Sustainable development and the crisis of US hegemony

with Adam Tooze
Historian, publicist and co-editor of the business magazine Surplus

In the early days of the Trump administration, on 4 March 2025, the US representative declared during a supposedly routine vote at the United Nations General Assembly:

‘The United States strongly opposes the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Sustainable Development Goals.’

By withdrawing from the Paris Climate Agreement and rejecting the 2030 Agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals, the USA is not only calling into question the consensus on international development and cooperation that has grown since the 1970s - it is also denying the integration of environmental aspects, such as climate protection, into the development discourse. This discourse experienced its breakthrough with the UN conference in Rio in 1992 and its groundbreaking agreements and has characterised international cooperation ever since.

How can the current moment be placed in this historical context? What significance does it have - especially for Europe, which has played a key role in shaping the sustainable development agenda from the outset? And how should Europe, and Germany in particular, as the continent's most important economic power, respond to these challenges - especially in its relationship with the Global South?

Adam Tooze is a renowned historian and economic expert. He teaches as a professor of history in New York and is co-editor of the business magazine Surplus. His research focuses on global economic and financial history, the crisis of the liberal order and the geopolitical challenges of the 21st century. Tooze is the author of several award-winning books, including Crashed: How a Decade of Financial Crises Changed the World and Shutdown: How Covid Shook the World's Economy, in which he analyses the intertwining of economics, politics and global crises. With his astute analyses and trenchant commentaries, he is one of the most influential voices in the international debate.

Cooperation: 
With The Centre for Rural Development (SLE) at the Humboldt Universität of Berlin.

Information: 
Elena Gnant, Globalisation and Transformation Unit
E: gnant@BOELL.de

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