2. A Synthesis
“All that is valuable in human society depends upon the opportunity for development accorded
the individual.” Albert Einstein
2.1 What we have learned from two decades of development experience
26. There is much that is new, and, indeed, transformational in the global
conversation on a Post-2015 Agenda. But the roots of this conversation are deep, and
extend to the experience of the development community in the last twenty years, and the
visionary outcomes of the global conferences of the 1990s, the 1992 Rio Earth Summit,
the Millennium Summit and the MDGs of 2000, the 2005 World Summit, the 2010 MDG
Summit, and the lead up to the Rio+20 Conference in 2012.
27. The cornerstone for the current global process of renewal was established in Rio
de Janeiro in June of 2012, with the adoption of the outcome document of the United
Nations Conference on Sustainable Development “The Future We Want.” The
document described the lessons learned from two decades of development experience,
and provided an extensive assessment of the progress and gaps in the implementation of
the sustainable development agenda.
28. While insufficient and uneven, progress has been remarkable. Only two short
decades ago, close to 40 per cent of the developing world lived in extreme poverty, and
the notion of poverty eradication seemed inconceivable. Following profound and
consistent gains, we now know that extreme poverty can be eradicated within one more
generation. The MDGs have greatly contributed to this progress, and have taught us how
governments, business, and civil society can work together to achieve transformational
breakthroughs.