Is NL moving into the next gear for the SDGs?

Is NL moving into the next gear for the SDGs?

A report from 'The Netherlands in the next gear' on 27 September

Thursday, September 27, was the day: Building Change and WECF organised the event 'NL in the next gear' in The Hague. Together we celebrated the third anniversary of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as well as the first anniversary of the 'Adopt an SDG' campaign, in which members of parliament adopt an SDG to advocate in their political work. The central theme was that the Netherlands needs to move into the next gear to actually achieve these global goals, as there are only 12 years to go until 2030! Civil society organisations, political youth organisations and no fewer than five MPs were given the stage to set out their visions and concrete plans for achieving the SDGs.

In debate with political youth organisations  
After a brief introduction by Bart Romijn (director Partos) and Kirsten Meijer (director WECF) about the work of Building Change and WECF, the debate between the Political Youth Organisations DWARS, PerspectieF and Young Socialists started. This led to an interesting conversation, with the three youth organisations clearly endorsing that there is still a lot of work to be done in the Netherlands too when it comes to achieving the SDGs. Julia Matser (DWARS) focused on regulations for companies: "Implementation laws for the SDGs are needed. Companies need a kick in the butt so that they will walk a little faster than they are doing now'. Of course, all three organisations also underlined the importance of actively involving young people in this debate. We hope their call will be heard!

Workshops on #FightingInequalities

After the debate, the group broke up for sub-sessions from ActionAid, Both Ends, WECF & WO=MEN and Building Change. The overarching theme of these sessions was WECF's #FightingInequalities campaign. This campaign focuses on making combating inequalities (SDG 10) central to the SDGs. WECF and WO=MEN addressed gender equality, ActionAid addressed unequal tax systems, Both Ends addressed unfair Dutch trade policies, and Building Change addressed the expected SDG test. Later, the workshop organisers presented the results of their sessions to the MPs present: a great opportunity to activate them to engage more strongly on these issues. Gijs Verbraak (ActionAid), for instance, pointed out to the MPs that the Netherlands facilitates tax avoidance, especially in view of the current cabinet plans. With such policies, the Netherlands is sinking further and further, resulting in national - and international - inequality.

Adopt an SDG - One year on!

The last hour was all about the one-year anniversary of 'Adopt an SDG'. Present were adopters Anne Kuik (CDA), Chris Stoffer (SGP), Michel Rog (CDA), Kirsten van den Hul (PvdA) and Corrie van Brenk (50PLUS). They first looked back briefly at the outcome of one year of 'Adopt an SDG'. The MPs showed their appreciation for the info and advice they received from the civil society organisations behind Building Change. It became clear that adopting an SDG provides focus and awareness, as Anne Kuik also stated, "it gives focus to what I am committed to". The various MPs concluded that the importance of the SDGs lies in the coherence between the various goals. Precisely this coherence means that interdisciplinary working within the Lower House is of great importance. This is seen as the big challenge for the coming parliamentary year. From the audience, the main call was therefore that MPs should work together on this. Kirsten van den Hul (PvdA), endorsed this importance: "Policy coherence should be much higher on the agenda. This lies with different departments with objectives that can bite each other. We need to work interdisciplinary". The goals should not only be central to the policy of the Minister for Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation, but should be included by all ministries.

After speakers and the audience together concluded that basically everyone at any level should adopt an SDG, the last word was for Evert-Jan from Building Change. He concluded by thanking the MPs. With the commitment of the adopters in the Lower House, we are already taking a step in the right direction: 'The passion that the MPs have for their SDGs, that is the most important thing, that is what we need'. Hopefully, they can use this passion to convince the various ministers and the rest of the Netherlands to move into the next gear for the SDGs!

Photos by Marloes Lakerveld