Understanding Sustainable Development Goals

Understanding Sustainable Development Goals

Understanding the Sustainable Development Goals and partnerships in civil society are important for creating a livable future for those yet to be born. The Millenium Development Goals will become the Sustainable Development Goals in 2015.

How do you solve the world’s greatest water, food, climate, and energy challenges? The integrative, or nexus, approach recognizes that these issues are interconnected and require collaboration from multiple sectors to address, and ultimately solve, them. It is increasingly clear: There is no place in an interlinked world for isolated solutions aimed at just one sector. If the world is going to reduce hunger and eradicate poverty, achieving security for water, energy and food is critical. This challenge is becoming even more critical with the impacts of climate change, and water will be the medium by which we will address much of the nexus.

Zero Draft – Sustainable Development Goals:

  1. End poverty in all its forms everywhere
  2. End hunger, achieve food security and adequate nutrition for all, and promote sustainable agriculture
  3. Attain healthy life for all at all ages
  4. Provide equitable and inclusive quality education and life-long learning opportunities for all
  5. Attain gender equality, empower women and girls everywhere
  6. Secure water and sanitation for all for a sustainable world
  7. Ensure access to affordable, sustainable, and reliable modern energy services for all
  8. Promote strong, inclusive and sustainable economic growth and decent work for all
  9. Promote sustainable industrialization
  10. Reduce inequality within and among countries
  11. Build inclusive, safe and sustainable cities and human settlements
  12. Promote sustainable consumption and production patterns
  13. Promote actions at all levels to address climate change
  14. Attain conservation and sustainable use of marine resources, oceans and seas
  15. Protect and restore terrestrial ecosystems and halt all biodiversity loss
  16. Achieve peaceful and inclusive societies, rule of law, effective and capable institutions
  17. Strengthen and enhance the means of implementation and global partnership for sustainable development

The video below is one of the outputs from the 2014 Nexus Conference (water-energy-food-climate).

Created by University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Journalism students as an output of the Nexus 2014 Conference, this video illustrates the benefits of the nexus approach and calls for policymakers to keep it in mind while creating the next set of global development goals. Also, to celebrate World Environment Day (June 5), this video highlights the impact of positive environmental action on protecting our planet.

UN Collaboration: Nexus Conference

Nexus Conference