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Curated by Project Syndicate

The New Development Agenda

13 commentaries

The Sustainable Development Goals, recently agreed at the UN, will guide global development efforts for the next 15 years. Will the new agenda replicate the success of the just-completed Millennium Development Goals, or do the SDGs ask too much of developing countries?

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  1. A Fish Called Development
    Lung fish.

    A Fish Called Development

    Oct 1, 2015 Oby Ezekwesili, et al. urge leaders to eliminate harmful fisheries subsidies at the WTO meeting in December.

  2. Leaving Our Children Nothing
    Portrait of a young girl.

    Leaving Our Children Nothing

    Sep 30, 2015 Johan Rockström wants to leave our descendants no poverty, no greenhouse-gas emissions, and no biodiversity loss.

  3. The Data Revolution for Sustainable Development
    Development data El Tiempo/ZumaPress

    The Data Revolution for Sustainable Development

    Sep 18, 2015 Jeffrey D. Sachs, et al. cite new technologies that can help meet long-term education, health, and poverty-reduction goals.

  4. Securing a Sustainable Future
    Flood water in Sylhet City Md. Akhlas Uddin/ZumaPress

    Securing a Sustainable Future

    Sep 16, 2015 Gro Harlem Brundtland & Graça Machel warn world leaders that climate change could erase progress toward development goals.

  5. Unsustainable Development Goals
    Typhoon in china Xu Yu/ZumaPress

    Unsustainable Development Goals

    Sep 15, 2015 Bjørn Lomborg calls the UN's Agenda for Sustainable Development the missed opportunity of a generation.

  6. Another Great Leap Forward for Development
    television dishes india Subhash Sharma/ZumaPress

    Another Great Leap Forward for Development

    Aug 27, 2015 Javier Solana underscores the universality of the Sustainable Development Goals.

  1. laidi34_Maja HitijGettyImages_scholz_frederiksen Maja Hitij/Getty Images

    Europe Can and Must Resist Trump

    Zaki Laïdi explains how the European Union should respond to American imperial nationalism.
  2. bouverot1_JOEL SAGETAFP via Getty Images_aiactionsummit Joel Saget/AFP via Getty Images

    Bending the Arc of AI Development Toward Shared Progress

    Anne Bouverot outlines the French government's objectives for the AI Action Summit in Paris.
  3. hampton2_Luis TatoGettyImages_somalia_debt_crisis Luis Tato/Getty Images

    Developing Countries Need a New Approach to Long-Term Financing

    Hannah Wanjie Ryder & Kate Hampton propose reforms that would facilitate low-interest lending to fund critical climate and development goals.
  4. delong267_Chip SomodevillaGetty Images_whitehousepress Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

    Trump’s Smoke and Mirrors

    J. Bradford DeLong upbraids US journalists for refusing to distinguish bluster from genuine policy initiatives.
  5. bp deepseek Photo illustration by Anthony Kwan/Getty Images

    Why Does DeepSeek Matter?

    Chinese tech startup DeepSeek’s release of a high-performance, low-cost artificial-intelligence platform has roiled financial markets and raised fundamental questions about the business models of American AI giants. Will the technology turn out to be a boon for competition in a critical industry, or should it be viewed as a geopolitical shot across the West’s bow?

  6. mazzucato79_Artur WidakNurPhotoGettyImages_amazon_web_services Artur Widak/NurPhoto/Getty Images

    Resisting Digital Feudalism

    Mariana Mazzucato calls for urgent action to shape the development of AI before it becomes another means of rent extraction.
  7. op_shafik2_ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDSAFP via Getty Images_trumpvance Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP via Getty Images

    World Order in a Time of Monsters

    Minouche Shafik

    A stable and cooperative global order cannot be built without first repairing broken national social contracts. While unequal and anxious countries become fertile ground for nationalism and selfishness, prosperous economies are more likely to foster generosity and support for international cooperation.

    highlights the critical importance of reinvigorating social contracts at the national level.
  8. rodrik231_Andrej IvanovGettyImages_us_canda_border Andrej Ivanov/Getty Images

    How Not to Respond to Trump’s Tariffs

    Dani Rodrik advises America’s trade partners not to embrace retaliation, because that would harm mainly themselves.
  9. landau5_Thierry MonasseGettyImages_eu_competitiveness_compass Thierry Monasse/Getty Images

    Europe Found Its Values and Lost Its Way

    Jean-Pierre Landau warns that the EU’s focus on high-level principles is undermining its economic dynamism and global influence.

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