The Summit of the Future and The Pact for the Future

by Olga Deriapa, Globalnews, 2024

The Summit of the Future

On 21 September, 2024 at the United Nations HQ in New York, UN Summit of the Future Action Day Side Event was hosted by Coalition for the UN We Need and Global Governance Innovation Network.

The topic was dedicated to 5 years of experience and lessons learned from the UN 2020 campaign, the 2023 Global Futures Forum, regional thematic dialogues, the 2024 UN Civil Society Conference (UNCSC).

The event took place from 11:15 am to 12:30 pm September 21 at the United Nations (Conference Room 1) and on UN WebTV.

The topic of discussion was focused on a 12 month timeline of what key moments and action will take place from now until the next UNGA High-Level week, aiming to review of the Pact for the Future at the 83rd session of the General Assembly.

This event was devoted to main new initiatives in the “Pact for the Future,” the “Global Digital Compact,” and the “Declaration on Future Generations”. It aimed to promote stakeholder action toward the follow up from the Summit of the Future, namely exploring Pact for the Future commitments, new agreements, future investment and action, collaboration opportunities, and advancing the global future agenda.

The event focused on a 12 month timeline of what action should take place until the next UNGA High-Level week in 2025, aiming to review of the Pact for the Future at the 83rd session in 2028.

The objectives were as follows:

To consider major reform proposals from the Pact for the Future and annexed documents and what next steps will be necessary for implementation and follow through over the next 12 months. Especially, as it relates to forums and process that will unfold over the next year.
To assess civil society and stakeholder efforts in the Summit of the Future process (including but not limited to the People’s Pact for the Future, ImPact Coalitions, and outcomes from the 2024 UNCSC) to date and how they can inform and support the implementation of the Summit of the Future outcomes.
To foster an intergenerational and cross-sectoral discussion on what happens next, aiming to build partnerships and concrete steps toward implementation and impact of the Summit, including by launching follow up initiatives.

The Guiding Questions were as follows:

Where do we want to be 12 months from now?
How can we get there?
Who needs to be engaged?
How can we build partnerships around shared aspirations and actions?

The Pact for the Future

The People’s Pact for the Future is the final result of recommendations to determine what the UN must do to meet the needs of people and the planet today. It was decided that governments need civil society to fully implement the Summit of the Future to get to the future we want and determine the role of the UN for present and future generations.

This Pact is based on Interim People’s Pact, developed in March of 2023. Its content was discussed during many consultations, including the 9-10 May 2024 United Nations Civil Society Conference. The co- authors from world over ensured that People’s Pact reflects the highest aspirations from Civil Society in the resulting outcome document.

Due to the independency of the civil society organizations, the Coalition for the UN We Need prioritized the common good first, rather than various political interests. As a result, they achieved a brave set of proposals that will need political courage to implement. If they will be implemented, it will benefit all. The People’s Pact will open doors for the visionary leadership required in these difficult times.

The UN strives to build a better future for all people, including those ‘who have been denied the chance to lead decent, dignified, and rewarding lives and to achieve their full human potential. Without nature, there is no future. Without peace, there is no life. Without democracy, there is no freedom. Without human rights, there is no justice’. The UN will continue its efforts to end poverty and save the planet, namely through the 2030 Agenda and its Sustainable Development Goals and the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement.

The Pact for the Future is indeed a great project on the road to a better world is possible, and its foundation was laid at the Summit of the Future.