Sustainable Development Strategies - From Design to Monitoring: Civil Society's Role

From Design to Monitoring

The EESC continues to advocate for integrating the SDGs fully and urgently into the European policy framework by setting out a vision for a sustainable Europe by 2030 and beyond. However, achieving sustainable development can only become a reality if all actors take collective action and pull in the same direction. New governance mechanisms are therefore needed to embed participation and engagement by civil society into the design and implementing processes.

The SDGs can be implemented both:

  • as top-down goals, with governments and institutions providing the driving force, and
  • as bottom-up initiatives by non-state actors and civil society.

As a representative voice for civil society at a European level, the EESC is ideally placed to support both.

On 30 November we will:

  • explore civil society's role in the Sustainable Development Strategies;
  • present several national strategies and processes involving civil society actors.

The event will also give particular attention to the monitoring of the progress on SDGs, both at the national and EU level by debating the SDG indicators and potential for their improvement.