Press Release: United Nations Joint SDG Fund and PVBLIC Foundation sign Strategic Partnership at UNGA 80

Sergio Fernández de Córdova, Executive Chairman of PVBLIC Foundation and Lisa Kurbiel, Head of the Secretariat of the UN Joint SDG Fund pose at the MoU signing ceremony during Partnerships Day. Photo courtesy of PVBLIC Foundation.

NEW YORK CITY, 3 October 2025 – During the 80th Session of the UN General Assembly, PVBLIC Foundation and the UN Joint Sustainable Development Goals Fund came together at the United Nations in New York to launch a new partnership they hope will expand funding to programs that are advancing the SDGs. By signing a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), both institutions affirmed their shared commitment to unlocking innovative financing, strengthening systems, and building partnerships that can accelerate progress on urgent development needs worldwide.

The MoU was signed by Lisa Kurbiel, Head of the Secretariat of the UN Joint SDG Fund, and Sergio Fernández de Córdova, Executive Chairman of PVBLIC Foundation, during Partnerships Day at the UN SDG Media Zone.

“Partnering with the UN Joint SDG Fund is about more than collaboration, it is about building the architecture of financing and execution the world urgently needs. Through PVBLIC’s REIN Hubs program and our Family Offices for Sustainable Development network, we can supercharge the Fund’s work, channeling new capital and capacity to programs and systems that will endure for generations,” said Sergio Fernández de Córdova, Executive Chairman of PVBLIC Foundation.

Managed by the UNDP Multi-Partner Trust Fund Office, the UN Joint SDG Fund is an inter-agency mechanism that drives transformative policy and financing, stimulating strategic investments to accelerate SDG progress at the country level.

Before the signing, Lisa Kurbiel, Head of Secretariat, UN Joint SDG Fund participated in a fireside conversation with Robert Skinner, Deputy Director and Chief of Partnerships and Global Engagement, United Nations, where she discussed the invaluable work of the UN Joint SDG Fund in local community engagement and opportunities to connect and grow. 

“This partnership demonstrates the power of aligning networks and expertise. With PVBLIC Foundation, we are building the financing and partnerships architecture that can accelerate progress on the SDGs for generations to come,” expressed Lisa Kurbiel.

This partnership comes at a pivotal moment, as scaling international support, investment, and collaborative infrastructure is essential to advancing innovative financing models, including nature-based, data-driven, and space-enabled solutions for sustainable development.

The Resilience, Entrepreneurship, Innovation, and Nature (REIN) Hubs are one example of how PVBLIC has built infrastructure across multiple countries where our work already overlaps with the priorities of the UN Joint SDG Fund. During Partnerships Day, Stephen Keppel, President of PVBLIC Foundation, emphasized that through initiatives like REIN, alongside the Family Offices for Sustainable Development (FOSD) network, this partnership can scale impact by channeling resources and capacity to the systems and communities that need them most.

“This partnership symbolizes the power of collaboration through our shared values for social good. Working in tandem with the SDG Fund, we can better attract and direct resources through FOSD and PVBLIC’s wider platforms, ensuring that capital flows to programs creating lasting change and strengthening resiliency across vulnerable communities around the world,” said Stephen Keppel, President of PVBLIC Foundation.

In this new era of cooperation, the partnership between PVBLIC Foundation and the UN Joint SDG Fund will focus on advancing innovative financing, supporting institutional platforms, and capacity-building, among other strategic priorities. Building new pathways for systemic transformation through partnerships is essential to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals.

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ABOUT UN JOINT SDG FUND

The UN Joint Sustainable Development Goals Fund is a flagship multi-partner trust fund of the United Nations designed to catalyze strategic investments that accelerate the achievement of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Hosted by UNDP MPTFO, it brings together the capacities of over 40 UN entities to deliver transformative, cross-sectoral, and integrated solutions at the country level.

ABOUT PVBLIC FOUNDATION

Bold Innovation. Lasting Legacy. Institutional Impact.

PVBLIC Foundation is a global foundation dedicated to redesigning how society addresses its most daunting challenges. At the intersection of diplomacy, development, and innovation, PVBLIC is a trusted platform between governments, the United Nations, global family offices, and the private sector to advance bold ideas into large-scale change. Through its four institutional pillars; Nature, Technology, Capital, and Multilateralism, PVBLIC reconceptualizes potential by constructing the framework for future developments.

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Media Contacts:

Mariana Mellado, Communications Coordinator | mariana.mellado@pvblic.org

Bárbara Gonzalez, Communications Coordinator | barbara@pvblic.org