The 2030 Agenda for

Sustainable Development

By endorsing the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Leaving no one behind

Development and its 17 Sustainable Development The 2030 Agenda seeks to benefit all people and
Goals (SDGs) in 2015, the world community reaffirmed commits to leave no one behind by reaching out
its commitment to Sustainable Development. Through to all people in need and deprivation, wherever
this Agenda, 193 member states pledged to ensure they are, in a manner which targets their specific
sustained and inclusive economic growth, social challenges and vulnerabilities. This generates an
inclusion and environmental protection, and to do so unprecedented demand for local and
in partnership and peace. disaggregated data to analyse outcomes and track
The 2030 Agenda is universal, transformative and progress.
rights-based. It is an ambitious plan of action for
Interconnectedness and Indivisibility
countries, the UN system, and all other actors. The
The 2030 Agenda rests on the interconnected and
Agenda is the most comprehensive blueprint to date
indivisible nature of its 17 SDGs. It is crucial that all
for eliminating extreme poverty, reducing inequality,
and protecting the planet. The Agenda goes beyond entities responsible for the implementation of
rhetoric and lays down a concrete call to action for SDGs treat them in their entirety instead of
people, planet and prosperity. It encourages us to take approaching them as a menu list of individual
bold and transformative steps which are urgently goals from which they pick and choose.
needed to shift the world on to a sustainable and Inclusiveness
resilient path. The 2030 Agenda calls for the participation of all
segments of society, irrespective of their race,
How did we get here? gender, ethnicity and identity to contribute to its
Gaining momentum since the 1972 UN Conference on implementation.
Human Environment all the way to the 2015 UN
Sustainable Development Summit, the 2030 Agenda is Multi-Stakeholder Partnerships
a culmination of more than four decades of The 2030 Agenda calls for establishing multi-
multilateral dialogue and debate on tackling stakeholder partnerships for mobilizing and
environmental, social and economic challenges faced sharing knowledge, expertise, technology and
by the world community. Adopted as a result of financial resources, to support the achievement of
extensive negotiations among member states, the SDGs in all countries.
accountability for the implementation of the Agenda
primarily rests with national governments. Dimensions of the New Agenda
At the heart of the 2030 Agenda are five critical
Core Principles Underpinning the Agenda
dimensions: people, prosperity, planet, partnership
The 2030 Agenda embodies the following core and peace, also known as the 5Ps. Traditionally,
principles: viewed through the lens of three core elements: social
Universality inclusion, economic growth, and environmental
The 2030 Agenda is universal in scope and protection, the concept of sustainable development
commits all countries, irrespective of their income has taken on a richer meaning with the adoption of the
levels and development status, to contribute 2030 Agenda which builds upon this traditional
towards a comprehensive effort towards approach by adding two critical components:
sustainable development. The Agenda is partnership and peace. Genuine sustainability sits at
applicable in all countries, in all contexts and at all the core of these five dimensions.
times.
The five dimensions inform development policy The SDGs help translate the core values and principles
decisions. This means that for a development underlying the Agenda into concrete and measurable
intervention to be results
sustainable, it
Not all goals have the same standing. While some
must take into
goals appear more overarching or “finalistic” in
account the social,
nature, others can be seen as “means” to those
economic and
finalistic goals. For example, the water and energy
environmental
goals (SDGs 6 and 7) are not, strictly speaking, end
consequences it
goals. We do not want energy and water for their own
generates, and
sake, but because they are means to our true goals like
lead to conscious
health and wellbeing. However, ensuring access to
choices in terms of
clean energy and water are such crucial issues that
the trade-offs,
they demand specific focus. Looking at some SDGs as
synergies and spin offs it creates. Additionally, policy
means to others can help us appreciate the
makers need to ensure that any intervention is
interlinkages of the SDGs.
developed, owned and carried forward with the
relevant partnerships and leverages the appropriate Conclusion
means of implementation.
The 2030 Agenda inspires us to think creatively by
In this way, the 2030 Agenda and the SDGs together leveraging innovative approaches and critically
represent a holistic approach to understanding and rethinking the way we approach the development
tackling problems, by guiding us to ask the right challenges of today. Advocacy and awareness raising
questions at the right time. efforts for the goals, which are actionable and
achievable, are crucial to mobilize support for the
The Sustainable Development Goals Agenda. However, in order to create long-lasting
Contrary to what many believe, the SDGs do not change, awareness raising and advocacy are not
represent the Agenda in its entirety. They are not a enough.
summary of the Agenda, but rather focus areas Substantive knowledge about the Agenda in its
necessary to achieve sustainable development. The 17 breadth and depth will be key to realising the
goals should be seen as indispensable pieces in a big Sustainable Development Goals. By adopting the
and complex puzzle. In order to truly understand the Agenda, the UN member states committed to an
Agenda, one needs to look at the puzzle as a whole, ambitious plan of action which requires the concerted
but at the same time, it is impossible to complete the efforts of all segments of society including civil society,
puzzle without those pieces. SDGs are the pressure development practitioners, the private sector and
points that have the capability to affect the wellbeing academia. Each one of us, in our personal capacities,
of the entire planet and the people who live on it. also needs to take concrete steps towards sustainable
Because the SDGs are the result of extensive political life choices. A commitment to life-long learning is
negotiations and individual consultations, they are not required to advance the transformational agenda that
perfect, but inarguably they represent some of the lies ahead of us.
most urgent and universal needs of the world today.

UNSSC Knowledge Centre for Sustainable Development

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