Examples
Worked examples
- Is an instance
A funder's call for proposals explicitly requires applicants to identify which SDG(s) their proposed research addresses, as part of the application form.
- Is an instance
A university's impact-reporting dashboard tags each research output against one or more SDGs, using a documented mapping methodology, to summarise its societal-relevance portfolio.
Counter-examples
Looks similar, but isn't
- Not an instance
Labelling a research output with an SDG tag with no documented mapping methodology behind the label is not the same as a rigorous, checkable SDG classification -- see SDG mapping for the methodological issues this raises.
Editorial commentary
The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) were adopted in September 2015 by 193 UN member states, replacing the earlier Millennium Development Goals. The 17 goals are supported by 169 more specific targets and a global indicator framework of more than 230 indicators, spanning poverty (SDG 1), hunger (SDG 2), health (SDG 3), quality education (SDG 4), gender equality (SDG 5), water (SDG 6), energy (SDG 7), economic growth (SDG 8), industry, innovation and infrastructure (SDG 9), reduced inequalities (SDG 10), sustainable cities (SDG 11), responsible consumption (SDG 12), climate action (SDG 13), life below water (SDG 14), life on land (SDG 15), peace, justice and strong institutions (SDG 16), and partnerships for the goals (SDG 17).
How this page relates to the individual SDG pages
This page is a hub for the SDG framework as a whole. Three individual goals with the most direct research-administration relevance — SDG 4, SDG 9, and SDG 17 — have their own dedicated dictionary entries covering their specific targets and research relevance in depth; the remaining fourteen goals are summarised here at framework level rather than each receiving a standalone entry, since most research-assessment use of the SDGs operates at the level of “which goal(s) does this output address” rather than requiring a deep dive into any one goal’s own target structure.
Use in research assessment
The research-assessment community has progressively framed research priorities, funding calls, and impact reporting in SDG terms, and several major ranking and analytics providers now publish SDG-related products — Times Higher Education’s Impact Rankings score universities specifically against SDG-aligned performance indicators. Classifying an individual research output against one or more SDGs, rather than describing the framework itself, is a distinct practice covered on its own page: see SDG mapping (research output) for the methodologies used and their known limitations.
References
- United Nations, sdgs.un.org. UN Resolution A/RES/70/1, ‘Transforming our world: the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.’
Also known as
SDGs · Global Goals · Agenda 2030
Machine-readable encodings
Use in your systems
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