Sustainable Development Goals
The Sustainable Development Goals are seventeen targets set by the UN for ending poverty, protecting the planet and ensuring prosperity by 2030.
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The Sustainable Development Goals are seventeen targets set by the UN for ending poverty, protecting the planet and ensuring prosperity by 2030.
- Includes clean water and quality education
- Applies to all countries
- Progress is reviewed regularly
🧠 Quick quiz
Three questions. Score 2 or more to complete the topic.
What is Sustainable Development Goals?
Within Economics & Civics, which covers money, markets, business, government, law and citizenship: how societies are organised and run, this topic explains Sustainable Development Goals. Economics and civics topics explain how money, markets, laws and government affect people, so each topic here pairs a clear definition with a model.
Check that you can explain Sustainable Development Goals in your own words and give one example from everyday life. If you can do that, you have understood the core idea.
Understanding Sustainable Development Goals helps you read the news critically and weigh up policies, choices and arguments about society.
Sustainable Development Goals in detail
The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are 17 global goals adopted by all UN members in 2015, to be achieved by 2030. They aim to end poverty, hunger and inequality, provide health, quality education, gender equality, clean water, affordable clean energy and decent work, build innovation and sustainable cities, tackle climate change and protect oceans and land, and promote peace and partnerships.
Each goal has targets and indicators for measuring progress. The goals are connected, so progress in one, like education, helps others, like health. They apply to rich and poor countries. Progress has been uneven, and the COVID-19 pandemic and conflict have set it back. Governments, businesses and citizens all have a role.
How the interactive helps you understand Sustainable Development Goals
Click a card to flip it and reveal the answer, then move on to the next one.
Before you change anything, predict the result. Then change one value at a time and check whether your prediction was right. This is a quick way to build a correct mental model of Sustainable Development Goals.
Real-life uses and examples
- Explain Sustainable Development Goals to a classmate using a choice you make yourself, such as spending pocket money.
- Give a balanced answer about Sustainable Development Goals by considering more than one point of view.
- Relate Sustainable Development Goals to a news story about prices, jobs, elections or government spending.
Common mistakes to avoid
- Giving an opinion without evidence or a clear economic or civic reason.
- Confusing a short-term effect with a long-term one.
- Learning the definition without testing it. Use the quiz and the interactive to check that you can apply the idea.
Frequently asked questions about Sustainable Development Goals
What is Sustainable Development Goals?
The Sustainable Development Goals are seventeen targets set by the UN for ending poverty, protecting the planet and ensuring prosperity by 2030.
What are the most important points about Sustainable Development Goals?
The main points are: Includes clean water and quality education; Applies to all countries; Progress is reviewed regularly.
Why is Sustainable Development Goals useful?
Understanding Sustainable Development Goals helps you read the news critically and weigh up policies, choices and arguments about society.
How can I practise Sustainable Development Goals?
Open the interactive at the top of this page and change the controls one at a time. Predict the result before each change, then take the three-question quiz. A score of two or more marks the topic as complete on this device.
Which topics are related to Sustainable Development Goals?
Related topics in Economics & Civics include Refugees and Asylum, Financial Capability, Digital Money and Online Payments.