1st annual Multi-stakeholder Forum on Science, Technology and Innovation for the Sustainable Development Goals (STI Forum)

The first annual Multi-stakeholder Forum on Science, Technology and Innovation for the Sustainable Development Goals (STI Forum) will take place on 6-7 June 2016 at UN Headquarters in New York. The 2016 STI Forum will address the topic “realizing the potential of science, technology and innovation for all to achieve the sustainable development goals.”

The forum will be guided by the following questions:

1) Why are science, technology and innovation essential for the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)?

2) What are the main opportunities and challenges – at policy, organizational and individual levels - for maximizing the contribution of science, technology and innovation to the achievement of the SDGs?

3) What are the key elements that countries and international organizations may need to take into account in formulating action plans and/or roadmaps for science, technology and innovation for the SDGs?

4) How can we deploy existing knowledge and new, innovative solutions and technologies and make them more readily available to those who need them?

5) What would be success criteria for the STI Forum in the coming years? What questions should the STI Forum focus on?

As part of the Technology Facilitation Mechanism mandated by the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Addis Ababa Action Agenda, the STI Forum was established to “provide a venue for facilitating interaction, matchmaking and the establishment of networks between relevant stakeholders and multi-stakeholder partnerships in order to identify and examine technology needs and gaps, including with regard to scientific cooperation, innovation and capacity-building, and also in order to help facilitate development, transfer and dissemination of relevant technologies for the sustainable development goals.”