the country profiles on the ESDN homepage

• Examples of several ESDN events on the topic:

ESDN Conference 2015, “Implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development at the EU and national level: Designing effective governance architectures and strategic frameworks” (October 2015, Luxembourg)

13th ESDN Workshop “Strengthening the environmental and SD dialogue in Europe in the context of the 2030 Agenda” (Nov. 2015, Paris)

• …and ESDN Quarterly Reports

Dec. 2015: “The role of Stakeholder participation in European SD policies” ESDN QR July 2015 “The European context for monitoring and reviewing SDGs” ESDN QR January 2015 “The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and their impact on the

European SD governance framework: Preparing for the post-2015 agenda”

Up-coming ESDN Events

- 1st ESDN Peer Learning Platform - October 2016 in Belgium

- (plus ESDN Peer Visit)

- 2016 ESDN Conference:

“Vertical integration aspects in the implementation of the 2030 Agenda: addressing the role of sub-national and local levels” - 10-11 November 2016 in Bern (Switzerland)

Thank you

Thanks for your attention!