25-10-2024
On September 23, 2024 leaders of the world met in New York to adopt the United Nations Pact for the Future. This revealed a pivotal moment for global governance, as it affirmed the first world leaders’ commitment to place the needs of Future Generations at the forefront of their national and international policies.
The Pact for the Future, comprising the Global Digital Compact and the Declaration on Future Generations, open pathways to new possibilities and opportunities, says UN Secretary General Antonio Gutierres1[Press Release] Three Landmark Agreements ‘a Step-Change’ towards More Effective, Inclusive, Networked Multilateralism, Says Secretary-General at Summit of Future, 2024.. Focused on reforming multilateral cooperation and addressing existential threats like climate change, the Pact is a crucial step toward safeguarding the planet for Future Generations. For the first time, a UN text adopted by member states strengthens accountability across governments and the private sector toward implementing frameworks like the SDGs, the Paris Agreement, and the newly adopted Global Digital Compact.
At the heart of this effort lies the Declaration on Future Generations, perhaps the summit’s most critical achievement: it establishes a global commitment to long-term, sustainable policies that ensure Future Generations’ interests are considered in today’s decision-making.
Why Future Generations?
The agreements reached at the UN Summit for the Future are not symbolic; rather, they represent a concrete response to pressing global existential threats: conflicts, unrestricted environmental degradation, the risk posed by unregulated AI, social exclusion, and poverty. These are all challenges that the current global governance system risks carrying into the years to come, de facto depriving future generations from their rights to a safe, sustainable future.
Future generations are often overlooked and left aside in these key policy discussions, mainly due to the inherently short-term focus of political systems, which prioritise immediate needs, electoral cycles, and economic pressures: elected officials are incentivised to focus on issues that can yield quick results within their terms, while economic models often prioritise short-term growth, sidelining environmental and social considerations. This leaves Future Generations without a direct representation in today’s global challenges, leaving their interests and perspectives largely –if not completely– ignored. For the first time in history, the Declaration on Future Generations is a formal acknowledgment of this responsibility, embedding long-term thinking in global governance.
Key Aspects of the Declaration on Future Generations
The Pact for the Future includes a groundbreaking commitment by governments to listen to young people and include them in decision-making, at the national and global levels, by affirming that in order to “meet the needs and aspirations of all young people…we [need to] systematically listen to them, work with them and provide them with meaningful opportunities to shape the future.”2Pact for the Future, United Nations, September (2024), p.24. This statement comes with a commitment to strengthen participation mechanisms at the national level, as well as strengthening youth engagement in the work of the UN, ensuring to increase representativeness, effectiveness and impact3 Ibid, p.25..
The declaration also reinforces global commitments to address climate change, emphasising that current generations have a responsibility to protect the environment for those who come after them. This includes accelerating transitions away from fossil fuels and ensuring that international agreements like the Paris Climate Accord are fully implemented. The summit recognises that if decisive action is not taken today, future generations will inherit a world plagued by environmental degradation and instability4[Press Release] United Nations adopts ground-breaking Pact for the Future to transform global governance, September 23, 2024..
Impact and Relevance for Europe: the Future Generations Initiative
This sense of urgency resonates strongly with movements like Future Generations Europe, co-designed and co-lead by The Good Lobby, advocating for policies that protect the rights of younger and future citizens. The movement pushes the EU to address long-term risks and challenges, protect the core values of the EU, and include Future Generations perspectives in the EU’s democratic decisions shaping their future5 Future Generations Initiative..
In this regard, the Pact for the Future offers a unique opportunity to the EU –already a global sustainability leader– to advance more robust long-term strategies. Notably, the EU has, for the first time, nominated a Commissioner with responsibility for intergenerational fairness, tasked with the challenge to ensure that decisions are taken with future generations in mind6For further information please read: The Good Lobby, An EU Commissioner for Intergenerational Fairness, September 25, 2024..
Shaping a Better Future Together
The future is shaped by the choices we make today! While the Declaration on Future Generations and the appointment of an EU Commissioner for Intergenerational Fairness are significant achievements, they are just the first step.
Governments, civil society, and citizens must work together to turn these commitments into tangible action. If you care about environmental sustainability, human rights, and global equity, the time to act is now: Join movements like Future Generations Europe, engage personally, and hold leaders accountable for the promises made at the Summit of the Future.
As UN Secretary General Antonio Gutierres bluntly puts it: “[O]ur world is heading off the rails”7 [Press Release] Three Landmark Agreements ‘a Step-Change’ towards More Effective, Inclusive, Networked Multilateralism, Says Secretary-General at Summit of Future, 2024.. The success of the Summit of the Future hinges on our collective actions today. By working together, we can create a just, peaceful, and sustainable future for generations to come. The time to act is now!
Sources
- https://www.un.org/sites/un2.un.org/files/sotf-the-pact-for-the-future.pdf
- https://press.un.org/en/2024/sgsm22372.doc.htm
- https://www.un.org/en/unis-nairobi/press-releaseunited-nations-adopts-ground-breaking-pact-future-transform-global#:~:text=Photo%2FLoey%20Felipe-,PRESS%20RELEASE%3AUnited%20Nations%20adopts%20ground%2Dbreaking%20Pact%20for%20the,a%20Declaration%20on%20Future%20Generations.
- http://thegoodlobby.eu/an-eu-commissioner-for-intergenerational-fairness/