SEI Executive Director Johan Kuylenstierna and a group of influential thinkers set out steps to a sustainable development transition

The authors call for an immediate shift from the commitments made in 2015—specifically the Sustainable Development Goals and the Paris Agreement—to concrete implementation. They identify three primary challenges: reorienting economies through investment and consumption changes, making the reduction of inequalities a central objective, and translating international agreements into national strategies. The text emphasizes the need for policy signals to redirect financial flows, the role of innovation coalitions, and the necessity of ensuring an equitable transition for workers and regions affected by the shift in energy and food systems.

• The transition to sustainable development requires addressing three core challenges: reallocating investment and changing consumption patterns to reorient economies, prioritizing the reduction of inequalities, and converting international commitments into national political action.
• Transforming energy systems requires approximately 5% of global investment capital, necessitating not just more resources but a redirection of financial flows toward sustainable services, innovation, urban development, and infrastructure.
• To encourage investors to reorient capital, the authors suggest specific policy signals, including the rapid operationalization of the Green Climate Fund, better coordination of carbon prices, and enhanced financial risk disclosure obligations.
• The transition may negatively impact workers and regions specialized in sectors like energy and food; therefore, Low Emissions Development Strategies should include measures to ensure an equitable transition and stakeholder involvement.
• Reducing economic and gender inequality, as well as ensuring poor populations have access to basic services like energy, water, food, and health, is described as both a core priority of the Sustainable Development Goals and a prerequisite for the transition's success.

APA

Amin, A., Bapna, M., Barcena, A., Charveriat, C., Hedegaard, C., Navarro, Y. K., Kuylenstierna, J., Lamy, P., Marton-Lefèvre, J., Moosa, V., Revi, A., Ribera, T., Somavia, J., Stern, N., Tubiana, L., Töpfer, K., Vandeweerd, V., & Cutajar, M. Z. (2016). SEI Executive Director Johan Kuylenstierna and a group of influential thinkers set out steps to a sustainable development transition. Stockholm Environment Institute. https://www.sei.org/perspectives/sustainable-development/

Chicago

Amin, Adnan, Manish Bapna, Alicia Barcena, Céline Charveriat, Connie Hedegaard, Yolanda Kakabadse Navarro, Johan Kuylenstierna, et al. SEI Executive Director Johan Kuylenstierna and a group of influential thinkers set out steps to a sustainable development transition. Stockholm Environment Institute, 2016. https://www.sei.org/perspectives/sustainable-development/.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |last1=Amin |first1=Adnan |last2=Bapna |first2=Manish |last3=Barcena |first3=Alicia |last4=Charveriat |first4=Céline |last5=Hedegaard |first5=Connie |last6=Navarro |first6=Yolanda Kakabadse |last7=Kuylenstierna |first7=Johan |last8=Lamy |first8=Pascal |last9=Marton-Lefèvre |first9=Julia |display-authors=etal |title=SEI Executive Director Johan Kuylenstierna and a group of influential thinkers set out steps to a sustainable development transition |publisher=Stockholm Environment Institute |date=13 May 2016 |url=https://www.sei.org/perspectives/sustainable-development/ |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{amin2016sei, author = {Amin, Adnan and Bapna, Manish and Barcena, Alicia and Charveriat, Céline and Hedegaard, Connie and Navarro, Yolanda Kakabadse and Kuylenstierna, Johan and Lamy, Pascal and Marton-Lefèvre, Julia and Moosa, Valli and Revi, Aromar and Ribera, Teresa and Somavia, Juan and Stern, Nicholas and Tubiana, Laurence and Töpfer, Klaus and Vandeweerd, Veerle and Cutajar, Michael Zammit}, title = {{SEI Executive Director Johan Kuylenstierna and a group of influential thinkers set out steps to a sustainable development transition}}, publisher = {Stockholm Environment Institute}, year = {2016}, month = may, url = {https://www.sei.org/perspectives/sustainable-development/}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }