Global Governance in the Age of the Anthropocene: Are Sustainable Development Goals the Answer?

We live in challenging times. Thanks to technological advances and increasing global interconnectedness, we have made great progress in addressing some crucial social problems. Between 1990 and 2015, the under-five mortality rate declined by more than half-from 90 to 43 deaths per 1,000 lives-while the global malaria mortality rate decreased by 58 percent. During the same time period, the number of people living in extreme poverty decreased globally from 1.9 billion to 836 billion. In terms of the environment, by 2015 ozone depleting substances were nearly eliminated, while 91 percent of the world's population had access to improved sources of drinking water, as compared to 76 percent in 1990 (UN 2015).

Despite this progress, severe global challenges remain. We have entered the Age of the Anthropocene, a period in which human actions significantly influence the environment. The number of undernourished people increased from 777 million in 2015 to 815 million in 2016. Unsafe drinking water and sanitation problems continue to generate fatal diseases, which resulted in 870,000 deaths in 2016 alone. Even more alarming is the number of deaths as a result of air pollution, which stood at 7 million in 2016. Damage to housing as a result of natural disasters has increased drastically over the past 30 years, and 90 percent of deaths from these disasters are occurring in low and middle-income countries (UN 2018). Extreme weather conditions, rising sea levels, and greenhouse gas emissions continue to threaten terrestrial and marine ecosystems, as evidenced by the increasing frequency of natural disasters.

These alarming statistics have not gone unnoticed. Scientists and policymakers have intensified their efforts to find solutions that address the complex problems emerging from human-environment relations. The emphasis on the links between economic development and the environment is evident in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development—the UN's plan of action to eradicate poverty and advance prosperity while protecting our planet (UN General Assembly 2015). While at the turn of the century the international community focused primarily on socioeconomic development (captured in the eight Millennium Development Goals), in 2015 environmental sustainability was central to the negotiations leading to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Of course, sustainable development is not a new concept. In terms of balance between consumption and renewal of resources, sustainable development dates back centuries, but in its modern form it can be traced to the 1987 Brundtland Commission definition: "development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs" (World Commission on Environment and Development 1987). Yet, efforts to link development and environment in global governance are rather recent.

How can we achieve sustainable development? Do we have the appropriate strategies to advance people's prosperity while protecting the planet? Do our governance systems have what it takes to respond to the complex challenges emanating from human-environment relations? If not, what kinds of governance innovations could lead to a sustainable and resilient path?

The three insightful publications reviewed here offer different answers to these questions. In Transforming Multilateral Diplomacy, Macharia Kamau, Pamela Chasek, and David O'Connor provide a detailed account of the process leading to the establishment of the SDGs, while highlighting this process as a change in the way the UN usually conducts multilateral diplomacy. Norichika Kanie and Frank Biermann's edited volume, Sustainable Development Goals as Governance Innovation, is an informed and informative collection of essays examining goal setting as a governance strategy in response to sustainability issues. Governing Complex Systems by Oran Young, who also contributes to Kanie and Biermann's volume, takes us through a rigorous analysis of environmental governance, drawing on past lessons and reflecting on possible alternative governance mechanisms that adequately...