Climate change can be a scary thing, especially for our generation. We are inheriting the world, and it feels like there has already been irreparable damage done to it. With this in mind, my second Civic Issue post will highlight the positive steps that have been taken to benefit our world. Such as the United Nations Seventeen Goals to sustain development. Not all of these goals directly relate to climate change, but I want to mention all of them because they are all incredibly admirable goals to work towards. Here are the Sustainable Development Goals:
- No Poverty
- Zero Hunger
- Good Health and Wellbeing
- Quality Education
- Gender Equality
- Clean Water and Sanitation
- Affordable and Clean Energy
- Decent Work and Economic Growth
- Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure
- Reduced Inequalities
- Sustainable Cities and Communities
- Responsible Consumption and Production
- Climate Action
- Life Below Water
- Life on Land
- Peace, Justice, and Strong Institutions
- Partnerships for the Goals
All members of the United Nations have created and implemented plans to meet all of the seventeen goals by 2030. Each year, the countries and the United Nations as an organization release reports on their progress in achieving these goals in addition to attending the annual “United Nations SDG Moment” that happens at the beginning of the U.N.’s general assembly.
Goal number thirteen directly names climate change as an issue to address. With rising temperatures and increased CO2 in the atmosphere, this is a significant issue that impacts several other 2030 goals. In order to improve the current climate state, the bodies in the U.N. have identified cooperation as the key factor in making a difference. Which is why the Paris Agreement was created as the first binding document to address climate change by multiple countries. The Paris Agreement and the Sustainable Development Goals are the blueprint for the actions to take on this big issue.
The general targets of number thirteen in climate action are to highlight synergies (collaborative opportunities) between climate change and other goals. They focus on clean energy, water, and agriculture as some main points of interest in meeting the 2030 plan. There is also an emphasis on protecting forests and the oceans as key ecological systems. These are still broad topics to begin with but there have been significant steps in the right direction as a result of the 2030 plan and the Paris Agreement.
The most recent milestones in 2023 are the regional climate weeks for Middle East and North African climate, Latin America and Caribbean, and Asia Pacific. These climate weeks are collaborative events for governments and other organizations to keep the momentum of the climate movement. In addition to these meetings, there are other conferences like the “Sharm El-Sheikh Climate Change Conference” and the “Third Global Climate and SDGs Synergy Conference” that discuss implementation plans, practical methods to implement sustainable elements, and reinforce the need for urgency in implementation. Even within its own milestone reports, the U.N. notes that there are significant gaps in the climate actions already enforced by countries. The main concerns are in filling those gaps and keeping the feelings of need.
Since there is so much emphasis on collaboration and continued action, education is a big part of the process to saving our planet. As a result, virtual learning through webinars like in the “Global Synergies Consultation and Virtual Learning Series” milestone are worked into the process of policymaking and collaboration efforts of multiple organizations involved with the Paris Agreement and the Sustainable Development Goals.
The Sustainable Development Goals are definitely attainable, especially with so much attempted progress. However, there are still questions on the effectiveness of these actions, especially with the current unrest of the world in general. Covid-19 has had a significant negative and possibly positive impact on how these goals are looked at. Covid isolated the entire population from each other, and as a result forced businesses, organizations, big companies, etc. to adapt to online restraints. As a result, education and resources are now more readily available to a larger group of people. There have also been incredible technological advances to enhance sustainability research and implementation. The effects of Covid also exacerbated the issue areas that are already there, highlighting the areas for the U.N. to focus on. Unfortunately, the areas of focus are large. Covid pushed millions of people back into poverty and destroyed other progress made by the Sustainable Development Goals, such as sanitation and health.
Covid is also not the only roadblock causing regression. Rising unrest with the conflict in Ukraine, predicted conflict in Taiwan, and the Israel/Palestine conflict have created new humanitarian crises that require extra resources.
From the progress and lack of progress in the climate aspects of the Sustainable Development Goals, the Paris Agreements, etc. the common theme is that these issues are better tackled together as a world then as individual nations. Too often are relationships between countries, particularly between developed and undeveloped countries, the aim is to use each other to advance some political agenda. Exploitive actions are worse than doing nothing at all in the face of climate change. There should be more collaborations to uplift all the countries equally or else climate change will never truly be solved. The Paris Agreement was a start, especially with it being legally binding, but there should be more requirements that are mandatory instead of voluntary at all levels of government. The fact of the matter is climate change can be found as a cause for almost all of the world’s problems. Maybe not the direct cause, but definitely an agitation to the problem. The Sustainable Development Goals have shown evidence that proves the widespread effects of climate change.
The U.N. has made groundbreaking progress on climate change and other significant issues, but there is still more progress to be made. Climate change is a dangerous issue that should be taken seriously, but things aren’t hopeless.
Resources:
United Nations: Department of Economic and Social Affairs official Website: THE 17 GOALS | Sustainable Development (un.org)
World Economic Forum: “Has the UN Reached its Sustainable Development Goals? Yes and No” Sustainable Development Goals: A positive report on progress | World Economic Forum (weforum.org)
United Nations News: “Sustainable Development Report Shows Devastating Impact of Covid, ahead of ‘Critical’ New Phase” Sustainable development report shows devastating impact of COVID, ahead of ‘critical’ new phase | UN News
It’s always nice to see there’s some hope in the world, even if it feels like it’s still trying to move against itself. It’s sad to see there’s still some areas of gaps towards meeting these goals but it’s good there is at least progress. I agree that there needs to be more binding acts towards tackling climate change, I find it ridiculous that such a important topic can just be seen as voluntary rather than being forced to be mandatory. I hope the U.N. continues to try and progress these goals but starting bringing in more mandatory mandates to move towards these goals.
I briefly remember learning and discussing these goals in school when they were initially released. It was a much-needed beacon of hope for our generation because it is at least a start to inherit versus nothing. Tackling climate change is something that will never be able to be done alone and I hope that as our generation grows into leadership positions we will recognize that and work towards building upon these goals. Whether that be global policy changes or global projects as long as we can do it together I believe there can be hope to save our planet.