By Austin Luke, JMU ’21, Political Science
The Sustainable Development Goals are 17 related goals created by the United Nations in 2015. The goals, intended to be met by the year 2030, are designed to be a “blueprint to achieve a better and more sustainable future for all.”
Sustainable development has been defined in many ways, but the most frequently quoted definition is from Our Common Future, also known as the Brundtland Report:
“Sustainable development is development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.”
Sustainable development, as formulated at the United Nations Rio Earth Summit in 1992, is ethics in action, resulting in equity as the way to peace and sustainability. It requires supporting the healthy ecosystems and biodiversity that underpin all thriving communities
Sustainable Development Goal: Life on Land
Life on Land, sets sustainable development goals for institutions around the world to protect, restore, and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably manage forests, combat desertification, halt and reverse land degradation, and halt biodiversity loss.
- Land degradation is defined as the “loss of actual or potential productivity or utility as a result of nature or anthropic factors; decline in land quality as a result of human activity,”
- Desertification is defined as “land degradation in arid, semi-arid and dry sub-humid areas resulting from various factors, including climatic variations and human activities,”
- Biodiversity loss is defined as a “decline or disappearance of biological diversity,”
- Sustainably managed forests is defined as the “balance of economic, social and environmental demands on the forest landscape.”
Human activity, including plastic pollution, deforestation, and greenhouse gas emissions, has negatively impacted 75% of the earth’s surface. Our continued decimation of natural ecosystems rapidly increases the rate of climate change, puts more and more species on the brink of extinction every year, and introduces a variety of global health issues that have not been seen before. Currently, over 1 million animal and plant species are speculated to be extinct within decades. Deforestation continues to minimize necessary land to sustain these species and puts human crop production at serious risk as pollinators become extinct.
Desertification has reduced global terrestrial habitat integrity by 30% and has reduced the amount of arable land available to us by 30 to 35 times the historical rate. These changes contribute to the significant loss of key-organisms that are vital for sustainable growth in our ecosystems. Essentially, at the rate that we are currently degrading our natural ecosystems, we do not have much longer before damages cannot be undone.
By 2020:
- Ensure the conservation, restoration, and sustainable use of terrestrial and inland freshwater ecosystems with obligations under international agreements
- Promote the implementation of sustainable management of forests, restore degraded forests, and increase global reforestation efforts
- From 2015 to 2020, the rate of deforestation was 10 million hectares. Although deforestation continues to be an issue, the number of forests protected remained stable.
- Protect and prevent extinction of endangered species
- Species extinction risk worsened by 10% over the last three decades.
- Introduce measures to reduce the impact of invasive species
- The rate of the number and spread of invasive species continues to rise due to increased trade and transport. A survey done by the International Union for Conservations of Nature’s Invasive Specialist Group showed an increase in commitments by governments to prevent the spread of invasive species.
- Integrate ecosystem and biodiversity values into national and local planning
- By 2020, 113 parties made progress towards this goal, however the rate of progress is not enough for these goals to be met.
The Sustainable Development Goals Report 2020 shows that little to no progress has been made in most of these target areas. While there has been an increase in protected forest areas and growing commitment by governments to protect land and water ecosystems from invasive species, species extinction has worsened over the past few decades.
By 2030:
- Restore degraded soil and strive to achieve a land-degradation neutral world
- Ensure the conservation of mountain ecosystems
General Goals:
- Promote fair and equitable sharing of genetic resources to rebuild and sustain healthy ecosystems
- End poaching and trafficking of endangered species
- Increase financial resources available for conservation and sustainability efforts
- Increase financial resources available to forest management and develop incentives for developing countries to invest in forest management
- Enhance global support to combat poaching and trafficking of endangered species
COVID-19 and the Environment
In 2016, The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) issued a concern for the likelihood of zoonotic epidemics as a result of increased ecosystem degradation. Zoonotic epidemics refer to diseases that are transmissible between animals and humans. Seventy-five percent of emerging infectious diseases, such as bird flu and Ebola, are zoonotic, meaning they are transmitted from wildlife to people.
As human activity continues to put our daily lives into contact with an increased amount of flora and fauna species, the likelihood of these diseases increases. One such instance is the current COVID-19 pandemic, which originated from a species of bat that came in contact with humans. As UNEP Executive Director Inger Andersen warned, “In COVID-19, the planet has delivered its strongest warning to date that humanity must change.”
UNEP has outlined a COVID-19 response plan, titled Working With the Environment to Protect People, that focuses on supporting nations and partners to “build back better” through advanced science, sustainable policies and greener investments. There are four responses in this plan, outlined below:
- Response 1: The Medical and Humanitarian Emergency Phase
- Knowledge, information and awareness: Educating frontline workers on how to manage COVID-19 medical waste
- Country medical waste management capacity assessments: Create policies that take full advantage of current medical waste management practices while also developing more sustainable long-term policies
- Policy and legal frameworks for management of COVID-19 contaminated waste: Developing efficient guidelines for managing COVID-19 waste
- Response 2: A transformational change for nature and people
- Investment in nature for improved human health, sustainable socio-economic recovery, poverty reduction and livelihood recovery
- Science, technical support and advocacy to ensure progress on environmental issues through global processes
- Raising awareness of the links between nature, health and sustainable living
- Continued learning by investing in school programs
- Response 3: Investing to build back better
- Reaching real economy actors to rebuild, scale up and accelerate sustainable consumption and production, and create new green jobs
- Linking recovery efforts with the clean energy transition, nature-based solutions and the Paris Agreement
- Supporting governments to rebuild the next generation of social, ecological and productive infrastructure
Taking Action
At an individual level, those who are concerned with the effects of human activity on ecological systems can practice environmentally conserving behaviors such as recycling, walking, cycling, or using public transportation, and contacting lawmakers about legislation that has an impact on the environment. Individuals can also support corporations that produce sustainably, and organizations that protect natural environments from construction and other activities that destroy life on land such as World Wildlife Fund, The Nature Conservancy, National Parks Conservation Association, Land Trust Alliance, and The Conservation Fund. Individuals can also protect wildlife by engaging in sustainable living behaviors which reduce the amount of waste that would be introduced to the environment. These behaviors include investing in reusable containers, avoiding single-use items, shopping local and buying in bulk whenever possible, and purchasing secondhand clothing and furniture.
Discussion Questions
- How has human activity contributed to land degradation, desertification and biodiversity loss?
- How can you contribute to reversing the effects of human development on the environment?
- What kinds of structural and policy changes might be instituted to protect our ecosystems?
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