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Engagement Opportunities in the lead up to WSSD2 2025
The Second World Summit for Social Development (WSSD2) presents a diverse array of engagement opportunities for individuals and organizations aiming to contribute to global discourse and innovation. Participants can immerse themselves in thought-provoking panel discussions, interactive workshops, and networking sessions designed to foster collaboration across various sectors. The summit also offers avenues for showcasing groundbreaking projects and research, providing a platform for thought leaders to share insights and drive meaningful change. Attendees are encouraged to engage actively, leveraging these opportunities to expand their professional networks, gain fresh perspectives, and play a pivotal role in shaping the future landscape of global initiatives.
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Date
Location
Submitter
Second World Social Summit for Development
Host side events and stakeholder discussions
International Day for Care and Support
organize outreach activities and share research insights emphasizing the critical role of care in achieving social development. These efforts will contribute to the WSSD by promoting dialogue and action on genderinclusive policies for sustainable progress.
Ministerial meeting on housing
The meeting will be held during the 86th session of the Committee on Urban Development, Housing and Land Management (Geneva, 8-10 October 2025) and will address challenges related to housing affordability and other topical issues such as sustainability, and energy-efficiency of housing. Ministers will be invited to agree on pledges or practical commitments in this regard.
5th meeting of the Forum of Mayors
This meeting brings together city leaders from all the UN regions for facilitating dialogue among cities, member States and international organizations. UNECE had transmitted to the UN Secretary General the outcome statement adopted by the Forum of Mayors at its 4th meeting, « the Cities Summit for the Future » (Geneva, 30 September-1 October 2024), which highlighted the essential role and concrete commitments of local and regional governments in implementing the Pact of the Future, including its action 6. The City leaders recalled inter alia that local and regional governments are guardians of public trust and in the position to ensure equity and resilience through the provision of public services and social protection systems.
1st Connect for Change Global Youth Forum
Conference and music concerts towards sustainable development.
80th Session of General Assembly
Organise or co-convene side events
High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development
Side-event
Organize a side event addressing women’s pathways to social development
Online expert group meetings have been carried out in the Africa, Asia, LAC regions and Nordic countries reaching over 80 experts to identify regional priorities and perspectives. A brief for each consultation has been developed and disseminated widely to inform the WSSD consultations. Link to video broadcasts insights shared at the 63rd session of the Commission for Social Development in February 2025.
UNRISD to organize or co-convene side events to foster dialogue among thought leaders, policymakers, and activists. The event(s) will serve as a platform to highlight research findings and actionable recommendations stemming from UNRISD’s preparatory work.
UNRISD will participate in promoting regional social development challenges.
Participation in support of the Global Coalition for Social Justice
Side-event
Multistakeholder meeting to review SDG progress in the UNECE region (Europe, North America, Central Asia, Israel) and exchange on acceleration actions; civil society consultation (1 April): self-organized and inclusive consultation coordinated by the regional civil society engagement mechanism. Both the RFSD and the preparatory civil society consultation will discuss issues closely related to the Second World Summit for Social Development, such as social and economic inclusion as part of the in-depth review of SDGs 3, 5 and 8. Inputs could feed into the summit through various channels, including inputs by member States, UN system and civil society.
World Social Work Day at the UN in Geneva 2025 aims to make a contribution to the Second World Summit for Social Development exploring pathways to expand social rights for persons living with disabilities and to create a caring society. Globally, an estimated 1.3 billion people experience disabilities (WHO 2023), a situation that is further exacerbated for people exposed to multiple marginalizations based on class, gender and sexual orientation, age, race, ethnicity or religion, migrant or employment status or location.
Engaging with networks of social workers to raise awareness about the WSSD2 and address challenges for persons with disabilities.
UNRISD to co-convene three side events to foster dialogue among thought leaders, policymakers, and activists. The topics are: financing care societies, gender backlash, climate change, and gender. The events will serve as a platform to highlight research findings and actionable recommendations stemming from UNRISD’s preparatory work on Gender-related issues.