97
© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2021
D. B. Abraham, S. D. Iyer (eds.), Promoting the Sustainable Development Goals in North American
Cities, Sustainable Development Goals Series, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-59173-1_8
Data for Good for All: Enabling All
Communities to Track Progress
Toward SDG Implementation
Jennifer Temmer and Stefan Jungcurt
8.1
Introduction
In this chapter, we explore how Community
Indicator Systems (CISs), online platforms that
communities use to share and visualize data to
inform policies and decisions at the local level,
can facilitate and drive localization of the
Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Using
our decade-long experience with Peg,
1
as a case
study, we explore the conditions under which
CISs can succeed in stimulating local action for
SDG implementation and support measuring
progress toward the SDGs. A key principle of the
2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and
the Sustainable Development Goals is that implementation should take place from the bottom-up.
Within the global framework of 17 Goals and 169
targets that the international community adopted
in September 2015, actors at all levels are encouraged to develop their path to making progress on
global challenges. Provinces, regions, cities,
communities, and other sub-national entities are
1 Peg is a CIS for the City of Winnipeg, in Manitoba,
Canada.
encouraged to “localize” the SDGs, that is, to
define local challenges and priorities within the
context of the SDGs and to develop locally
appropriate strategies for SDG implementation.
This principle is both an opportunity and a major
challenge for communities. The SDGs can act as
a powerful driver of positive local change; however, unlocking this potential requires translating
the SDGs into the local context and establishing
monitoring systems that are meaningful to local
users, while allowing reporting that contributes
to assessments of progress at the international
level.
8.2
A Bottom-Up World
Although a global effort, the ability for nations to
tailor their approach is a trademark feature of the
SDGs. Several years after the adoption of the
SDGs, the bottom-up approach is starting to gain
traction. Many UN member states have developed and submitted a Voluntary National Review
(VNR) to the UN High-level Political Forum on
Sustainable Development (HLPF).
2
VNRs are the
national plans through which governments detail
their national priorities, targets, strategies, and
metrics to assess progress. At the sub-national
level, several cities, including New York City and
three Japanese cities, have developed VNRs
2 The main body for reviewing progress toward the SDGs.
J. Temmer
International Institute for Sustainable Development,
Simcoe, ON, Canada
S. Jungcurt (*)
International Institute for Sustainable Development,
Gatineau, QC, Canada
e-mail: sjungcurt@iisd.org
8
© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2021
D. B. Abraham, S. D. Iyer (eds.), Promoting the Sustainable Development Goals in North American
Cities, Sustainable Development Goals Series, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-59173-1_8
Data for Good for All: Enabling All
Communities to Track Progress
Toward SDG Implementation
Jennifer Temmer and Stefan Jungcurt
8.1
Introduction
In this chapter, we explore how Community
Indicator Systems (CISs), online platforms that
communities use to share and visualize data to
inform policies and decisions at the local level,
can facilitate and drive localization of the
Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Using
our decade-long experience with Peg,
1
as a case
study, we explore the conditions under which
CISs can succeed in stimulating local action for
SDG implementation and support measuring
progress toward the SDGs. A key principle of the
2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and
the Sustainable Development Goals is that implementation should take place from the bottom-up.
Within the global framework of 17 Goals and 169
targets that the international community adopted
in September 2015, actors at all levels are encouraged to develop their path to making progress on
global challenges. Provinces, regions, cities,
communities, and other sub-national entities are
1 Peg is a CIS for the City of Winnipeg, in Manitoba,
Canada.
encouraged to “localize” the SDGs, that is, to
define local challenges and priorities within the
context of the SDGs and to develop locally
appropriate strategies for SDG implementation.
This principle is both an opportunity and a major
challenge for communities. The SDGs can act as
a powerful driver of positive local change; however, unlocking this potential requires translating
the SDGs into the local context and establishing
monitoring systems that are meaningful to local
users, while allowing reporting that contributes
to assessments of progress at the international
level.
8.2
A Bottom-Up World
Although a global effort, the ability for nations to
tailor their approach is a trademark feature of the
SDGs. Several years after the adoption of the
SDGs, the bottom-up approach is starting to gain
traction. Many UN member states have developed and submitted a Voluntary National Review
(VNR) to the UN High-level Political Forum on
Sustainable Development (HLPF).
2
VNRs are the
national plans through which governments detail
their national priorities, targets, strategies, and
metrics to assess progress. At the sub-national
level, several cities, including New York City and
three Japanese cities, have developed VNRs
2 The main body for reviewing progress toward the SDGs.
J. Temmer
International Institute for Sustainable Development,
Simcoe, ON, Canada
S. Jungcurt (*)
International Institute for Sustainable Development,
Gatineau, QC, Canada
e-mail: sjungcurt@iisd.org
8