On 8 December 2017, SDG Advocate Professor Jeffrey Sachs gave opening remarks at the event, ‘Sustaining Peace: Partnerships for Conflict Prevention and Peacebuilding’. This event was hosted by the President of the 72nd General Assembly (PGA) of the United Nations, the Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN), the UN Global Compact, the United Nations Foundation, the New York University Center on International Cooperation, and the Quaker United Nations Office.
Professor Sachs spoke of the timely issue of sustaining peace and how SDG 16 is one of the utmost priorities for not only governments, but civil society, academia, and the private sector. Sachs referred to war as an externality that exposes costs on others. He suggested “war mongers” pay, similar to the concept of polluters pay, and that these funds go towards the cause of peace and development. The event also included opening remarks from the PGA and others, followed by two panel discussions in which the audience engaged in a thought-provoking Q&A. A video of the event can be viewed by clicking on the above link and a more detailed article is here.