Indigenous Peoples' Major Group: SDG 11 – Make cities and human settlements inclusive [Statement]

The 2018 High-Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (HLPF) took place from 9–18 July at the UN Headquarters in New York under the theme: “Transformation towards sustainable and resilient societies”. The 2018 HLPF focused on the following Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs): Goal 6. Ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all Goal 7. Ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all Goal 11. Make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable Goal 12. Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns Goal 15. Protect, restore and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably manage forests, combat desertification, and halt and reverse land degradation and halt biodiversity loss Goal 17: Strengthen the means of implementation and revitalize the Global Partnership for Sustainable Development, that will be considered each year Statement made at the Forum by Suzanne Ingram in relation to Sustainable Development Goal 11 IPMG: SDG 11 – Make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable My name is Suzanne Ingram, I am Wiradjuri from Australia. I acknowledge the traditional custodians on whose lands I address this esteemed forum today. The Indigenous Peoples Major Group is concerned that, while the words of SDG 11 may seem to present a neutral impact, neoliberal political economies rely on concepts that reconstitute who we are as Indigenous Peoples without our input or consent. In wealthy settler nations such as Australia, Canada and the United States, the majority of Indigenous Peoples – as much as 71% - live in metropolitan areas. Homogenised cities impede capacity to co-create nurturing communities: urban and regional planning initiatives and notions of ‘progress’, demand a certain type of subjectivity. Indigenous Peoples are thus reframed and steered by patriarchal and capitalistic values. In this process, states too often abscond from their responsibilities to us as equal citizens, especially those most affected: Indigenous women and children, particularly in regard to affordable housing and homelessness from domestic violence, people with disabilities, young people and elderly. (RECOMMENDATION) A rights framework makes it known that Indigenous Peoples must be recognised for who we are, with all the inherent citizenship and treaty-underscored rights intact, in whatever location we live within our respective countries. Moderator, such rights may be understood by the state as tied to specific lands and territories, however, we remind the High Level Political Forum that our identities as Indigenous Peoples do not pause at the edge of a colonially contrived frontier. The Indigenous Peoples Major Group implores this esteemed forum to affirm that better urban planning and management is: localised and regenerative in fiscal, ecological and social accord. Thank you for your time.

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