Why the use of weather and climate information is essential for SDG implementation

The United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development is an ambitious plan for “people, “planet and prosperity”. At its core are the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the achievement of which is critically affected by weather and a changing climate. To that end emphasis has been given to delivering weather and climate services, with information packaged in ways that support timely decision making.

Yet often these approaches tend not to address which decision-making processes need what information, why they need it, or what form they need it in. They have also tended to be focussed on specific situations and SDGs (such as SDG 14, 15) where the need for weather and climate information is clear and obvious.

In this presentation, we will look at how weather and climate information impinges on different decision making contexts, requiring that information to be tailored in new ways. In doing so we will identify key action areas that need to be addressed to improve integration of weather and climate information into SDG decision making.