A/77/290 need to thrive. 17 As the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights has stated in its general comment No. 13 (1999) on the right to education, p. 55, paras. 6 (c) and (d), and general comment No. 14 (2000) on the right to the highest attainable standard of health, paras. 12 (c) and (d), steps must be taken to ensure that programmes implementing economic, social and cultural rights take into account the needs of culturally diverse communities and are appropriate and adaptable to those specific cultural needs. International human rights standards require positive steps to be taken to ensure that inequalities are reversed. Such an approach has the transformative potential to create a bigger space for diverse communities to take part in societal change. 24. Some scholars consider, however, that the Sustainable Development Goals cannot constitute a positive drive towards real sustainable development, as they have been created with the prevailing view of development in mind, reflecting the prevailing model of economic growth, including extraction, production and consumption. Such a model, they claim, maintains the status quo a nd the continuing violation of the rights of vulnerable and marginalized persons. 18 Contributions sent to the Special Rapporteur also contain complaints that the framework of “international development cooperation” is based on this economic model and does not consider the values and ways of life of local populations. 19 To tackle the root causes of poverty and inequality requires the radical transformation of the economies and societies in which everyone lives. 20 One can see the seeds of change in the operation of global investment and trade bodies, with new guidelines and new ways of work under way. This will be the focus of the next report of the Special Rapporteur to be submitted to the General Assembly. 25. Of great importance is the recognition of the link between the dominant conceptions of development and colonialism as imperial processes which have been imposing a certain understanding of “progress” that is not compatible with the affected communities’ and societies’ understandings. 21 There is a need to decolonize development paradigms to protect and enable cultur ally diverse sustainable development practices that acknowledge different world views and consider alternative frameworks that sit outside mainstream approaches. 26. Viewing alternative visions for development as folkloric and exotic must stop. These alternative visions express the cultural diversity of humanity and must be respected. There is also a need to unearth and acknowledge historical injustices committed in the name of progress and development in violation of the cultural rights of local populations. “Sustainable development” has to be democratized in a way similar to the democratization of the concept of “culture”. 3. Self-determined and community led 27. Sustainable development must be self-determined and community led. 22 It is not sufficient for development to be culturally sensitive or culturally appropriate; it should be contextualized to specific cultural environments and seek to fully align __________________ 17 18 19 20 21 22 8/24 Contribution of International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions, p. 1. Margot E. Salomon, “Culture as an alternative to ‘Sustainable Development’”, Third World Approaches to International Law Review (TWAIRL): Reflections, No. 44/2022, 7 July 2022. Available at https://twailr.com/culture-as-an-alternative-to-sustainable-development/. See also the contribution of Fundació Josep Irla, pp. 2 and 3. Danish Cultural Institute, p. 2. John Linarelli, Margot E. Salomon and Muthucumaraswamy Sornarajah, The Misery of International Law: Confrontations with Injustice in the Global Economy (Oxford University Press, 2018), pp. 254 and 255. Contribution of the Grupo de Trabajo sobre Derechos Culturales, p. 1. See also Joshua Castellino in expert consultation. Contribution of Benin on local leadership, p. 3. 22-12659