Symposium on Global and National Perspectives on Implementation of the
Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and Workshop on National
Perspectives on Implementation of the SDGs

The symposium on Global and National Perspectives on Implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) convened on the morning of 29 February 2016, followed by a workshop on National Perspectives on Implementation of the SDGs, which took place from 29 February – 1 March 2016. The two events took place at Hotel Bangi-Putrajaya in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Following the adoption of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development by the UN General Assembly in September 2015, UN agencies, Member States and partners have begun to focus their attention on implementation of the SDGs. Dialogues at the two events in Malaysia engaged participants from the region and beyond in sharing their perspectives on how the global goals can be translated into national contexts and effectively implemented, taking into account national priorities, capabilities and circumstances. The half-day symposium discussed national implementation of the SDGs and highlighted the role of science, technology and innovation in achieving the SDGs. The one-and-a-half-day workshop discussed national preparedness for delivery of the SDGs, stakeholders’ roles, follow-up and review, and interlinkages among the national, regional and global levels of implementation.

The Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN) and the UN University Institute for the Advanced Study of Sustainability (UNU-IAS) jointly organized the events. Supporting partners included: the Malaysian Industry-Government Group for High Technology (MIGHT); the Office of the Science Advisor; the Institute of Strategic and International Studies (ISIS); University Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) and LESTARI; the Keio Research Institute; and the Project On Sustainability Transformation beyond 2015 (S-11 project of the Environment Research and Technology Development Fund, or POST2015).