Infrastructure is essential to a thriving economy as it provides the fundamental framework to support any type of economic activity. The SDGs strive to ensure fair and unobstructed access to quality infrastructure, which is in turn expected to stimulate economic growth. Although the extent of the impact of infrastructure on economic development is sometimes contentious, experts generally agree that sustainable development will depend on resilient and innovative infrastructure:
Water and sanitation infrastructure needs to be improved so that universal and equitable access to potable water is available to all. International investment in clean energy infrastructure must set a precedent for climate action. Construction of roads and bridges enables effective transportation to work, and increases labor market efficiency. It is estimated that 50 trillion dollars are needed to fill the infrastructure gap.
Additional Sources:
While many of the SDGs deal with enhancing the health of local and global communities, Goals 2 and 3 set out direct targets to halt the spread of infectious diseases and reduce food insecurity. Goal 2, “end hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition and promote sustainable agriculture,” relies on several advancements in sustainable food production. From increasing product-capacity of agriculture to ensuring genetic diversity among livestock, there are several areas of policy change and investment in which domestic, foreign, public, and private actors can involve themselves. Goal 3 presents similar opportunities for widespread engagement in improving the health of communities. In order to “ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages,” the goal sets targets across fields including maternal health, environmental diseases, and proper access to health care. Another field of work is in the reduction of infectious diseases. While there has been a significant decline in the spread of illnesses over the past decade, diseases like HIV, tuberculosis, and malaria continue to disproportionately affect low-and-middle-income regions, such as Sub-saharan Africa and South Asia. With these significant challenges and large-scale targets to achieve, various national and international efforts are underway to accomplish SDGs 2 and 3.
Currently, national and international organizations are seeking various ways – some through new technologies and others by revisiting indigenous methods – to combat malnourishment and hunger, and to halt the spread of fatal diseases in order to establish a safer and healthier community and future. A United Nation report published this summer discovered that effective legislatures, secure land tenures and policy incentives have helped combat the deforestation movement as more forests are destroyed in exchange for industrial agricultural production. While not a new topic, agricultural cooperatives, farms owned and run by joint members, have been recognized by the UN in their success in providing sources of income to families and feeding more families consequently. To combat the spread and effect of diseases, water quality maintenance, sanitation measures, educational initiatives and increased data collection are only some of the many aspects the World Health Organization (WHO) are targeting. From 2000 to 2013, Tuberculosis prevention, diagnosis and treatment interventions have saved an estimated 37 million lives. Forgotten in mainstream media, the outbreak of Yellow Fever in dense, urban areas and geographically isolated areas has led to WHO to work with 56 global partners in over 8,000 locations in Africa to provide vaccinations to protect high-risk populations and halt its spread. The UN accentuated that around 17.3 million syringes and 41,000 health workers and volunteers will be needed to achieve this campaign. In an age when data collection has reached new areas and ancient methods are being revisited, the ultimate goal of these plans is to ensure that people are empowered to be nourished without feeling worried and to be healthy without feeling endangered.
Additional Resources:
Issues concerning children’s and women’s well-being, gender equality, and equal opportunities in education, are crucial for global development. It is increasingly evident that countries that provide women with the same opportunities as men are able to not only correct moral injustices but also to accelerate their economic development. Similarly, the growing literature on the importance of human capital accumulation as a function for development indicates the need to eliminate child labor as soon as possible.
Goal 4, to “Ensure inclusive and quality education for all and promote lifelong learning”, contemplates quality education as the foundation to improving people’s lives, reducing poverty and fostering economic growth. Thus, it strives to increase access to education at all levels, and to guarantee equal opportunities for all children.
Goal 5, to “Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls”, focuses on gender issues. It recognizes that gender equality is a necessary foundation for international prosperity and sustainability. As a matter of fact, it endeavors to provide women and girls with equal access to education, healthcare, labor market, and representation in political and economic decision-making processes.
Goal 10, to “Reduce inequality within and among countries”, aims to reduce monetary and non-monetary inequality both within countries and among them. It contemplates the implementation of universal policies that would pay attention to the needs of disadvantaged and marginalized populations, reduce poverty and fuel sustainable economic growth.
Eliminating inequality and improving the lives of women and children around the world will fuel sustainable growth and benefit societies at large.
Additional Resources:
The United Nations Environmental Programme (UNEP) is the international environmental authority that sets the global environmental agenda. The UNEP’s work includes assessing global, regional and national environmental conditions and trends; developing international and national environmental instruments; and strengthening institutions for the wise management of the environment. Some of the key issues to consider under the environment include:
Climate Change: Records dating back to the 19th century show that the average global temperature has increased by more than 1.5°F over the last century. Alongside this, the oceans are also warming and becoming more acidic, ice caps are melting, contributing to rising sea levels, and there is documentation of more extreme weather events, like heat waves and heavy rainstorms. Evidence implies that human activities are largely responsible for climate change. Carbon dioxide acts as a greenhouse gas – trapping heat in the atmosphere. Modeling studies also show that when human influences are removed from the equation, the global climate should have cooled slightly over the past century.
Effects of climate change: Sea levels are expected to rise 1-4 feet in next century. Because of this, low-lying regions like Kiribati and Bangladesh are threatened by submergence. Farmers around the world must also try to adjust to unsteady weather patterns, and in some areas, an increasingly unstable water source. Changing weather patterns are also affecting natural habitats. Coral reefs are highly sensitive to changes in ocean temperature, and are currently undergoing a process called coral bleaching. The melting ice caps also affect Arctic creatures, like walruses and polar bears. The polar bear was the first animal to be added to the Endangered Species Act list because of global warming.
Ecosystem Management: The UNEP also focuses on the development of ecosystem management. From education to private sector buy-in, ecosystem management plays a key role in creating sustainable development. Some issues the UNEP has tackled include: illegal ivory trade in Kenya and promoting sustainable pastoralism.
Chemicals and Wastes: Another issue within the environment has to do with the reduction and effective disposal of waste. For example, the UNEP provides support to developing countries to develop, adopt and enforce policy in line with global conventions revolving around chemical and waste disposal.
Additional Resources:
The introduction and implementation of different forms of technology is fundamental when addressing economic challenges. For instance, new technology facilitates production, it helps to improve efficiency in the manufacturing process and more jobs are created during the process. We can agree that almost every process in development now requires one form of technology or another. Therefore, it is important that the technology is easily accessible. In addition, we have also witnessed other challenges being addressed in our society, such as the empowerment of women, climate change and the issues of sustainability of natural resources.
The main goal is to eventually eradicate poverty and accelerate the growth of many economies in most parts of the world through the use of this technology.
The relevance of new technology ranges from country to country. While it might be relevant to promote unmanned aircraft for the delivery processes in the first world countries, it might be more urgent to focus on facilitating manufacturing tools in the third world countries.
The most common challenges to consider when looking at innovation are: its importance in society, feasibility of the implementation process, whether it is environmentally sound, the political and social concerns in that area and making sure that it is cost effective.
Some Interesting Ideas:
• Mapping a New Market for Robotics Technology
• Send Passwords Securely Through Your Body Instead of Wi-Fi
• Foldable Bike Helmet Offers Recyclable Protection
• A Robot Can Finally Sew a T-Shirt
• We are closer to curing all diseases than we think
