In 2015, the UN adopted 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

The aim of these global goals is “peace and prosperity for people and the planet” – while tackling climate change and working to preserve oceans and forests. The SDGs highlight the connections between the environmental, social and economic aspects of sustainable development. Sustainability is at the center of the SDGs, as the term sustainable development implies.

• The 17 SDGs are broad and interconnected, covering a wide range of issues, from poverty and hunger to climate change and education. 
• The SDGs call for universal action by all countries, not just developing nations, to achieve these goals. 
• The goals are interconnected, meaning progress on one goal can help advance progress on others. 
• The SDGs are intended to be achieved by 2030. 

SDG 1 is to “end poverty in all its forms everywhere.” Achieving SDG 1 would end extreme poverty globally by 2030. One of its indicators is the proportion of population living below the poverty line.

The data gets analyzed by sex, age, employment status, and geographical location (urban/rural). One of the key indicators that measure poverty is the proportion of population living below the international and national poverty line. Measuring the proportion of the population covered by social protection systems and living in households with access to basic services is also an indication of the level of poverty.

Source: Wikipedia

SDG 2 is to: “End hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition, and promote sustainable agriculture.”

Indicators for this goal are for example the prevalence of diet, prevalence of severe food insecurity, and prevalence of stunting among children under five years of age.

SDG 3 is to: “Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages.”

Important indicators here are life expectancy as well as child and maternal mortality. Further indicators are for example deaths from road traffic injuries, prevalence of current tobacco use, and suicide mortality rate.

SDG 4 is to: “Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all.”

The indicators for this goal are, for example, attendance rates at primary schools, completion rates of primary school education, participation in tertiary education, and so forth. In each case, parity indices are looked at to ensure that disadvantaged students do not miss out (data is collected on “female/male, rural/urban, bottom/top wealth quintile and others such as disability status, indigenous peoples”).

There is also an indicator around the facilities that the school buildings have (access to electricity, the internet, computers, drinking water, toilets etc.)

SDG 5 is to: “Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls.”

Indicators include, for example, having suitable legal frameworks and the representation by women in national parliament or in local deliberative bodies.

Numbers on forced marriage and female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C) are also included in another indicator.

SDG 6 is to: “Ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all.”

The Joint Monitoring Programme (JMP) of WHO and UNICEF is responsible for monitoring progress to achieve the first two targets of this goal.

Important indicators for this goal are the percentages of the population that uses safely managed drinking water, and has access to safely managed sanitation. The JMP reported in 2017 that 4.5 billion people do not have safely managed sanitation. Another indicator looks at the proportion of domestic and industrial wastewater that is safely treated.

SDG 7 is to “Ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all.”

One of the indicators for this goal is the percentage of population with access to electricity (progress in expanding access to electricity has been made in several countries, notably India, Bangladesh, and Kenya).

Other indicators look at the renewable energy share and energy efficiency.

SDG 9 is to: “Build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialization, and foster innovation.

Indicators in this goal include for example, the proportion of people who are employed in manufacturing activities, are living in areas covered by a mobile network, or who have access to the internet.

An indicator that is connected to climate change is “CO2 emissions per unit of value added.”

SDG 10 is to: “Reduce inequality within and among countries.

Important indicators for this SDG are: income disparities, aspects of gender and disability, as well as policies for migration and mobility of people.

SDG 11 is to: “Make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient, and sustainable.”

Important indicators for this goal are the number of people living in urban slums, the proportion of the urban population who has convenient access to public transport, and the extent of built-up area per person.

SDG 12 is to: “Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns.”

One of the indicators is the number of national policy instruments to promote sustainable consumption and production patterns. Another one is global fossil fuel subsidies.

An increase in domestic recycling and a reduced reliance on the global plastic waste trade are other actions that might help meet the goal.

SDG 13 is to: “Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts by regulating emissions and promoting developments in renewable energy.”

In 2021 to early 2023, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) published its Sixth Assessment Report which assesses scientific, technical, and socio-economic information concerning climate change.

SDG 14 is to: “Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development.”

The current efforts to protect oceans, marine environments and small-scale fishers are not meeting the need to protect the resources.

Increased ocean temperatures and oxygen loss act concurrently with ocean acidification to constitute the deadly trio of climate change pressures on the marine environment.

SDG 15 is to: “Protect, restore and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably manage forests, combat desertification, and halt and reverse land degradation and halt biodiversity loss.”

The proportion of remaining forest area, desertification and species extinction risk are example indicators of this goal.

SDG 16 is to: “Promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels.”

Rates of birth registration and prevalence of bribery are two examples of indicators included in this goal.

An inclusive society has “mechanisms to enable diversity and social justice, accommodate the special needs of vulnerable and disadvantaged groups, and facilitate democratic participation”.

SDG 17 is to: “Strengthen the means of implementation and revitalize the global partnership for sustainable development.”

Increasing international cooperation is seen as vital to achieving each of the 16 previous goals. Developing multi-stakeholder partnerships to facilitate knowledge exchange, expertise, technology, and financial resources is recognized as critical to overall success of the SDGs.

The goal includes improving north–south and South–South cooperation. Public-private partnerships which involve civil societies are specifically mentioned.