International development and deputy secretarygeneral of United Nations to talk about global progress on economic, social and environmental issues. This is liev coverage on cspan3. Sustainable development who took time out of their busy schedule to be with us today. We are very honored by your prepares and your participation. The launch of the center is a historic moment for the Global Program and brookings. At a time of massive dislocation in the Global Economy the need for improved policies to build back better, more inclusive and sustainable economies have never been greater. Policymakers and all other stakeholders around the world will have in this center its scholars in brookings leaders on various aspects of Sustainable Development. We are grateful to all of our partners whose support has been instrumental to the inception of the center. A special thank you to richard who supports through brookings highpolicy roundtables and Sustainable Development for years has inspired creation of the center. The launch of the center would not have been possible without the efforts of many who have worked tirelessly behind the scenes. Let me take a brief moment to recognize my colleague and all scholars, of the staff, notably david and the Communications Team as well as our colleagues across the institution particularly central communication. And importantly, the Firm Commitment of our president , who as you know is very passionate about local development. Thank you for unwavering support and exemplary leadership of this defining moment in Global Development. So with these few words, let me end here and turn it over to you, john. Doctor, thank you for your typically warm and comprehensive remarks. Let me echo the thanks you have issued and rendered to those with an important role. I want to thank you for your leadership. Development program at broo brooksings. Let me add how grateful we are to have deputy of United Nations. It is always a great honor to share any event with you, maam, and you grace us today with your presence at brookings. Let me also add its wonderful to see my friend, the president of the Rockefeller Foundation. Weve known each other for a long time. Hes been a model for me to understand imperative of Global Development. We wouldnt be where we are today, raj, without you and your participation, so please accept my sincere thanks on this day. Ladies and gentlemen, good morning and good afternoon, wherever you might be. Welcome to todays virtual launch for Brookings Center for Sustainable Development. We are absolutely delighted to have you join us for this important event. It is moments like these, where even as we celebrate the start of an Exciting Initiative such as the Brookings Center for Sustainable Development, it becomes immediately apparent what unusual and, indeed, precarious times were living in. With the advent of the covid19 pandemic earlier this year, which has robbed us of over a million lives worldwide and caused the greatest economic crisis since the Great Recession and perhaps great depression. The need to discuss issues of equality, racial inequity, the threat of Climate Change and the troubling decline of International Cooperation has become even more paramount. Such issues enshrined in United States 2030 goals were long considered a north star for the leaders across the world. Something to which we could all steer our efforts. It could be argued this is one of the greatest accomplishments of the United Nations in the modern era securing the future of our children committed to build the a commitment to common good, echoed original ten either that inspired cooperation of the United Nations 75 years ago. Unfortunately despite having originally been a keen leader in implementing sdgs the United States has since demonstrated and evidenced a decline in its commitment to these values. Actions such as with drawing from crucial agreements like the paris climate accord, or disengaging with the World Health Organization have only done the u. N. And the world a does service directly affecting the u. S. And the worlds progress towards achieving these vital goals. You know, i often make the point theres a key difference today between u. S. Leadership, particularly in this administration, and traditional American Leadership meaning American National commitment to an international rulesbased, valuesbased leadership that has largely defined the world order in the last 70 plus years. In close partnership, frankly, with the United Nations. At the best of times, these two forms of leadership have largely been in synchronization, sync. America and our partners have been able to lead by example and be transformational all over the world. But sadly thats not the case today. While the current leadership of the u. S. Might not be supportive of action on sdg, American Leadership is live in many sectors, academia, business, philanthropy, Civil Society and local government where many have stepped forward and mobilized their respective organizations and institutions to make a real impact. In time i hope we will reunite these forms of leadership within the u. S. For now it will be through these diverse parts of our society that we see a thriving new type of leadership taking place, a coalition of the willing who are at this event today aptly titled charting a new course towards economic, social, environmental progress and building a future that leaves no one behind. Indeed it is a commitment with these same creeds we at brookings have decided to take part following our own mission of always working in support of the public good to create the center for Sustainable Development. For us this is American Leadership in action as it should be. We all have an obligation to lead on these issues. Its not just our hope, it is our mission. Designed to be Brookings Institutional commitment to the Global Sustainable ge ablable a sustainable goals, the center also institutionalizes core group of leading brookings scholars whose work focuses on these issues under direction of senior fellow john mcarthur, the Centers Group of experts will be able to maximize these focuses on issues such as extreme poverty, the leave no one behind agenda, foreign aid effectiveness, metrics of Sustainable Development, Sustainable Development finance, Climate Change and much more. I could not be more proud or more thrilled, indeed, that we are able to accomplish this important milestone and commitment and that brookings is making this commitment today to our Global Community. I cannot be more honored than that the likes of John Macarthur and many of our amazing scholars have joined such an excellent and noble cause. This task will not be easy. The world to set targets by 2030 we must foster an inclusive recovery post covid19 and a commitment to build back better. Little doubt that even within such a challenging environment john and his colleagues will rise above our greatest expectations. Its a great day for brookings, and were very proud to invite those who have joined us today to serve with us alongside the United Nations in achieving these very, very important goals. So with that, let me turn the floor over to United Nations deputy secretarygeneral mohammed, who will present her own keynote remarks. Madam secretarygeneral, let me close where i began, we are so honored by your presence this morning and so deeply grateful that you would join us at this important day for the brookings institution. Thank you, maam. Thank you very much, general. Its a real pleasure to be with you today. I would like to thank all my friends for inviting me to this important occasion. It is exciting to join the brookings institute, to launch this bold new center that will tackle head on the worlds biggest Sustainable Development challenges. Id like to salute brookings and its team for sending its own crisp signal to the world that the issues of Sustainable Development are center stage for all of humanity. As secretarygeneral guterres recently said in his mandela lecture and i quote, the covid19 pandemic has demonstrated the fragility of our world, and it has laid bare risks we have long ignored, Inadequate Health systems, gaps in social protection, structural inequalities, environmental degradation, the climate crisis, unquote. The Sustainable Development goals, i believe, are the best roadmap, the best north star, as general allen has said, for the world in addressing that fragility and for transitions to a new place of economic, social, and environmental resilience. Generalal aale allen let he maa moment, your inspiring comments of today and also a few weeks ago when we were together at the 17 rooms event that brookings helped to convene underscore the power of the goals in bringing people together around a common frame of ambition and cooperati cooperation. I know that many people has made it possible today, as just said to us, but also a special pleasure to celebrate the teams extraordinary starting team of scholars. Just permit me a minute to go through them because many are my longterm friends. A Global Leader on climate and sustainable infrastructure who has over the years provided such invaluable support to the u. N. s work, let me just say even in this last couple of weeks. March mar marchella has been a leader not just caribbean but future work force issues within the u. S. Itself. My brother of another mother has been a driving force at the heart of the global sdg agenda since before its inception and continues to lend crucial assistance to our u. N. Team in navigating this years global financing crisis. George ingram has had a year, crosssectoral leadership contributions to development over the years. Tony, another ally of ours, who was, of course, lead negotiator of the sdgs final year leading up to 2015 adoption and today plays a pioneering role in multicitybased cooperation for the goals but tony also there for climate. And of course to john, john mcarthur, the new Center Director has been my ally and collaborator for nearly two decades in promoting practical and people focused leadership. First the Millennium Development goals and then more recently with the Sustainable Development goals. As we turn to what the center can do for the world, at the u. N. We are all too familiar with the worlds shifting political contours and how escalating tensions are amplifying todays crises to hurt people and the planet. We need creative and courageous leadership from all corners, yes. Even and especially from think tanks. We need your insights, your independenc independence, ideas, recommendations and voices. We need role models of collaboration and International Cooperation. One of the things that makes this effort unique is the focus on Network Leadership and the no one left behind philosophy. None of us can achieve sdgs alone, all of us need to pitch togeth together, Everyone Needs to be at the table in our communities around the globe if we are to end extreme policy and pandemic of inequality and protect the climate and oceans for future generations. In this respect, id like to challenge the center for Sustainable Development to strive to be a beacon of inspiration for the pursuit of Sustainable Development in all our countries and the communities around the world where these will make most impact. Together with partners and allies, i encourage you to leverage your independent voice to better understand the issues, to seek the insights of the young or marginalized and think more clearly about the options and solutions to extend our sense of possibility. The brookings team has already contributed so much in helping the world to tackle its great challenges of Sustainable Development and so much more. But i know were only just getting started. We have a decade to go for achieving the sdgs and i capital wait to see what we do next together. At this juncture, its my deep, deep, deep pleasure and im very excited about this, handing it over to my friend john mcarthur. Thank you so much, madam deputy secretarygeneral amina, a privilege and honor and special moment for all of us to be here with you. Thank you for your ever Inspiring Leadership on behalf of the whole world for what you do every day to bring us together. I also just want to start by thanking john allen, general allen and everyone at brookings, our partners around the world and so many people who have been instrumental months and weeks and years bringing us this launch. Before we do anything else, were privileged to have a message we received from the World Health Organization director general dr. Tedros and we want to share that briefly before we dive into the rest of the discussion. So if we could please pull up that video. It is my pleasure to send my best wishes for the launch of the new center for Sustainable Development at the brookings institution. The world was trying to meet Sustainable Development goals before the covid19 pandemic. Were even further behind now. The center for Sustainable Development can help to get us back on track by accelerating progress through innovation and partnerships. I welcome the centers mission of bipartisan leadership in Sustainable Development. My congratulations to everyone involved with the center for Sustainable Development and especially to your inaugural director, my friend, john mcarthur. We look forward to a close and fruitful partnership. I thank you and wish you all the very best. We thank you, dr. Tedros, for all that youre doing and for your kind words today and on behalf of the world to get us through this pandemic to the other side. So some of you might be asking, what will this center do . Weve already heard some of the central themes ranging from leave no one behind to Network Leadership around the world, but we decided to take on five starting topics. First defining the challenge. What we call Sustainable Development economics and empirics. Second, identifying instruments to advance sdg implementation in all countries around the world. Third, advancing Sustainable Development at holy levels, bringing this to communities where they matter most. Fourth, advancing effective financing for Sustainable Development. Fifth, advancing in the words of general allen both u. S. Official and american societal leadership for gobble Sustainable Development. The next question after that you might be wondering who exactly is in this center and id like to take a moment to talk about each of our starting scholars because it is quite an Extraordinary Team. Were so grateful to deputy secretarygeneral for mentioning them, but if we could just bring up a few quick images to show the starting roster. As was mentioned Amar Bhattacharya is a leader on so many of the worlds biggest issues at the highest levels. Hes our leader on Climate Action and infrastructure and instrumental on strategies for inclusive global growth, multilateralism and improving local governance. I have to say in the lead up to the glasgow climate, in the future, hes our guiding like. Second is marcella escobari. She leads workforce future initiative. Shes looking at how to confront growing dwernlgsence between places and people, how to support job mobility for those who need it most. Just today marcella is launching mobilitys pathway, a tool to help upwardly mobile jobs in very specific locations across america. Third is george ingram, our voice on u. S. Initial strategies for Global Development. George focuses on, as weve heard,