2023 RAUN Theme
Crisis management and resilience: responding to future global challenges
The world is currently facing multiple, interconnected crises that are affecting populations globally, including changing climatic conditions, ongoing health crises, inequalities, nuclear and armed threats, as well as geopolitical and violent conflicts. These crises are compounded, representing a major risk for the achievement of the 2030 Agenda for sustainable development. According to the Sustainable Development Goals Report 2022, more than four years of progress on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) were lost in a short period of time due to the ongoing crises such as COVID-19.
The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted essential health services, education, and poverty alleviation efforts. Furthermore, conflicts in recent years have pushed people into extreme poverty and led to forced displacements. In 2022, the number of people that have been forcibly displaced has reached a record high of 100 million, and one quarter of the global population now lives in conflict-affected countries (UNHCR, Global Appeal 2023).
The war in Ukraine has exposed detrimental economic dependencies that are being felt worldwide: food, fertilizer, and energy prices have increased dramatically, putting a burden on already strained economies and communities.
While many countries were struggling to overcome the effects of COVID-19, the process of economic recovery is now even more strenuous in the face of record inflation, rising interest rates, and increasing national debt burdens. At the same time, climate-related hazards are becoming more frequent and devastating, and unsustainable patterns of production and consumption cause pollution and biodiversity loss, disproportionately affecting vulnerable groups.
While crises create uncertainty and threaten the achievement of important goals, they can also open windows of opportunity for transformation and change. It is not enough to mitigate the consequences of an event and to rebuild the status-quo: Crises require new ways of thinking, the courage to put longstanding habits and patterns in question, and the discovery of new opportunities that can contribute to overcoming persistent challenges.
In a multi-crisis world, it is of the utmost importance to build resilient communities, societies, and economies that can cope with and adapt to extraordinary and dangerous situations and recover with minimal long-term impacts. Building resilience and effectively managing crises requires a deep understanding of societal processes, the undertaking of precautionary measures, and long-term investments in effective solutions to address arising issues.
The 2023 Regional Academy program will focus on exploring solutions to build resilience, improve crisis management, and strengthen the governance of global commons and global public goods that deliver equitably and sustainably for all. This includes considering multiple perspectives from different domains and various actors, the comprehensive inclusion of women, youth, people with disabilities, indigenous groups, and those living in conflict affected areas; dialogue facilitation; and the acceleration of global-scale action.
Research, data, and information infrastructures play a particularly important role as a means to strengthen efforts in better predicting and responding to crisis events. Through their research, RAUN 2023 researchers will contribute to the ongoing global discussions, providing evidence and best practice cases that can inform policy-making and help address key challenges faced today. Ultimately, RAUN 2023 aims to contribute to the promise of a world of peace, dignity, and prosperity on a sustainable planet, also in the context of the review of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development in 2023 and the United Nations Summit of the Future in 2024.
The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted essential health services, education, and poverty alleviation efforts. Furthermore, conflicts in recent years have pushed people into extreme poverty and led to forced displacements. In 2022, the number of people that have been forcibly displaced has reached a record high of 100 million, and one quarter of the global population now lives in conflict-affected countries (UNHCR, Global Appeal 2023).
The war in Ukraine has exposed detrimental economic dependencies that are being felt worldwide: food, fertilizer, and energy prices have increased dramatically, putting a burden on already strained economies and communities.
While many countries were struggling to overcome the effects of COVID-19, the process of economic recovery is now even more strenuous in the face of record inflation, rising interest rates, and increasing national debt burdens. At the same time, climate-related hazards are becoming more frequent and devastating, and unsustainable patterns of production and consumption cause pollution and biodiversity loss, disproportionately affecting vulnerable groups.
While crises create uncertainty and threaten the achievement of important goals, they can also open windows of opportunity for transformation and change. It is not enough to mitigate the consequences of an event and to rebuild the status-quo: Crises require new ways of thinking, the courage to put longstanding habits and patterns in question, and the discovery of new opportunities that can contribute to overcoming persistent challenges.
In a multi-crisis world, it is of the utmost importance to build resilient communities, societies, and economies that can cope with and adapt to extraordinary and dangerous situations and recover with minimal long-term impacts. Building resilience and effectively managing crises requires a deep understanding of societal processes, the undertaking of precautionary measures, and long-term investments in effective solutions to address arising issues.
The 2023 Regional Academy program will focus on exploring solutions to build resilience, improve crisis management, and strengthen the governance of global commons and global public goods that deliver equitably and sustainably for all. This includes considering multiple perspectives from different domains and various actors, the comprehensive inclusion of women, youth, people with disabilities, indigenous groups, and those living in conflict affected areas; dialogue facilitation; and the acceleration of global-scale action.
Research, data, and information infrastructures play a particularly important role as a means to strengthen efforts in better predicting and responding to crisis events. Through their research, RAUN 2023 researchers will contribute to the ongoing global discussions, providing evidence and best practice cases that can inform policy-making and help address key challenges faced today. Ultimately, RAUN 2023 aims to contribute to the promise of a world of peace, dignity, and prosperity on a sustainable planet, also in the context of the review of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development in 2023 and the United Nations Summit of the Future in 2024.