Opportunities and Challenges in the Era of Polycrisis with Achim Steiner

Empire Club of Canada presents In Conversation with Achim Steiner

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We are living through a new era of ‘polycrisis’ and uncertainty:

• A climate emergency.
• The socio-economic repercussions of the COVID-19 pandemic.
• The highest levels of conflict since WWII.
• One hundred million displaced people.
• A rising cost of living.
• The war in Ukraine.

Despite this uncertainty, the future of people and the planet is not predetermined.

The world’s population will pass the eight billion mark for the first time in November 2022. It is a moment to reflect on the remarkable development and progress our global community has made – from lifting hundreds of millions of people out of poverty to expanding access to quality healthcare and education. If we have the power to create a new geological era- the age of humans- then we can harness humanity’s immense collective power to slow the climate emergency in its tracks, the defining challenge of our times.

Mr. Achim Steiner will explore what CoP27 achieved and critically analyze if it is enough. He will attempt to define what “leave no one behind” means and outline the opportunities and challenges in our complex and ambiguous environment. Finally, he will discuss a framework of potential pathways for a new form of development through decarbonization and review why the United Nations, including UNDP, still must achieve these overarching objectives.

Speaker profile

Achim Steiner, Administrator, United Nations Development Program

Achim Steiner became UNDP Administrator on 19 June 2017 following the confirmation of his nomination by the United Nations General Assembly. Mr. Steiner is the Vice-Chair of the UN Sustainable Development Group, which unites 40 entities of the UN system that work to support sustainable development. Over nearly three decades, Mr. Steiner has been a global leader on sustainable development, climate resilience and international cooperation. Prior to joining UNDP, he was Director of the Oxford Martin School, University of Oxford. Mr. Steiner has served across various international organizations, looking at global challenges from both a humanitarian and a development perspective. He led the United Nations Environment Programme (2006-2016), the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (2001 – 2006) and the World Commission on Dams (1998 – 2001).