Global economy and Development Program at brookings. Its a great honor and privilege for me to open this event, for development at brookings. Were very grateful for the participation of the u. N. Deputy secretarygeneral, and the Foundation President , both for exemplary liberal leaders on development to took time out of their busy schedule to be with us today. We are very honored by your presence and participation. The launch of the center is the historic moment for brookings. In the global economy, the need to build back better and more inclusive and sustainable economies have never been better. Policy makers and stakeholders will have both leadership on various aspects of Sustainable Development. We are grateful to all of our partners whose support has been instrumental to the inception of the center. The special thank you to richard blum, and over the past several years has inspoo i remembered the creation. Center. The launch of the center would not have been possible without the efforts of many who have worked tirelessly behind the scenes. So let me take a brief moment to recognize my colleagues and all in the center, including John Macarthur, and the communications team, as well as our colleagues across the institution, particularly communication. And importantly, the commitment of our president , general john allen, who, as you know, is very passionate about Global Development. Thank you, john, for your unwavering support and for your exemplary leadership for development. With just a few words, will et me end here and turn it over to you, john. Dr. Coulibaly, thank you for your typically warm and come sen sense comprehensive remarks and to those who have an Important Role for what were doing today. I want to thank you for your tremendous leadership of the dmi and Development Program here at brookings. Let me hasten to add how grateful we are for the president , for the presence of the deputy secretarygeneral of the United Nations. Its always a great honor for me to share any event with you, maam, and you grace us with your presence at brookings. And the president of the rockefell Rockefeller Foundation. Weve known each other and we wouldnt be where we are now, raj with you and your organization and accept my deepest thanks. Ladies and gentlemen, good morning, good afternoon, wherever you may be and welcome to todays virtual launch of the Brookings Center for Sustainable Development. We are absolutely delighted to have you join us for this important event. It is moments like these where even as we celebrate the start of an Exciting Initiative such as Brookings Center for Sustainable Development that it becomes immediately apparent, what an unusual and indeed, precarious times were living in. With the advent of the covid19 pandemic this year, over a million precious lives worldwide and caused the greatest economic crisis since the Great Recession and perhaps even the great depression. The need to address issues of inequality, Structural Racism and inequity, the threat of Climate Change and troubling decline of International Cooperation has become even more paramount. Such issues all enshrined in the United Nations 17, 2030 goals were long considered a north star for the leaders across the world. Something to which we could all steer our efforts. It could be argued that it could be one of the greatest accomplishments in the modern era, securing the future of our children, to a common good, that inspired the creation of the United Nations 75 years ago. Unfortunately, despite having been a keen leader, the United States has since demonstrated an evidence and decline in commitment to the values. Actions such as withdrawing from crucial agreements, disengaging with the Health Organization have only done the u. N. A disservice, affecting the progress towards achieving these vital goals. You know, i often make the point that theres a key difference today between u. S. Leadership, kickly in this administration and traditional American Leadership, meaning american commitment to International Rules based, values based leadership that has largely defined the world order in the last 70 High Pressure plus years in close partnership, frankly, with the United Nations. At the best of times, these two forms of leadership have largely been in synchronization, sync and partners have been able to lead by example and be transformational all over the world and sadly, thats not the case today. While the current leadership. U. S. Might not be supportive of international action, American Leadership is alive and well within many different sec torques, such as academia, business, philanthropy, and Civil Society and many stepped forward and mobilized their organizations and institutions to make a real impact. In time, i hope we will reunite these two forms of leadership within the u. S. But for now, well lead through these diverse parts of our society, that we see a thriving new type of leadership taking place, a coalition of the willing who are at this event today aptally titled charting a new course towards economic, social, environmental progress and building a future that leaves no one behind. Indeed, it is with a commitment to these same creeds that we at brookings decided to take part following our own mission of always working in support of the public good, to create the center for Sustainable Development. For us, this is American Leadership in action as it should be. We all have an obligation to lead on these issues, its not just our hope, it is our mission. Now, designed to be Brookings Institutional commitment to the global Sustainable Development agenda, the u. N. Sustainable goal, the center also institutionalizes a core group of brookings scholars with these issues under John Macarthur, the center, the Centers Group of experts will be able to maximize these focuses on issues such as extreme poverty, the leave no one behind agenda, foreign aid effectiveness, the metrics of Sustainable Development, Sustainable Development finance, Climate Change and much more. I could not be more proud or more thrilled, indeed, that were able to accomplish this important milestone and commitment, and that brookings is making this commitment today to our global community. More, i cannot be more honored than at the likes of John Macarthur and many of our amazing scholars have joined an excellent and noble cause. This task will not be easy if the world is to meet the target set by 2030, we must foster an inclusive recovery post covid19 and a commitment to build back better. However, i have little doubt that even within such a challenging environment, john and his colleagues will rise above our greatest expectations. Its a great day for brookings and we are proud to serve with us alongside the United Nations in achieving these very, very important goals. With that let me turn the floor over to the secretarygeneral who will present her own remarks and madam secretarygeneral, let me close where i began, we are so greatly honored that you would join us at the brookings institution. Thank you, mr. Allen, a pleasure to be with you today. I want to thank my friends to be invited. Launching this bold new center that will tackle head on the worlds biggest Sustainable Development challenges. Id like to salute brookings and its team by sending its own crisp signal to the world that issues of Sustainable Development are center stage for all of humanity. And as recently said in mandela record, i quote, the covid19 pandemic has demonstrated the fragility of our world and laid bare, risks weve long ignored. Gaps in social protection, structural inequality, environmental degradation, the climate crisis, unquote. The Sustainable Development goals, i believe, are the best road map, the best north star as general allen has said, for transitioning to a new place of economic, social and environmental resilience. General allen, let me please take a moment to thank you for your personal commitment and passion for the scg. Your inspiring comments today and a few months ago when we were at the event brookings helped to convene, underscoring the power of the goals and bringing people together around the common refrain of ambition. I know that many people have made it possible, as was said to us, but to celebrate the centers extraordinary starting team of scholars and just to let me have a minute to go through them many are my long time friends. A Global Leader on climate and sustainable infrastructure who has over the years provided such invaluable support to the u. N. s work and let me just say, even in this last couple of weeks. And an intrepid leader not only in latin america and the caribbean, but issues within the u. S. Itself. And my brother of another mother has been the driving force at the agenda since before its inception and continues to lend crucial assistance to our u. N. Team in navigating this years global financing crisis. George ingram has had a uniquely distinguished career in fostering so many cross partisan, cross leadership contributions and developments over the years. Tony, another ally of ours, who was, of course, the lead negotiator over the final year, leading up to the 2015 adoption and today pays a role in fostering multilateral corporations for the goals with results of their climate. And of course, to john, john the new Center Director has been my ally and collaborator for nearly two decades practical and leadership. More recently for the Sustainable Development goal. So as a return to what the center can do for the world. Were aware of shifting and tensions crisis that hurt people and the planet. We need creative and creative leadership from all corners, even and especially think tank. We need your insights, your independence, your ideas, your recommendations and your voices. We also simply need role models of collaboration and International Cooperation. One of the things that makes this unique is the focus the center will have on Network Leadership and no one left behind philosophy. None of are us can achieve this alone, all of us need to pitch together. Everyone needs to be at the table in our communities, around the globe. If we are to end extreme poverty and the pandemic of inequality and protect the climate and ocean for certain generation. In this respect id like to challenge the center for Sustainable Development for the pursue tut of Sustainable Development in all of our countries lend your better for better understanding of issues, seek the ip sight of the young and think about the options and solutions and possibility. The brookings team has already contributed so much in helping the world to tackle its great challenges of Sustainable Development and so much more. But i know were only just getting started. We have a decades to go for achieving to scds and i cant wait to see what we do next together. At this juncture, it is my deep, deep pleasure and im very excited about this, handing over to my friend, john macarth macarthur. Thank you so much, madam deputy secretarygeneral and its such a privilege and honor for all of us to be with you. And thank you for your ever Inspiring Leadership on behalf of the whole world for what you do every day to bring us together. I also just want to start by thanking john allen, general allen and for everyone at brookings, our partners around the world and so many people who have been instrumental in recent weeks, months and years in bringing us to this day of launch. But before anything else, we also are privileged to have a message that we received from the world Health Organization director general, dr. Ted rose and we want today share that briefly before we dive into the rest of the decision. So if we could please pull up that video. It is my pleasure to send my best wishes for the launch of the new center for Sustainable Development at the brookings institution. The world was struggling to meet the sustainable level of goal before the covid19 pandemic. Were even further behind now. The center for Sustainable Development can help to get us back on track to accelerating partnerships. I welcome the centers mission of bipartisan leadership into Sustainable Development. My congratulations to everyone involved at the center for Sustainable Development and especially for your inaugural director, my friend, john mcarthur, we look forward to a fruitful partnership. I thank you and wish you all the very best. We thank you, doctor, for all youre doing and for your kind words today and to help us get through the pandemic and to the other side. Some of you might be asking, what will the center do . Well, weve already heard, as some of the central themes, ranging from leave no one behind to Network Leadership around the world, but we decided to take on five starting topics. First, defining the challenge. What we call Sustainable Developments economics and impeerics. Second, identifying instruments to advance implementation in all countries around the world. Third, advancing Sustainable Development at local levels, bringing these issues to the communities where they matter most. Fourth, advancing effective financing for Sustainable Developments and fifth, advancing in the words of general allen, both leadership and societal. After that you might be wondering who exactly is in the center and id like to take a moment to talk about each of our starting scholars because it is quite an Extraordinary Team. Were so grateful to deputy secretarygeneral for mentioning them, but if we could just bring up a few quick images to show the starting roster. As was mentioned, our leader on so many of the worlds biggest issues at the highest level. Our leader on Climate Action and infrastructure and instrumental on growth and multilateralism and improving global governments. I have to say in the leadup from glasgow implemented this year, next year, our guiding light. Second is marcella, escobar. Marcella lead the future of the work force initiative. How to confront the divergence in people and places. And jobs for those who need it more. Just today marcella is launching a pathway for upwardly mobile jobs in very specific locations across america. Third is george ingram. Our seasoned voice on u. S. Official strategies for Global Development. George focuses on, as weve heard, promoting bipartisan u. S. Leadership, policies to support responsiveness in fragile environments and the intersection between Business Development and Sustainable Development. Today george is actually releasing a very important paper how u. S. Global development structures can be updated for purpose in 2021. Fourth is our most venerable colors without whose insights there would be no center today. Its impossible to summarize the breadth of his work, this morning, homi is releasing covid19s affects on extreme poverty around the world and let me just say the news is not good. A few days ago, he coauthored a piece on chinas influence on the global middle class, as the deputy secretarygeneral said this summer hes been actively supporting the u. N. Policy efforts to finance the covid19 recovery and avoid debt crises around the world and in a few days, thinking about how to update the Global Development, a tech tour rit large to tackle a post pandemic world. Fifth is tony, our embodiment of connecting the local with the global. Again, his work is nearly impossible to summarize, but pursuing things like promoting global city to city cooperation, identifying policies to improve Racial Justice taking on action on Climate Change. At the same time hes working on promoting u. S. Credibility abroad by leveraging the countrys domestic leaders on segs to see how that can connect to the global trfrontie and hell look at an exchange of leadership how they can move forward together. For my own part, i pay special atten