One Young World meets shortly before the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) expire in December 2015. Described as the most successful global anti-poverty push in history, leaders at all levels worldwide now face the responsibility of embedding a new set of targets to follow the MDGs based on sustainable development. The One Young World Community has identified climate change as the biggest threat to future generations. Developed nations now have a responsibility to ensure that focusing on the environment, climate change and sustainability does not impede the development of less developed nations.
With 97% of the One Young World community maintaining that young people in their country should now be educated on how environmental matters affect people’s health and with over a third (40%) of the One Young World community seeing climate changes as a key driver of refugees forced to migrate into and within their country or region, it is vital that the voices of young people are heard in this process, to ensure that the development needs of tomorrow are not compromised by the development activity of today. Global business also has a key responsibility and arguably will play a bigger role in the Sustainable Development Goals than the Millennium Development Goals. 99% of the One Young World Community maintain that the Sustainable Development Goals must involve civil society including business and not just governments.
Climate change is the biggest threat we face - how will we fight it?
· What do we want from COP21? Is it a waste of time?
· Disappearing nations: what are we doing about it?
· Maintaining the MDG momentum: how do we do better with the SDGs?
