In 2015, as part of a program called the USA Sustainable Cities Initiative (USA-SCI), Baltimore was selected as one of three US cities to pilot implementation of 17 new United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The SDGs, adopted by UN member countries in September 2015, form a cohesive and integrated package of global aspirations the world commits to achieving by 2030. They address the most pressing global challenges of our time, calling upon collaborative partnerships across and between countries and communities to achieve objectives around economic growth, environmental sustainability, and social inclusion.
The United Nations Sustainable Development Solutions Network, headed by Professor Jeffery Sachs, approached the University of Baltimore and other key stakeholders to launch USA-SCI in Baltimore (now known as SCI-Baltimore) in order to develop citywide targets and strategies to achieve the SDGs. The Baltimore Neighborhood Indicators Alliance and the College of Public Affairs at the University of Baltimore took the lead to build the infrastructure needed for multi-sector stakeholders to provide substantive, locally-grounded input into the initiative to establish quantitative targets for sustainable development in Baltimore. Given the unique timing of this activity in Baltimore, less than a year after the civil unrest following the death of Freddie Gray in April 2015, the local SCI-Baltimore project team conducted a range of consultative meetings and adopted a “listening-to-the-listening” approach to ensure inclusive engagement and non-duplication of effort and resources. Summarized in the final report are the accomplishments of SCI-Baltimore during this first year of the SDGs. Moving forward, the project team anticipates that these achievements will be the foundation of a long-term endeavor to promote global standards of just, equitable and sustainable development in Baltimore City.
Check out our final report here: Baltimore's Sustainable Future
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