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The Global Sustainable Development Congress brings together global thought leaders and innovators to discuss urgent solutions to the sustainability emergency.
Challenging the usual thinking on what higher education, governments, businesses and society must do to help society meet the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the congress is a call to action for global universities to pivot their educational, research, innovation and outreach programmes towards tangible outcomes.
Delegates from around the world will immerse themselves in sessions aligned with the societal transformations needed to achieve the SDGs.
Be inspired by powerful case studies and actionable insights from thought-provoking panels and collaborative workshops. Forge alliances in bespoke networking events and discover what is needed to scale up solutions for real impact.
Join us and engage first-hand in urgent conversations as we work together towards a more sustainable future.
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Inspiring, innovative, ground-breaking! It was such a pleasure attending this Global Sustainable Development Congress with an excellent choice of content and speakers. – Manal Qutub, assistant professor, University of Jeddah |
Agenda themes
The global challenges of addressing the impact of climate change require truly global solutions driven by us all. Digitalisation provides access to a global integrated network of unexploited big data with potential benefits for society and the environment. The development of smart systems connected to the internet of things can create opportunities to address our global challenges to ensure an equitable, environmentally sustainable and healthy society.
This track explores how digitalisation can help overcome the global disparity in access to, and reaping of benefits from, technology, and the potential environmental benefits.
Equal access to education for all – regardless of gender, socio-economic background, nationality or religion – is a fundamental requirement for achieving a sustainable future. It is proven that empowering women and girls boosts economic growth and development. Yet, only 49 per cent of the world has achieved gender parity in education.
This track examines the barriers we face to providing equal access to education, advancement and socio-economic opportunities, and what more can be done to support wider access and support.
The past five years were the warmest on record. At the current rate, the world will be around 3°C warmer by the end of the century. By then, it will be too late. What we do now will decide the fate of ecologies, economies and populations. If we can limit warming to 1.5°C over the next 30 years, we might just avert some of the worst effects of climate change. However, the race to carbon neutrality by 2050 – to meet the target set by the UN-led Paris agreement – is under threat from socio-economic factors that may derail progress.
This track explores the global trends to decarbonisation and the challenges that industries face while continuing to provide affordable goods and services to all communities globally.
Ensuring healthy lives and promoting well-being at all ages is essential for sustainable development. The Covid-19 pandemic has shown the critical importance of robust health institutions and support services. The lack of essential health services can trigger an increase in mental illness, lower global life expectancy and stall progress towards eradicating global diseases such as HIV, tuberculosis and malaria.
This track looks at the lessons learned from the pandemic and the varying global responses, and asks what more can be done to prevent future pandemics, support developing countries in improving healthcare and fast-tracking global immunity programmes and investment in disease research and cures.
Over the next 20 years, the urban population in developing countries is predicted to double to 4 billion, while the urbanised land area will triple. Rapid growth helps to create new opportunities, but it also brings serious social, economic and environmental challenges. 1 billion people live in urban slums and 2 billion are affected by natural disasters that have tripled due to global warming. Low-income countries have accounted for only 9 per cent of the disaster events, but 48 per cent of fatalities since 1980. Urban and rural communities need to tackle these challenges and increase their resilience to poverty, inequality, social exclusion, climate change and disaster risks.
This track dives into the enormously complex challenges in building sustainable communities, and how the adoption of technologies, sustainable building practices and environmentally friendly transportation and energy networks will be critical in reducing poverty and boosting shared prosperity.
Food demand is expected to increase by more than 50 per cent in just the next 30 years as the world’s population continues to grow. Yet, increases in global population and industrialisation are impacting the sustainable management of land and ocean resources, severely affecting global food supplies. The fragility of food security and supply chains with global shocks such as Covid proved the need for urgent redress to supply imbalance and robustness. Greater adoption of innovative technologies, sustainable farming practices and global consumer changes are required.
This track examines the current adoption of sustainable farming practices, the rectification of past ecological destruction and the integration of new technologies. It also looks at the broader education, policy and governance required for wholesale behavioural change.
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