written by Audrey Kellehor
You may have heard the world mention the term “UN SDG” a few times recently. Okay, a lot of times. And you might be wondering what the heck it means. Well, the acronym ( UNSDG) stands for, United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. Sounds pretty straight forward, right? Do not feel bad if you still have no idea what I’m even talking about. The title, Sustainable Development Goals is a commonly used and vague explanation for an unbelievably dense and important topic. So TheEnergyGeek is here to dig deeper for you.
The concept of SDGs coined in 2015 when the United Nations set out these goals as a part of their global 15 years plan to (1) protect the plant, (2) end poverty, and (3) ensure prosperity for all. The use of the SDGs are as benchmarks for improving the overall quality of life and sustainable a healthy planet for us to enjoy!
It’s pretty clear that these Global Goals are essential to our success as a planet as they cover the three dimensions of sustainable development: economic growth, social inclusion, and environmental protection. The Sustainable Development Goals not only measure the changes in the well-being of people, economic development of countries and bettering communities on the planet but they are all so interconnected they pledge “ to leave no one behind”
The UN resolution refers to five ‘areas of critical importance’; sometimes known as the 5 ‘P’s, these are People, Planet, Prosperity, Peace and Partnerships. See how the Global Goals fit into the areas of importance:
People: No Poverty (Goal 1) , Zero Hunger (Goal 2), Good Health and Well-being (Goal 3), Quality Education (Goal 4), Gender Equality (Goal 5), Clean Water and Sanitation (Goal 6)
Planet: Climate Action (Goal 13), Life below Water (Goal 14), Life on Land (Goal 15)
Prosperity: Affordable Clean Energy (Goal 7) , Decent Work and Economic Development (Goal 8) − Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure (Goal 9), Reduce Inequalities (Goal 10) , Sustainable Cities and Communities (Goal 11), Responsible consumption and production (Goal 12)
Peace and partnerships: Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions (Goal 16), Partnerships for the Goals (Goal 17)
The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals do have a clear goal on climate action (Goal 13), but the goals were launched with the strapline of ensuring that no one is left behind. The SDGs are the formal stimulus for us to innovate collectively at scale and pace; and to think and act better not bigger.
