The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) aim to replace the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) which expire in 2015. Focusing on goal 15 of the SDGs, the measurability and overall effectiveness of the targets will be assessed.
Targets 15.2 through 15.5 and 15.8 focus on conserving specific ecosystems and reducing biodiversity loss. Each specifies a deadline year (2020 or 2030) for being in progress or completed, which helps to measure the timeline for the goal. Each target can be quantified in several ways but they don’t specify how exactly to quantify it. The target year makes the deadline measurable but the method of measuring the target itself is not specific enough.
15.1 and 15.6 have similar intentions to the aforementioned targets
…show more content…
15c discusses enhancing global support for 15.7 but does not state by which method(s) it will be measured nor any specific thresholds to meet. Therefore it is too ambiguous to measure.
15.9 is ideal but it’s difficult to measure how much of biodiversity and ecosystem values are integrated into planning. The target is measurable but not specific enough.
Financial resources in 15a are quantifiable but the financial resources used and the amount of money is not stated anywhere, therefore it is not explicit enough. 15b mentions mobilizing all resources but it does not mention which resources and how much of each resource is needed. Thus, 15b is not measurable; it is much too vague. Community support in 15c is also quite vague and not specific enough.
Targets 15.2 through 15.6 and 15.8 are generally measured on an international scale but the criteria are not specific enough and/or are lacking in some areas. For example, deforestation in target 15.2 can be directly measured using technology like remote sensing but are usually only studied in small regions at once. Namely, a global study of deforestation rates in humid tropical forests was last done in 2002 (Achard et al., 2002). The International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) currently monitors deforestation, however, like the SDGs, they employ measurable but not specific enough targets, such as “encourage
On September 8, 2000, the United Nations Millennium Summit concluded with the adoption of the Millennium Declaration as a global vision for the future. In the following years, the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) evolved in an effort to save the Declaration from slipping into oblivion. They created a momentum that brought the issue of development back on the international agenda, overcame aid fatigue and galvanized the public. With the MDGs’ expiration date of 2015 fast approaching, the world community is focusing on the development of a post-2015 agenda.
Reforms are among the most important ideas to think of in the 21st century. They are a global phenomenon that has gathered pace in global economies. The 21st century is also unique in the developments that have taken place. These developments can partly be attributed to the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) that was a historic commitment made in 2000 (Enthoven & Minarik, 2012). The MDGs have gained widespread acceptance in rich and poor countries alike. The goals have been used to guide all development efforts and act as guidelines to measure the level of success in different countries (Enthoven & Minarik, 2012). With three months of the target year of 2015, evidence suggests that there is substantial progress.
In their paper entitled “The Millennium Development Goals and Post-2015: Squaring the Circle,” Carin and Bates-Eamer argue that “purely aspirational goals are not enough. … Indicators are critical to measure starting points and what needs to be done. People and organizations respond to the incentive embodied in the indicators that measure their performance.” In addition, the concept of clear, measurable targets was inherent in two out of the three strengths of the MDGs laid out by Jeffrey Sachs: first in his statement that “the MDGs were reasonably easy to state – eight simple goals that fitted well on one poster!” and secondly in his assessment that the MDGs “could be pursued through practical and specific measures adopted by governments, businesses, and civil societies worldwide.” Overall, these authors have all argued that the use of clear, measurable targets has contributed to the success and the longevity of the Millennium Development Goals by providing incentives and
Firstly, the targets that are measurable can be broken down into two distinct categories: economic output and resource use/waste.
Additionally, the aim of Goal Ten of the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs 2016 through 2030) is to “Reduce inequality within and among countries”, and target will be assessed at the high-level and
With fewer than 3 years prior to the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) target date of 2015, development professionals, such as agencies from the United Nations (UN), already are starting discussions targeted at identifying the curves for the post-2015 growth plan. (UN, 2012).
Aside from the MDGs being the first comprehensively outlined global development goals that were agreed by UN member states, the fact that they provide specific indicators illustrate that the MDGs are able to provide the initial frameworks for developing countries to achieve development objectives deemed as important by setting specific goals and targeted indicators which statutory countries have pledged to fulfil by the end of 2015. The multi-dimensional nature of what consist of development as outlined in the MDGs will also enable us to incorporate a more holistic view of development, as opposed to the traditional interpretation of development that almost exclusively refers to economic progress.
The recent adoption of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in 2015 by the United Nations General Assembly was a strong endorsement of the largest coordinated international development and poverty alleviation experiment in human history: the prior 15 years’ Millennium Development Goals (or MDGs). Created and ratified by the United Nations General Assembly in 2000, the MDGs were a set of eight very ambitious, coordinated targets intended to inform, organize, and direct the global development agenda for the subsequent 15 years. These goals were to:
The United Nations has recently worked on establishing goals each with specific targets regarding sustainable development. Goal 14: Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development, and its associated targets will be analysed for measurability and thoroughness.
This essay is going to discuss the UN recent drafting of a set of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and more specifically the idea behind goal number 7 : “Ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all”1.
As defined by The Guardian writer, Liz Ford, the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG’s) are a new, universal set of goals, targets and indicators that UN member states will be expected to use to frame their agendas and political policies over the next 15 years. These goals are an expansion on the past goals, called the Millennium Development Goals (MDG’s) which were set in 2001, in the 2000 Millennium summit which was the largest meeting of world leaders in history gathered to discuss global issues and possible resolutions to them by setting 8 goals that were to address all the problems that came with extreme poverty, these were set to finish by the end of this year. The 17 goals were them made up as continuation and more specific way to go through a broad spectrum of global issues from the end of poverty in all its forms everywhere to providing equitable quality education for all. In this assignment I will be analysing some of the goals and their likelihood to being achieved by their 2030 deadline.
Whether a target is measurable or not depends largely on the wording of the specific target. A ‘measurable’ target is one where by 2030 we should have tangible evidence that goal has been accomplished (Virginia Edu). The trends that 3 out of the 5 available targets set are that they all have non-quantifiable targets. The targets in question are 7.2, 7.a and 7.b. Those targets use terms such as ‘enhance’, ‘increase substantially’, or ‘expand’ to specify a target. In all 3 cases the terms are indeed metrics to which we can measure the targets. As a result, all 3 targets can be considered measurable. That leaves us with the 2 energy targets 7.3 and 7.1. They are the only 2 in the list that the UN actually quantified. Presuming that the current rate of improvement is actually known, we can measure 7.3 using the essential metric of whether or not that rate is doubled by 2030. For 7.1, the essential metric is that access to modern energy services is pretty much guaranteed worldwide. That includes the world’s poorest.
Since 2000, the number of out-of-school children has dropped by nearly 50% . This progress has been very little for children living in conflict. The proportion of out-of-school children living in conflict-affected countries has been increasing. Despite this progress towards universal primary education, far too many children – 58 million – remain out of school globally, and millions are not learning.
On September 25th, the UN officially announced a new list of Sustainable Development Goals(SDG’s) that would replace the previous Millennium Development Goals (MDG’s) that would expire in 2015. Among the list of SDG’s released by the UN, was one in particular, goal number 14, which stated, in relation to Oceans, the aim to “Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas, and marine resources for sustainable development.” In addition to setting the goal previously mentioned, the UN also set out a list of targets in order to evaluate the set goals.
Today, the focus is on Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) which was established in 2015.It is an improvement of the millennium development goals (MDGS) in that, its focus is in all countries in terms of not what the developed nations should do for the developing nations but addresses major global challenges and the need for all nations to work together in order to promote global wellbeing for the present and future generation. This contrast with the MDGs, where the focus was on only developing countries (Sachs, 2012). Additionally, SDGs provides a better coverage of social economic, environmental and institutional dimensions by discussing the global environmental issues on water, ocean, ecosystem and climate change as stipulated in (ICSU, ISSC, 2015).