Talking to Mr. Ravi Karka - Expert Adviser Children and Youth - UN HQ

It was a great pleasure to talk to Mr. Ravi Karka via skype on youth engagement for post 2015 development process on September 24, He is an expert adviser on children and youth, UN Head Quarters. We had a productive conversation on “Sri Lankan Youth Movement for Beyond 2015 Development Agenda”. I met this inspiring person first time at the United National Conference on Sustainable Development, Rio De Janeiro; specifically at the Youth Blast..

Catch Mr. Karka on http://www.linkedin.com/profile/view?id=27243007&locale=en_US&trk=tyah

At the 67th UN General Assembly (UNGA) High-level Debate, the opening glimpse recognized linkages between peace and security and sustainable development. Speakers highlighted the importance of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and noted the role of the UN Conference on Sustainable Development (UNCSD, or Rio+20) in mobilizing action for the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and forming a post-2015 development agenda.

The UN panel starting work on a post-2015 development vision faces huge pressure to cover issues left out of the original goals, to decide who to consult and how to set measurable targets. For the past 12 years, the millennium development goals (MDGs) have shaped policy, guided political agendas, and channelled hundreds of millions of dollars of aid money around the globe. But with the MDGs due to expire at the end of 2015, the international community is starting to tackle the huge, inevitable follow-up question: what comes next?

The post-MDG process will officially begin on Tuesday (25^th Sep), when a UN-appointed committee of international political big-shots will meet for the first time in New York. Led by the UK prime minister David Cameron,Liberia's President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf , and Indonesia's President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono , the 26-member committee has been assigned the task of creating a "development vision" to replace the MDGs after they expire.

Rio+20, one of the largest conferences ever convened by the United Nations, ushers in a new era for implementing sustainable development. The Conference was a rare opportunity for the world to focus on sustainability issues - to examine ideas, forge partnerships and solutions.

There were several outcomes to the Rio+20 Conference. The political outcome, The Future We Want, agreed to by all 193 countries, charts the way forward for international cooperation on sustainable development. In addition, governments, businesses and other civil society partners registered more than 700 commitments to concrete actions that will deliver results on the ground to address specific needs, such as sustainable energy and transport.

•             Rio+20 outcome document, The Future We Want: http://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/futurewewant.html

•             Follow-up to Rio+20: http://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/rio20.html

•             How is the UN System following up to Rio+20? See our interactive matrix at: http://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/followupbyunsystem.html

•             Partnerships for Sustainable Development: http://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/partnerships.html

•             Newly launched registry of Voluntary Commitments: http://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/commitments.html

•             Sustainable Development in action: http://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/sustainabledevelopmentinaction.html 

•             Read up on a wide range of Sustainable Development related topics/areas:http://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/topics.html