Global Goals

In 2015, all 193 United Nations Member States agreed to a set of Global Goals (also known as the Sustainable Development Goals or SDGs) designed to advance human dignity while protecting the planet.

The 17 goals and 169 targets are the world’s shared “to-do” list with a 2030 due date: ending preventable diseases like HIV/AIDS and malaria and maternal deaths; improving access to education, food, and sanitation; and promoting gender equality. To achieve the ultimate goal of ending extreme poverty, the private sector, local cities, national governments, and non-profits are working together to strengthen institutions, like rule of law, support access to better work, and combat climate change.

According to the most recent UN Sustainable Development Goals report, important progress is being made in improving lives. Despite these signs of improvement, however, significant challenges to realizing the Global Goals remain, and on certain indicators, the UN has recorded stagnation or even backsliding.

The most recent UN Sustainable Development Goals report breaks down the successes and challenges that remain:

Given the voluntary nature of the SDGs, perhaps gaps in implementation are to be expected. Indeed, neither the Millenium Development Goals (MDGs) nor the Global Goals imposed any legally-binding obligations on Member States. Instead, they provide the international community with a detailed roadmap for achieving progress on a full range of measures related to the well-being of humanity and the planet.

However, the fact that 193 Member States were even able to agree on such a common set of objectives—many of which carry more than a hint of U.S. influence—at all, is itself an achievement. Many companies are also using the framework of the goals and making commitments to achieving them because they know that their business will thrive when we end extreme poverty. Moving forward, it will be incumbent upon the U.S. to remain engaged and use its position of global leadership to help ensure that these lofty, but achievable, standards become more than mere words.