SDGCounting

You can't fix what you can't measure. You can't measure without reliable data. And reliable data doesn't exist without funded statistical systems. This isn't a technical problem — it's the foundation of every credible claim about progress on the #SDGs.

As AI drives surging power demand, attention is shifting beyond lithium-ion to long-duration energy storage that can support grids for 24+ hours. The challenge is no longer just generation, but how we store and manage it. reuters.com/business/energ… #Energy #AI #Sustainability

The World Bank’s latest update revises global extreme poverty in 2024 to 10.4% (847 million people). A small shift, but a meaningful one: better data, new surveys, and updated methods continue to reshape how we understand progress on the #SDGs blogs.worldbank.org/en/opendata/ma…

The UN Statistical Commission ended earlier this month, but the conversations remain essential as we move toward #HLPF. #AI readiness, #SDG data gaps, funding shocks, and #BeyondGDP were all discussed. We've broken down what mattered most at #UN57SC: medium.com/p/6110dde9bd39

Private philanthropy is playing a larger role in development finance, but new data from the OECD shows both its potential and its limits. Between 2020 and 2023, philanthropic contributions reached $68.2 billion—about 10% of official development assistance. While meaningful, this reinforces that philanthropy complements public funding rather than replaces it. The report also highlights concentration. Nearly half of funding goes to health and education, with health alone accounting for 40%. Africa remains the largest recipient of cross-border flows, driven largely by a small number of major foundations. At the same time, domestic philanthropy is growing in middle-income countries, though unevenly. The takeaway is not just about scale, but role. Philanthropy is most effective where it is flexible, catalytic, and collaborative—supporting innovation and early-stage solutions that can later be taken to scale by governments and larger institutions. Read the full report: oecd.org/en/publication…

The AI divide is not just a tech issue. It is a development challenge. A UN Goals Lounge discussion highlights gaps in connectivity, compute, skills, and local ecosystems shaping who benefits. Watch: webtv.un.org/en/asset/k16/k…

UNESCO just launched the 2026 Global Education Monitoring Report: 273 million children out of school, over half of countries can't track education gaps by wealth. You can't fix what you can't measure. unesco.org/gem-report/en/…

New from Devex: The U.S. is considering tying foreign aid to how countries vote at the United Nations. A potential shift toward a more transactional model of development finance, with implications for how SDG priorities are funded and implemented. devex.com/news/devex-new…

Civil society has submitted its priorities for the July 2026 High-Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development. @Together_2030, representing communities and constituencies worldwide, calls the current moment a turning point: from fragmented commitments to coordinated, financed, and accountable implementation. Across the five SDGs under review this year (water, energy, infrastructure, cities, and partnerships) the coalition identifies persistent structural barriers, but also real opportunities if political will catches up to community-led action. With four years left to 2030, the forum needs to deliver more than pledges. Full summary: mgos.org/2026/03/18/a-c… #SDGs #2030Agenda #HLPF2026

The U.S. is launching pilot surveys to understand how much energy data centers actually use. For those weight positive vs. negative impact of #AI, this is important. The conversation is shifting from estimates to official statistics. reuters.com/business/energ…

The World Bank’s March 2026 poverty update slightly revises global extreme poverty upward: 10.4% of the world’s population, or 847 million people, lived in extreme poverty in 2024. A reminder that better data can change the story we tell about progress. blogs.worldbank.org/en/opendata/ma…

UN World Water Development Report 2026: 2.1B people lack safely managed drinking water. Women and girls spend 250 million hours a day collecting it, yet remain underrepresented in water governance. Gender equality and water access are the same story. unwater.org/publications/u…

Philanthropy is under pressure to move beyond rhetoric. At the Global Philanthropy Forum, funders confronted a hard question: as ODA collapses and systems strain, is the sector actually shifting power and practice — or just updating the language? devex.com/news/special-e…

GiveDirectly is using AI to cut emergency cash delivery from 100+ days to under 24 hours in crisis zones like the DRC. As donor funding contracts, the case for faster, evidence-based, direct aid delivery is getting harder to ignore. devex.com/news/how-gived… #AI #TechForGood

The White House released an #AI policy framework urging one national standard over state rules. Focus: innovation, child safety, energy permitting. Not mentioned: international coordination, the Global Digital Compact, or the #SDGs. The gap between national legislation and global governance keeps widening. reuters.com/world/us/white…

Google's president says the US isn't scaling energy fast enough to meet AI demand. The tension between energy needs and climate goals is a defining question for #SDG7 and #SDG13. We're working on a deep dive article exploring the interface between #AI impact and #CleanEnergy. reuters.com/business/energ…

The WMO's new State of the Climate report: greenhouse gas concentrations at record highs, the hottest 11 years in recorded history, and a new indicator showing Earth's energy imbalance is accelerating. Over 3 billion people depend on the systems most affected. #SDG13 news.un.org/en/story/2026/…

The race to become the next UN Secretary-General now has five formally nominated candidates, three of them women: Bachelet (Chile), Grossi (Argentina), Grynspan (Costa Rica), Sall (Senegal), and Gamba (Argentina). The April 1 nomination deadline is approaching, and public dialogues start the week of April 20. The field may not be final. Names still circulating include Jacinda Ardern, Amina J. Mohammed (the current UN Deputy Secretary-General), and Mia Mottley — none formally nominated, but any could reshape the race. No woman has held the role in the UN's 80-year history. The pressure for that to change this time is significant. Whoever takes over on January 1, 2027, inherits the final stretch of the 2030 Agenda, a system facing historic funding cuts, and the task of making the Pact for the Future more than words on paper. un.org/en/sg-selectio…

ICYMI: The World Bank’s latest AI discussion focused on something more practical than frontier hype: how “small AI” can improve health, agriculture, education, and public services in low-resource settings without massive infrastructure. live.worldbank.org/en/event/2026/…

No country has yet achieved full legal equality between women and men. That's the baseline the Commission on the Status of Women agreed conclusions were built on. 37 countries voted yes. One (USA) voted no. sdg.iisd.org/news/csw70-agr… #CSW70