Blog Post

Trajectories for SDGs: Are we headed in the right direction?

  • By Kathy Zhang
  • •
  • 05 Dec, 2015
  • •
By Jessica Espey
On Tuesday, December 1, the World Bank released the first in what is likely to be a series of papers, manuals and guides on SDG implementation, at an event at the United Nations (indeed SDSN has a guide for Getting Started with the SDGs coming out on December 14, so watch this space.) The World Bank’s book –Trajectories for Sustainable Development Goals  –attempts to map out the fiscal space available to countries to fulfill the SDGs, and ways to leverage these resources to accelerate progress. It correlates changes in Gross National Income (GNI) per capita with progress on a set of key SDG indicators. It then projects trends in GNI per capita to ascertain likely SDG outcomes in the future, on a business as usual scenario.
The report provides a helpful framework for ascertaining countries fiscal space, and therefore their capacity to invest in programs in support of the SDGs. Furthermore, the clear correlations between investments and outcomes may encourage some countries to dig a bit deeper in their pockets, but (as highlighted at the launch event by me and my fellow panelist) the report falls short in a few areas. First, although a clean and simple approach, directly correlating GNI per capita with social outcomes fails to take into account the impact of social and economic inequalities upon the efficacy of investments or, indeed, the impact that decisive leadership and political prioritization can have to transform outcomes. Second, the World Bank and the wider international community recognize that some countries will need to receive additional external financing in order to meet the SDGs (as agreed in the Addis Ababa Action Agenda). This in turn requires a clear assessment of needed investment levels that must not be constrained ex ante by available fiscal space. Finally, and more fundamentally, this method lacks the ambition of the SDG agenda, which aims to transform the world- to make it more just, equitable and sustainable. The SDGs were not devised by projecting forward current trends and assessing what was feasible, but instead by identifying what we MUST do and then articulate the means of implementation (including the resources, the means and the political will) to achieve it.
The SDGs are incredibly ambitious and will require both efficient, yet innovative use of fiscal resources. They require new ways of doing business, new partnerships, new types of investment and a radical shift in the way we design and implement integrated policies and programs.
Designing an implementation strategy for the SDGs has to match this level of ambition. First and foremost, the goals cannot be seen as optional, aspirational objectives that we may or may not reach. They need to be translated into defined quantifiable objectives, against which we can measure our progress and our collective trajectories. Many of the goals already have clearly defined end points, such as an U5 Mortality rate of 25 deaths per 1000 live births, while others (such as those on universal secondary school competition) need further attention. As mentioned in Guido Schmidt-Traub and my blog back in October, epistemic communities need to get to work to explain and set these quantitative outcomes and how they can be measured. Governments must use these quantitative objectives to work backwards and map out policies, investments, and interventions required to achieve the goal.

“This kind of approach [backcasting] is common in the health sector but less so in other ideas. The SDSN has helped pioneer a back-casting methodology for energy transformation through our Deep Decarbonization Pathway Project, and we are now exploring a similar approach to map out the transformations required for sustainable agriculture. Such work is needed in every goal area to support the implementation of the SDGs and ensure that are taken seriously as quantitative, time-bound goals – not just considered high-level principles or broad areas of activity.”

Once countries have these “backcasted” strategies, it is possible to conduct a thorough needs assessment to map these needs against available fiscal space (as articulated with the World Bank’s report) but also domestic and international public and private resources, and to start to devise innovative partnerships to finance and support national objectives.
A clear articulation of national objectives, needs, and a pathway to get there is what will instill confidence amongst domestic and international investors, as well as the international public finance community, and it is this that will bring about transformative change. The World Bank Report is a useful tool and a commendable piece of analysis but, in an era when global growth is flat-lining pinning our expectations on expanding fiscal space cannot be the answer, lest we start to roll backwards.
Jessica is the Associate Director of the SDSN and head of its New York office.

SDSN Newsletter - July 2021

By SDSN Secretariat • 03 Aug, 2021 •
This month, SDSN celebrated its growing network, talked about the incredible amount of media coverage on the 2021 SDR, and reflected on this year's High Level Political Forum

WRI Report Spotlight: “Unlocking a Renewable Energy Future: How Government Action Can Drive Private Investment”

By Fiona Laird • 02 Aug, 2021 •
World Resources Institute recently released Unlocking a Renewable Energy Future: How Government Action Can Drive Private Investment, a report outlining key challenges to increasing clean energy investment and deployment. This report digs into the financial and regulatory mechanisms available to support policy frameworks like that outlined in SDSN USA’s Zero Carbon Action Plan (ZCAP), released in October 2020.

European Commission launches proposals to reach 55% emissions reduction by 2030

By Sam Van Hoof • 30 Jul, 2021 •
The ‘Fit for 55' package includes a ban on combustion engines from 2035, a Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism, and a Social Climate Fund among other provisions.

SDSN Canada 2021 Members Meeting Recap

By Giovanni Bruna • 29 Jul, 2021 •

SDSN Canada reconvened the network membership on June 16th, 2021 for the annual Members Meeting.

This year's meeting featured conversations on the current state of the SDGs in Canada, emerging opportunities for post-secondary institutions, networking breakout sessions, and a featured joint presentation by the Brookings Institution and Rockefeller Foundation on mobilizing campuses and communities for the SDGs using the 17 Rooms initiative. A lightning round of member initiatives was also included to highlight a portion of the SDG work happening across the network.

Recap the discussion by reading the meeting notes   or listening to the audio recordings for each session.

Meeting Highlights:

  • The SDSN Global annual Sustainable Development Report 2021  was released June 2021, tracking progress on the SDGs by country (Canada ranked 21st in the world). The report outlines the short-term impacts of COVID-19 on the SDGs and describes how the SDGs can frame the recovery.
  • The Government of Canada has released Canada’s National Strategy for the SDGs, Moving Forward Together. The strategy outlines a set of 30 actions towards the SDGs, including localizing the SDGs, supporting partnerships with Indigenous initiatives, and advancing research into the gaps in Canada's efforts to achieve the 2030 Agenda.
  • The 17 Rooms initiative  is a tool for advancing SDG collaboration, community-centric conversations, and bottom-up action. There are three key principles of consideration:
    • Every SDG gets a seat at the table (a dedicated room).
    • Identify what the next step is, and not the perfect step. What are things you can do together over the next 12 to 18 months that you can implement action on the SDGs?
    • It is about conversations, not presentations. The goal is to learn from each other and create a community of practice.
    • Join the 17 Rooms-X Community of Practice to access the beta toolkit.
  • A ‘lightning round’ of presentations by members spotlighting SDG work from Colleges and Institutes Canada, the Interdisciplinary Research Center in the Operationalization of Sustainable Development (CIRODD), Vancouver Island University, the University of Saskatchewan, and the University of Waterloo.

The meeting was also a chance to invite the membership into initiatives designed to be more intentional about the network’s collective presence and impact. In this vein, the network thinks that the 17 Rooms process can be a critical resource for campus conversations on the SDGs. It also relaunched the Member Challenge , is starting the ‘SDG Teaching Community’ for faculty across the network, and is convening a small working group of interested members to talk about an enhanced governance structure for the network.

Public Consultation on SPA Report

By Lauren Barredo • 29 Jul, 2021 •
We encourage stakeholders to provide meaningful input to aid the development of a better and more complete report. We invite feedback from individuals and organizations, from all sectors.

Environmental and Agricultural Impacts of Dietary Shifts at Global and National Scales

By FABLE • 28 Jul, 2021 •
The FABLE Consortium is releasing two policy briefs over the coming months intended to advise national governments on sustainable land-use and diets. The first brief, entitled “Environmental and agricultural impacts of dietary shifts at global and national scales'' is now available.

Media Coverage of the Sustainable Development Report 2021

By SDG Index • 23 Jul, 2021 •
The Sustainable Development Report 2021 has been covered by the BBC, the Guardian, Washington Post, and more than 100 other media outlets.

The Multidimensional Vulnerability Index and Small Island Developing States (SIDS)

By Isabella Massa • 21 Jul, 2021 •
SDSN together with the United Nations Resident Coordinators in SIDS and the Permanent Mission of Antigua and Barbuda hosted on 12 July 2021 a High-Level Political Forum (HLPF) side event to discuss the issue of measuring multidimensional vulnerability, and its relevance for international financing mechanisms.

SDGs Today Launches My School Today!

By SDGs Today • 20 Jul, 2021 •
SDGs Today recently launched their My School Today! call to action, meant to support students and local communities to geo-reference their schools and education facilities as part of an effort to promote timely information on school locations in Africa

SDSN at the 2021 High-Level Political Forum (HLPF)

By SDSN Secretariat • 20 Jul, 2021 •
SDSN and our networks are hosting a number of events alongside the UN's High-Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (HLPF). We are thrilled to invite you to join us at the following events, which SDSN is hosting or are organized by our partners.
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