by Susan Alexander, AWC Bern
The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals were established in 2015 as part of the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development; the world is now at the halfway point to reaching those goals. How are we doing, in terms of reaching the goals on time?
It depends on who you ask.
Events in the last few years have helped to knock the global collective action for sustainable development off track. The COVID-19 pandemic, conflict such as the war in Ukraine, and the “triple planetary crisis” of climate change, pollution and biodiversity loss, have slowed down and even reversed the progress toward the SDGs.
Climate change is very real and is becoming an increasing threat to our planet every year. This year saw the hottest three months on record, and it seems 2023 may be the hottest year ever.
The UN held its High-Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development, which is an annual event, on September 18-19, 2023. This body adopted a resolution to put forward a Political Declaration on Sustainable Development to accelerate the SDGs, which the UN General Assembly subsequently endorsed.
The declaration includes extensive discussion of the many areas where we fall short globally, including hunger, poverty, lack of education, gender inequality, water, air and land pollution, financing gaps, crippling debt – in short, all areas covered by the 17 SDGs. The declaration pledges to support the Secretary-General’s proposal to reform the development system, and to stimulate SDG action with 500 billion USD in support annually.
Climate-related goals are not nearly as advanced as they should be; the consensus is that only 15% of the 169 targets for all 17 goals are on track, mostly in the social sustainability area.
Another issue is the lack of transparency in tracking SDG progress. To help improve the use of the data gathered, UN DESA’s Statistics Division recently launched its UN Data Commons for the SDGs. “This new platform integrates authoritative SDG data and insights from across the UN System into a publicly available tool with AI-powered search functionality and an innovative, user-friendly interface.” Better and more available information means that SDG actors can analyze more precisely where further support is needed for a given SDG topic. For instance, FAWCO is active in supporting SDG 5, Gender Equality. It would be helpful for UN officials as well as activists worldwide to know where the world lags behind most – rural or urban areas, support for women or girls, educational or economic disadvantages, workers in the workforce or at home.
As an international civil servant in a specialized UN agency, I work with the SDGs on a daily basis, monitoring progress and carrying out projects designed to help foster the SDGs. UN agencies are busy mainstreaming the SDGs in all aspects of political, social and scientific actions globally. From my perspective, the UN has done a great deal since 2015, but there is much more we can do. Again, the UN General Assembly Political Declaration at the SDG Summit urges us to recommit and step up our engagement.
Civil society contributes enormous energy in terms of research, thought and action to the advancement of the SDGs. FAWCO and the projects we support are but one example. Think tanks, charities, medical aid organizations, projects to provide cookstoves, electricity, running water – these organizations provide funds, organization, labor, and guidance in all areas of the SDGs. Finally, an entire area is devoted to governance and the rule of law in ensuring the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, especially under Goal 16 (Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions).
What can we do?
- Reduce, re-use, recycle.
- Grow a wildlife-friendly garden.
- Learn what your local companies, merchants, vendors, and governments are doing. Read their sustainability reports online, write to them and demand they step up their game on climate action and social sustainability funding.
- Share your knowledge and opinions in social media.
- Go old-school and write a “letter to the editor.”
- Volunteer for an organization that supports the SDGs.
Yes, each of these actions seems insignificant in the face of the problems we see all around us, but it’s about solidarity, and how each small, seemingly insignificant actions can add up to real change.
For more information on SDG progress, please see The Sustainable Development Goals Report: Special Edition 2023.
For additional information, here are several resources:
- UN Report, "Synergies Solutions for a World in Crisis: Tackling Climate and SDG Action Together", First Edition 2023
- Interactive tool developed by the UN presenting the 17 goals, the history, a short video and links to much more. Use as a refresher or share to learn!
All images from Unsplash
