256. While sustainable development goals and a new global sustainable development outlook could both help to drive greater coherence on sustainable development in the international system, it is still the case that sustainable development issues lack a clear primary forum for discussion by Governments that brings together all elements, including the contributions of non-governmental actors. With a different ministry representing a Government in each multilateral body, international organizations often address just one aspect of multifaceted global challenges, without looking at the bigger picture.
257. After the 1992 Earth Summit, the Commission on Sustainable Development was created to play this integrative role and look across the sustainable development agenda. Unfortunately, that did not happen. Instead, the Commission developed a rigid, sectoral agenda, often focusing primarily on environmental aspects and thus neglecting broader economic and social aspects of sustainable development. More than once, the Commission has been caught in a zero-sum negotiating dynamic over general political positions that have weakened its standing and have watered down or made impossible any outcome of its deliberations.
258. The Commission has also suffered from not being organically connected to mechanisms of implementation, within the United Nations system and beyond. The Economic and Social Council, the Commission’s parent body, has likewise been unable to address sustainable development issues in a systematic and authoritative manner.
259. Meanwhile, there have been significant shifts in the global economy that have increased interdependence among our economies, societies and ecosystems, making it that much more important to take a fresh approach to institutional mechanisms and solutions.
260. In the twenty-first century, what is needed is an institutional architecture that:
(a) Promotes better integration of the three dimensions of sustainable development, sets the agenda and addresses emerging issues, and enables ongoing and real-time interaction where needed;
(b) Has a higher institutional stature, with the relevance to attract the engagement of leaders at the highest level and attain universal legitimacy;
(c) Reviews the state of global sustainable development through new instruments such as the sustainable development goals, other sustainable development performance indices and the global sustainable development outlook (see above), and reviews progress on key components of international cooperation for sustainable development, including finance, technology and capacity-building;
(d) Assesses country performance on sustainable development and enables a constructive peer review that encourages States to explain their policies, to share experiences and lessons learned and to fulfil their commitments, while recognizing the special circumstances of individual countries;
(e) Assesses the performance of intergovernmental organizations on sustainable development;
(f) Reflects broad geographical and political representation of United Nations Member States, fully engages relevant international institutions (including United Nations agencies and the international financial institutions) and ensures the substantive participation of non-State actors from civil society, the private sector and the scientific community;
(g) Encourages innovative partnerships among various stakeholders in priority areas and reviews their implementation;(h) Promotes increased coherence among United Nations funds, programmes and specialized agencies, as well as international financial institutions.
261. Different measures may be needed in order to achieve these objectives at the international level, including the more dynamic use of existing institutions. The replacement of the Commission on Sustainable Development with a stronger institution, a new global sustainable development council, could contribute to the achievement of many of these objectives. This institutional reform would provide for a fresh start. A new council would substantially improve the institutional integration of the three dimensions of sustainable development, address emerging issues and review sustainability progress, through meetings held on a regular basis throughout the year. The council would develop a peer review mechanism that, in a constructive spirit, would encourage States to explain their policies, to share experiences and lessons learned and to fulfil their commitments. The council would need to have a broad geographical and political membership and to fully engage relevant international institutions — including United Nations agencies and the international financial institutions — and non-State actors from civil society, the private sector and science.
262. This new council should not duplicate the roles and functions of existing bodies. It could be created as a subsidiary organ of the General Assembly and replace the Commission on Sustainable Development, in the same way as the Human Rights Council replaced the former Commission on Human Rights. This would not require the amendment of the Charter of the United Nations. While reporting directly to the Assembly, the global sustainable development council would maintain a constructive relationship with the Economic and Social Council.
Recommendation 52 263. Governments should consider creating a global sustainable development council to improve the integration of the three dimensions of sustainable development, address emerging issues and review sustainability progress, with meetings held on a regular basis throughout the year. This body could be a subsidiary organ of the General Assembly and would replace the Commission on Sustainable Development. It would need to have a broad geographical and political membership and to fully engage relevant international institutions — including United Nations agencies and the international financial institutions — and non-State actors from civil society, the private sector and science.
Recommendation 53 264. Such a council would develop a peer review mechanism that would encourage States, in a constructive spirit, to explain their policies, to share experiences and lessons learned, and to fulfil their commitments.
Recommendation 54 265. Governments should also use existing institutions in a much more dynamic way, including by using the period between the holding in 2012 of Rio+20 and 2015 for deliberate review and experimentation, in order to incorporate tested solutions into any post-2015 development framework and institutional reform.
Recommendation 55 266. The Secretary-General should expedite the development of a sustainable development strategy for the United Nations system in order to contribute to coherence, better define responsibilities among United Nations bodies, reduce overlap and duplication and improve accountability for implementation. The strategy should be reviewed by all relevant United Nations bodies and governing boards, with a special effort being made to forge a unified view among countries common to all boards and processes.
Recommendation 56 267. The Secretary-General should make full use of the United Nations as the world’s meeting place, convening periodic high-level exchanges on sustainable development when leaders meet at the opening of the new session of the General Assembly. Such gatherings should be used to set the agenda and address emerging issues by bringing together Heads of State or Government, heads of international institutions and representatives of civil society and the private sector.