The UNSW Centre for Sustainable Development Reform (CSDR) is dedicated to catalyzing ambitious and pragmatic reforms in law, policy, and governance to contribute to the global sustainable development agenda, particularly the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, the Paris Agreement, and the Montreal-Kunming Global Biodiversity Framework.
Established in 2022 by the University of New South Wales (UNSW) UNSW Faculty of Law and Justice, CSDR strives to fulfil the public responsibilities and mission of UNSW; to provide education, conduct research and contribute to society.
Centre activities currently span more than 20 countries and are characterised by working in partnership with decision-makers across government, international institutions, local communities, and the private and non-profit sectors. We build and scale enduring multi-disciplinary partnerships and creating safe spaces for decision-makers to plan pragmatic actions informed by rigorous science, knowledge and expert insights.
Our work is organised around three pathways:
- Development Beyond GDP: a future where the policies and performance of governments and other institutions are benchmarked against a range of indicators that complement Gross Domestic Product, accounting for the social, environmental and other foundations of sustainable development.
- Unlocking Zero-Carbon Transitions: a future where laws, policies and investment support the innovation required to unlock transitions to zero-carbon development across all relevant economic sectors.
- Economies that work for People and Nature: a future where economic activities achieve inclusive and equitable outcomes and strengthen the environmental assets that are the foundation of sustainable development.
We also pursue a range of small scale exploratory projects designed to pilot new ideas and opportunities for collaboration at scale.