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Strengthening reflexive governance to achieve the 2030 Agenda and the SDGs

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Abstract

Reflexive governance, or governance institutions which include questioning of governance goals and tools from diverse perspectives, is a key part of transformative governance for sustainability. While the structure of the Sustainable Development Goals have plenty of opportunities for such reflexive governance, to date it has not figured centrally in the discussions. This article argues that reflexive governance should be a major priority for the Sustainable Development Goals going forward and that the integration of reflexivity should take account of systemic shocks in recent years. The recommendations are for a major investment in reflexivity in the peer learning mechanisms and for the development of a global roadmap for reflexivity so that the trade-offs between reflexivity and efficiency can be managed.

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Abbreviations

HLPF:

High-level political forum

SDGs:

Sustainable development goals

U.N.:

United Nations

VNRs:

Voluntary national reviews

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  1. Providence College, Providence, USA

    Casey Stevens

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  1. Casey Stevens
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Stevens, C. Strengthening reflexive governance to achieve the 2030 Agenda and the SDGs. Int Environ Agreements 23, 173–178 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10784-023-09610-0

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