Sustainable development isn’t just for “those countries”
Every September, during a glorious period in the Northeast when sticky summer transitions into crisp autumn, the UN General Assembly meets in New York City to set the annual agenda. This year there has been major buzz around the new Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), designed to replace the expired Millennium Development goals from 2000. It’s an ambitious revamping of the previous goals that has everybody talking from Stephen Hawking to Bono.
As an American, it is easy to immediately consider these ambitions in context the of the developing world. Countries like El Salvador, Bangladesh and Malawi are dealing with extreme poverty on a massive scale, and working towards these goals in those places will be ambitious. However, it can be easy to point the finger at others rather than taking a hard look at ourselves. While conversations about how these goals could change the developing world are important, it’s essential for Americans to take a hard look in the mirror and see where basic human needs aren’t being met in our own communities.
The mission of the SDGs in the United States came to my mind after the recent announcement by Mayor Garcetti declaring homelessness a “state of emergency” in the city of Los Angeles. I spent last year living in LA without a car and taking public transportation everywhere I needed to go. When you are forced outside of the comfortable bubble of a private vehicle, homelessness and inner city poverty isn’t just something you hear about on the news. It’s in your face everyday.
From the rapidly gentrifying downtown corridor to the emerging communities of the newly dubbed “Silicon Beach”, the homeless are often seen as a problem that need to be eliminated rather than people requiring rehabilitation. Brutal policing results from this attitude, such as the violent death of Charly “Africa” Keunang on Skid Row this past March. It takes committed citizens, community groups, social service organizations and many more to mobilize and demand accountability from local government. LA City Council committing $100 million to address the issue is a major milestone, but wise spending and many more resources will be required on the long road ahead.
This example is just one facet of the very complex issue of poverty in America. The term “global” doesn’t often resonate with Americans because it often implies “those other countries” rather than us. The new SDGs most definitely include us and it’s crucial that we see them as such. Out of the 17 goals, where do you see a need for improvement in your own community? The goals are only as effective as the citizens who work towards their fruition. I often roll my eyes at the cliche notion of “everyone working together to make the world better”. But seriously, collective action is the only way we will see the humanity in circumstances so different from our own, and progress towards this vision of a world we want to see in the next 15 years.
