Editing IPCC:AR6/WGIII/Chapter-4 (section)

==== 4.3.1.2 Shifting Development Pathways ====

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Development pathways evolve as the result of the countless decisions and actions at all levels of societal structure, as well due to the emergent dynamics within and between institutions, cultural norms, socio-technological systems, and the biogeophysical environment. Society can choose to make decisions and take actions with the shared intention of influencing the future development pathway toward specific agreed objectives.

The SDGs provide a lens on diverse national and local development objectives. Humankind currently faces multiple sustainability challenges that together present global society with the challenge of assessing, deliberating, and attempting to bring about a viable, positive future development pathway. Ecological sustainability challenges include reducing GHG emissions, protecting the ozone layer, controlling pollutants such as aerosols and persistent organics, managing nitrogen and phosphorous cycles, etc. ( [[#Steffen--2015|Steffen et al. 2015]] ), which are necessary to address the rising risks to biodiversity and ecosystem services on which humanity depends ( [[#IPBES--2019a|IPBES 2019a]] ). Socio-economic sustainability challenges include conflict, persistent poverty and deprivation, various forms of pervasive and systemic discrimination and deprivation, and socially corrosive inequality. The global adoption of the SDGs and their underlying indicators ( [[#UN--2017|UN 2017]] , 2018 and 2019) reflect a negotiated prioritisation of these common challenges.

Figure 4.7 illustrates the process of shifting development pathways. The lines illustrate different possible development pathways through time, some of which (shown here toward the top of the figure) remove obstacles to the adoption and effective implementation of sustainable development policies, and thus give access to a rich policy toolbox for accelerating mitigation and achieving SDGs. Other development pathways (shown here toward the bottom of the figure) do not overcome, or even reinforce the obstacles to adopting and effectively implementing sustainable development policies, and thus leave decision-makers with more limited policy toolbox ( [[#4.2.7|Section 4.2.7]] and Figure 4.6). A richer tool box enables faster, deeper and broader mitigation.

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[[File:f373c509da4dc7131ce79f5bcf0d8d24 IPCC_AR6_WGIII_Figure_4_7.png]]

'''Figure 4.7 | Shifting development pathways to increased sustainability: choices by a wide range of actors at key decision points on development pathways can reduce barriers and provide more tools to accelerate mitigation and achieve other Sustainable Dev''' '''elopment Goals.'''

The development pathways branch and branch again, signifying how a diversity of decision-makers (policymakers, organisations, investors, voters, consumers, etc.) are continuously making choices that influence which of many potential development pathways society follows. Some of these choices fall clearly within the domain of mitigation policy. For example, what level carbon price, if any, should be imposed? Should fossil fuel subsidies be removed? Most decisions, of course, fall outside the direct domain of mitigation policy. ''Shifting development pathways toward sustainability'' involves this broader realm of choices beyond mitigation policy ''per se'' , and requires identifying those choices that are important determinants of the existing obstacles to accelerating mitigation and meeting other SDGs. Addressing these choices coherently shifts the development pathway away from a continuation of existing trends.

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