High-Level Breakfast: Scaling-Up Sustainable Consumption and Production, through Sustainable Lifestyles and Skills
Event Objectives:
This high-level breakfast (invitation only) organized by the One Planet Network, UN Environment Programme and hosted by the Permanent Representation of Germany to the UN, will provide an informal and focused setting for Member States and strategic partners to explore how sustainable lifestyles and skills development—especially among youth—can accelerate SDG8 and SDG12, contributing to economic and social resilience through a just transition
It will seek to:
- Highlight the strategic role of sustainable lifestyles and future-oriented skills in accelerating sustainable consumption and production (SDG12) and generating green skills and decent jobs -achieving SDG 8.
- Facilitate exchange among high-level delegates on policy measures, partnerships, and investments needed to advance skills development and inclusive green and decent jobs.
- Showcase scalable initiatives that promote sustainable lifestyles and skills through circular approaches.
As SDG 8 (Decent Work and Economic Growth) is under review at the 2025 High-Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development, the transition toward inclusive, low-carbon, and resilient economies needs greater engagement. Sustainable Consumption and Production (SCP) and circularity are key elements of this transition. Likewise, new narratives and skills are needed for this transition. Addressing the skills gap—particularly among youth, women, and vulnerable populations - is essential to create decent work for more inclusive growth of economies and societies.
The 2025 Progress Report on the 10-Year Framework of Programmes on SCP (10YFP) underscores that “education and training systems are not yet aligned with emerging needs” in sectors such as repair, remanufacturing, reverse logistics, and sustainable agriculture (E/2025/64). Without deliberate investment in skills development, the shift to circularity risks reinforcing inequalities and leaving behind those already disadvantaged in the labor market.
The 10YFP Results Framework (2025–2026) identifies “advancing youth employability with a new skill set for the jobs of tomorrow” as one of four priority solutions to accelerate SCP. It emphasizes the need for integrated approaches that combine digital literacy, entrepreneurship, systems thinking, and social innovation—skills essential for reimagining production and consumption systems. When we pair future-oriented skills with the aspiration for sustainable lifestyles, we can accelerate the shifts to sustainability and unlock new economic opportunities and drive innovation. The Green Jobs for Youth Pact, - a legacy initiative of Stockholm+50 and the GO4SDGs initiative, exemplifies this approach. The Pact aims to create one million new green jobs, transition one million existing jobs into greener practices, and support youth-led sustainable enterprises — addressing both the skills gap and employment challenges.
In this context, the UN Environment Assembly Resolution 6/8 of 2024 on Promoting Sustainable Lifestyles recognizes “that adequate individual education and skills can further accelerate collective efforts for sustainable consumption and production and promote more sustainable lifestyles".
