A beacon of hope shines from the East River: Following a year and a half on a journey replete with bumps in the road and many twists and turns, member states of the United Nations completed a proposal for sustainable development goals, the set of global priorities to steer the international development agenda, once the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) expire at the end of 2015. Far from being obscure or arcane, the proposal of the open working group for sustainable development goals is a momentous step in our common efforts to ensure a life of dignity for all.

While the debate on the new development agenda is yet to be concluded and the proposal for sustainable development goals is only one part of a larger package to be agreed in September 2015, it is worth pausing to reflect on what so many different member states have been able to accomplish together. In many respects, this is a unique and first-of-its-kind outcome, both in terms of what was discussed and how the discussions were conducted.

The breadth and depth of the proposed set of goals is unprecedented. Taken in their totality, they reflect an integrated, universal and transformative agenda, which builds and expands on the lessons learned from the MDGs to address the many and interlinked challenges the world faces today. In a remarkable shift to a universal agenda, the first goal commits countries to eradicate extreme poverty for everyone, everywhere, with special attention to those with disabilities, the aged and our youth.