BALI, Indonesia - Pacific Rim countries pledged to mobilize scientific and technical expertise toward formulating solutions and establishing best practices for sustainable development here on Sunday during APEC meetings, officials said here.

Pushing ahead on sustainable development, Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono launched two initiatives with United Nations Sustainable Development Solutions Network (UNSDSN) to gather together scientists, academics, think tanks and organizations to formulate solutions to climate change challenges in the Asia Pacific region.

Inaugurating the meetings on sustainable development, the Indonesian President made a heartfelt appeal to leaders and private companies to work together to resolve "the greatest challenge of our times."

"The United Nations World Food Program estimates 80 percent of world fisheries are overexploited, depleted or in a state of collapse. There are 870 million undernourished people, one in eight people will go to bed hungry tonight and tomorrow they will not have enough energy to have a productive day. Economic growth has lifted tens and millions out of poverty but this has come with consequences," he told the gathering.  

Yudhoyono insisted that the development model of the last century must change.

"We can no longer afford slipping the problems under the carpet and denying our children and grandchildren the rights to an inhabitable future. Now is the time to make a difference."

The president praised the work of UNSDSN, which will formulate two panels of experts to work on sustainable development in Indonesia as well as the rest of the APEC region.      

With the unprecedented scale of sustainable development challenges confronting the world, the UN think tank hopes to synergize worldwide efforts to address sustainable development challenges of ending poverty, increasing social inclusion, and sustaining the planet.

The UNSDSN gathers leaders from academia, society and private sectors across countries to facilitate the exchange of ideas on how to meet the global development challenge.

The UNSDSN works closely with United Nations agencies, multilateral financing institutions, as well as other international organizations.

The UNSDSN has exemplified that collaboration between all stakeholders is essential when tackling the challenges to sustainable development, Yudhoyono added.