Untangling interactions and prioritizations among Sustainable Development Goals in the Asian Water Tower region

Yizhong Huan; Tianxiang Zhang; Guangjin Zhou; Linxiu Zhang; Lingqing Wang; Siyu Wang; Zhaohui Feng; Tao Liang

doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.162409

Untangling interactions and prioritizations among Sustainable Development Goals in the Asian Water Tower region

Sci Total Environ. 2023 May 20:874:162409. doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.162409. Epub 2023 Mar 5.

Authors

Yizhong Huan¹, Tianxiang Zhang², Guangjin Zhou³, Linxiu Zhang⁴, Lingqing Wang³, Siyu Wang³, Zhaohui Feng³, Tao Liang⁵

Affiliations

¹ School of Public Policy and Management, Tsinghua University, Beijing, China; Institute for Sustainable Development Goals, Tsinghua University, Beijing, China.
² School of Automation and Electrical Engineering, University of Science and Technology Beijing, Beijing, China.
³ Key Laboratory of Land Surface Pattern and Simulation, Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.
⁴ United Nations Environment Programme-International Ecosystem Management Partnership (UNEP-IEMP), Beijing, China; Key Laboratory of Ecosystem Network Observation and Modeling, Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.
⁵ Key Laboratory of Land Surface Pattern and Simulation, Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China. Electronic address: liangt@igsnrr.ac.cn.

PMID: 36878299
DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.162409

Abstract

Understanding the interactions among Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) is critical for prioritizing SDGs and accelerating the overall SDGs progress. However, SDG interactions and prioritizations at the regional scale have rarely been researched (e.g., Asia), and more importantly, their spatial differences and temporal variations remain elusive. Here, we focused on the Asian Water Tower region (16 countries), which represents major challenges for Asian and even global SDG progress, and we assessed the spatiotemporal variations in SDG interactions and prioritizations in the region from 2000 to 2020 based on correlation coefficients calculations and network analyses. We observed a striking spatial difference in the SDG interactions, which may be minimized by promoting balanced progress toward SDGs 1 (no poverty), 5 (gender equality), and 11 (sustainable cities and communities) across countries. The prioritization differences of the same SDG across countries ranged from 8 to 16 places. Temporally, the SDG trade-offs in the region have declined, implying a possible shift to synergies. However, such success has faced several obstacles, mainly climate change and a lack of partnerships. The prioritizations of SDGs 1 and 12 (responsible consumption and production) have shown the largest increase and decrease, respectively, over time. Overall, to accelerate the regional SDG progress, we highlight the importance of enhancing top prioritized SDGs 3 (good health and well-being), 4 (quality education), 6 (clean water and sanitation), 11, and 13 (climate actions). Related complex actions are also provided (e.g., across-scaled cooperation, interdisciplinary research, and sectoral transformation).

Keywords: Network analysis; Regional governance; SDG actions; Spatial differences; Sustainability assessment; Temporal variations.