Written By - Patricia Tsai
Edited by - Sibani Malhotra
The 17 UN sustainable development goals are goals for the earth created by the United Nations, introduced in 2012. Each goal has targets, indicators, progress and info.
These goals are as follows:
1. No poverty: This goal is trying to “end poverty in all forms everywhere.” There are 7 different targets for this sustainability goal. COVID-19 has led to the first rise in extreme poverty in this generation, around the world. The global poverty rate is estimated to be 7% in 2030.
2. Zero hunger: This goal aims to “end hunger, achieve food security and improve nutrition and promote sustainable agriculture. There are 8 different targets for this goal. Since the global pandemic, it is estimated that 70-161 million more people are likely to have experienced hunger. Child malnutrition has also increased during the pandemic. “One third women of reproductive age suffer from anaemia, in part due to nutrition deficiencies.”
3. Good health and well-being: This goal is aiming to “Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages.”Goal 3 has 13 different targets. The pandemic has slowed down the progress estimated to have been made in this goal. Due to the pandemic worsening, health care workers have been short in supply and have been stretched to their limit, causing a big dilemma about their health and well-being.
4. Quality education: Goal four is trying to “Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all.” For quality education there are 10 different targets. Covid-19 has wiped out 20 years of education gains. About 9% of children in grade 1 through 8 fell below minimum reading levels in 2020.
5. Gender equality: This goal attempts to “Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls.” For this goal there are 9 different targets. Violence against women must end, it is still a massive problem many women and girls face today. 1 in 3 women have been victims to physical or sexual violence at least once in their life.
6. Clean water and sanitation: This goal aims to “Ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all.” Goal six has 8 different targets. Billions of people globally lack clean and safe water and thus, clean water needs to be accessible to everyone.
7. Affordable and clean energy: This goal is trying to “Ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all.” For goal seven there are five targets. Approximately a third of the world's population uses unsafe and insufficient cooking systems. Millions of people across the world do not have access to electricity.
8. Decent work and economic growth: This goal is trying to “Promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all.” There are 12 targets for this goal. During the pandemic many individuals have lost their businesses and their jobs, which may lead to an increase in unemployed youth and youth out of school.
9. Industry, innovation and infrastructure: This goal aims to “Build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialization and foster innovation.” There are 8 different targets for this goal. Global manufacturing has decreased due to the covid-19 pandemic, which needs to be looked into and imporoved.
10. Reduced inequalities: This goal is aiming to “Reduce inequality within and among countries.” There are 10 different targets for this goal. The pandemic is assumed to reverse progress on this goal. Over 4000 deaths and disappearances were recorded on migratory routes in 2020.
11. Sustainable cities and communities: This goal aims “To make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable.” Goal 11 has ten different targets. The pandemic has increased the numbers of slum dwellers, 156 countries have created national urban policies, however, 50% of those countries are in the implementation stage, showing an improvement.
12. Responsible consumption and production: To “ensure sustainable and production patterns” is the target of this goal. It has 11 different targets. The earth's “material footprint,” which is the indicator that allows us to take into account the full amount of raw materials used to satisfy a given country’s level of domestic consumption, increased by 70% between 2000 and 2017. Many developing countries still have not started using renewable energy. Electronic waste continues to be disposed of incorrectly.
13. Climate Action: This goal aims to “Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts.” It has 5 different targets. Greenhouse gas emissions are still rising. In 2020 the global average temperature was 1.2°C above pre-industrial baseline. We need to end climate change, and bring temperatures back to normal.
14. Life below water: It is trying to “Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development.” For this goal there are 10 different targets. Marine pollution affects our oceans and our water bodies. Dead zones, which are areas of reduced oxygen. are rising at a faster rate than ever today. Over 50% of marine biodiversity is not protected. Overfishing is also a big risk to marine wildlife and damages ecosystems.
15. Life on Land: This aims 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.” Goal 15 has twelve different targets. Over a quarter of the species assessed by the IUCN Red List, which is a critical indicator of the health of the world’s biodiversity, are threatened for extinction. Progress has been made towards sustainable forest management.
16. Peace, justice and strong institution: This aims 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.” This goal has twelve different targets. The global COVID-19 pandemic is making the risk of children's exploitation such as child labour and trafficing increase. Only 82 countries have independent national human rights institutions in compliance with standards.
17. Partnerships for the goals: This aims to “Strengthen the means of implementation and revitalise the global partnership for sustainable development.” This goal has nineteen different targets. About 63% of low income countries and lower to middle income countries are in need of additional financing for data and statistics to face the challenges posed by the pandemic.
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