Sustainable Development Solutions Network

• Home/
• Thematic Groups

The Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN) will establish Thematic Groups (TGs) comprising leading scientists, engineers, and practitioners from business and civil society to promote solutions to key challenges of sustainable development.

The TGs will be solution oriented rather than research oriented.  Their goal is to spur governments, UN agencies, and the public towards practical solutions to the greatest challenges of sustainable development.  They will highlight priority actions, open questions, and early-stage demonstration projects.

Each TG, in its respective field, will address five main questions:

1. What are the main risks in Business As Usual (BAU)?
2. What are critical pathways to sustainable development? What are the main obstacles that must be overcome? Are there examples where such obstacles have been surmounted and what lessons can be learned?
3. What are the “Toughest Questions” that need to be resolved?
4. What are the “solutions” available to the public and private sectors for early action? Which solutions are needed but not on track for rapid deployment? How can such solutions be implemented or scaled-up?
5. What are the key metrics of sustainable development that should be developed and monitored? To what extent have the MDGs provided us with the necessary data to support decision making for sustainable development?

Each TG will determine its priorities and three-year work agenda in the coming six months, partly in response to questions put to it by the High-Level Panel on Post-2015 and by governments around the world.