On  20 and 21 April 2021, the UN Association of Australia is electronically gathering governments of all levels, businesses, universities, start-ups, students and community organisations for a forum with the UN and its partners.

Panel discussions, including interactive Q and A sessions with audience members will be run around four major themes: Climate and Planet, Poverty and Inequality, Justice and Human Rights and Gender Equality.

Community sector organisations can sign up to be part of the Digital SDGs Showcase, which will provide an opportunity to show a national and international audience what is being done to progress the SDGs.

Community organisations can access discounted NGO rates for the Forum and Showcase. Early Bird tickets end on 15 March.

UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed will open the virtual UN & Australia Sustainable Partnerships Forum on 20 April, along with Senator Marise Payne, Minister for Foreign Affairs.

The overarching aim of the Forum is to bring organisations and individuals together to discover shared interests and objectives which can underpin new partnerships to progress the SDGs.

An interactive session will enable organisations to determine if they are fit for partnering and other sessions will discuss partnerships at the international, national and city level. ACOSS CEO Cassandra Goldie will discuss the role of community organisations during the session on national partnerships.

The need for community organisations, governments, businesses, and universities to work in partnership has always been a feature of the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) – the global blueprint to achieve an economically and environmentally sustainable world by 2030.

The global pandemic has, however, demonstrated that partnerships to deliver a future world that is healthier, safer, fairer and more prosperous are more important than ever.

The incredible global impact of the Coronavirus pandemic has made people in Australia and around the world aware of the urgent need for action to ensure people’s basic needs are met and that the planet is made secure from the effects of climate change.

“Everything we do must be with a strong focus on building more equal, inclusive and sustainable economies and societies that are more resilient in the face of pandemics, climate change, and the many other global challenges we face. Our roadmap is the 2030 Agenda and the 17 Sustainable Development Goals​”, Antonio Guterres, UN Secretary-General.

“Working together to progress the SDGs will mean we address the underlying factors which exacerbated the worldwide crisis such as poverty; food insecurity; fragmented health systems, educational inequality and climate change,” he said.