Rapid progress for Australia on the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals is possible and could deliver a fairer, greener, more prosperous nation in 2030 – if managed properly – new UNSW research has found.
Unless there is a groundswell across Australia towards a more sustainable future, Australia will fail to meet the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030, new UNSW research published today in prestigious journal Nature Sustainability has found.
All United Nations countries adopted the SDGs in 2015 as the central pillar of a global action plan for people, the planet and prosperity by 2030.
The 17 SDGs cover major aspects of economic prosperity, social justice and environmental sustainability, from decent jobs and quality education to good health, clean energy and water, and managing the effects of climate change.
Lead author Cameron Allen, PhD researcher at UNSW Sydney's Faculty of Science, said there was little appetite in the Australian Government to fulfil the SDGs, but greater interest among state and local governments, the business community and civil society could make a difference.
“Our results reveal that if Australia continues business-as-usual, we are off-track to achieving the SDGs in 2030 and would achieve about 40 per cent progress on all SDG targets,” Mr Allen said.
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