Japan Aims to Become a Role Model for Implementing the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

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The Government of Japan announced on Dec. 22, 2016, its establishment of guidelines for Japan's implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). To comprehensively and effectively promote the SDGs, it established the SDGs Promotion Headquarters, chaired by the Prime Minister and having as its members all ministers in the Cabinet Office. This article introduces the guidelines and reactions from citizen groups.

The guidelines were established based on citizen input and dialogue with a wide range of stakeholders, and declared as a national strategy to address key challenges as part of the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

The guidelines were set forth enabling the government to work closely with the relevant administrative bodies, to cooperate with stakeholders from various industries in order to consistently and effectively mobilize broad measures and resources. They are summarized below:

Vision

With our vision of "becoming a leader toward a future where improvements are made in an integrated manner in a sustainable, strong and inclusive economy, society and environment," we will strive to become a role model for the world by undertaking initiatives through both domestic implementation and international cooperation.

Priority issues

SDGs goals and targets have been adapted to meet the unique situations in Japan, in terms of eight priority issues to focus on, and corresponding to the five Ps listed in the 2030 Agenda.

People

• Promote the active involvement of all members of society.
• Achieve good health and longevity.

Prosperity

• Create growth markets, rejuvenate local economies, and innovate in science and technology.
• Keep the homeland sustainable and resilient, and provide quality infrastructure.

Planet

• Promote energy conservation, renewable energy, climate change countermeasures, and a circular economy.
• Conserve the environment, including biodiversity, forests, and oceans.

Peace

• Achieve a peaceful, safe, and secure society.

Partnership

• Adopt frameworks and measures for promoting SDGs implementation.

Key implementation principles

Five key principles have been laid out for addressing the priority issues.

Universality
Make efforts effective by aligning domestic implementation and international cooperation.

Inclusion
"Leave no one behind" and focus on vulnerable people. As a guiding principle for development and cooperation, security should be ensured for all people.

Participation
It is crucial to have all stakeholders and interested parties participate in addressing the issues.

Integrity
Recognize the interrelationships and synergies among economy, society and environment in order to seek integrative solutions.

Transparency and accountability
Periodical evaluation and disclosure of progress of government initiatives should be the basis for new measures or amending existing ones.

Follow up review

Japan will participate in a voluntary review under the 2017 session of the UN High-Level Political Forum (HLPF) on Sustainable Development. In preparation for the next HLPF among national leaders, the progress of initial measures will be reviewed and amended by the year 2019, and further reviews will be carried out at least every four years from then on.

The SDGs Civil Society Network, a network of non-governmental and non-profit organizations working to achieve the SDGs, has welcomed the guidelines as Japan's first step toward the SDGs and a sustainable society free of poverty, and hopes to see the initiative expand in the future. The network also pleased that the guidelines were developed through the discussions of the diverse entities that participated in the SDGs Promotion Roundtable, including NGOs, NPOs, academia, private businesses, labor unions, international organizations and others.

While it is crucial that diverse sectors participate to ensure implementation of measures and policies in accordance with the guidelines, the network points out that it will require some trial and error approaches toward the goals. The key to accelerate the transformation into a sustainable society, the network says, is cooperation among governments, civil society and the private sector.

Poor Placement of Protected Areas May Result in Vicious Cycle Leading to Extinction

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Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology announced on November 7, 2016, the results of a study on protected areas (PAs). The study demonstrates that PAs such as national parks are effective in decelerating local extinctions of plants. On the other hand, the study verifies that the repeated establishment of new PAs without considering plant distribution leads to an increase in extinction risk of narrowly distributed species.

The study team consists of the National Institute for Environmental Studies (NIES), the Nature Conservation Society of Japan (NACS-J), and members from the University of Queensland, in addition to Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology. The team analyzed data pertaining to 1,572 species and obtained from research conducted in order to compile the Red List of Japan. As a result, the team verified that the distribution area of narrowly distributed species is less likely to overlap PAs than is that of widespread species. Quite a few plants, more than 250 species, are distributed exclusively outside PAs.

The research also shows that local extinction inside PAs is less than two-thirds of that outside PAs. As narrowly distributed species are more likely to be distributed outside PAs, they are more vulnerable to local extinction, and thus fall victim to a "vicious cycle to extinction," in which the local extinction results in an even narrower distribution.

The results of simulation analysis indicate that the repeated placement of PAs without considering the actual distribution of plants will result in this vicious cycle to extinction. The team has concluded that in order to prevent extinctions, smart protected area placement, with consideration given to the distribution of plants targeted for conservation, is essential.

Investment to Help Disaster-affected Areas -- Initiative of Disaster Area Support Funds Initiative

JFS Newsletter No.174 (February 2017)

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When you hear people talk about supporting areas stricken by earthquakes and other disasters, what kinds support do you think of? Visiting as a volunteer? Donating money? Buying products and vegetables produced in the affected areas? Or going on holiday there? Any of these can be a way to support disaster-affected areas.

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