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Research Tool - Impact Areas

Sustainable Development Goals

Sustainable Development Goals

What are Sustainable Development Goals?

The Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) are a set of goals and targets to be reached by 2030, agreed upon by, and requiring action from all United Nations (UN) member states. Soil functions play an important role for the realisation of multiple targets and underpin the achievement of the SDG agenda as a whole. There are 17 SDGs in total which include goals to end poverty and hunger, combat inequality and injustice, and tackle climate change by 2030. The 17 goals are “integrated and indivisible”, designed to balance the three dimensions of sustainable development: the economic, social and environmental (UN, 2016). They are further broken down into 169 individual time-bound targets and there currently exist 230 indicators against which they can be measured.

How can Sustainable Development Goals be considered in assessments of soil management?

The UN indicators for measuring progress towards SDGs are designed for impact assessment at the global level and therefore do not directly relate to local, regional or even national decisions. However, successful achievement of the agenda requires efforts at every level in all UN member states. It is therefore important to draw connections between management options and the relevant SDG targets. The BonaRes Assessment Platform supports this by highlighting 25 SDG targets that are directly connected to agricultural management and impact areas under the assessment perspectives of soil related ecosystem services and agricultural resource use efficiency.


On the platform, users may first select one of the SDG targets and then choose from a list of connected impact areas. A factsheet for the chosen impact area is then created which provides information on indicators, strengths & weaknesses pertaining to measurements, correlations with agricultural management and examples of published research. 

References

  • United Nations. 2016. Resolution 70/1. Transforming our world: The 2030 agenda for sustainable development. Online: http://bit.ly/1Y3D3sN (accessed 09 August 2019)