Posted on June, 27 2022

Agreed by world leaders from 193 countries in 2015, the UN Sustainable Developement Goals offer a roadmap for a sustainable future. Bringing the social, environmental and economic dimensions of development together in a single agenda, they show that a just, secure and sustainable world can only exist if both people and nature thrive.

The 2022 edition of WWF's Nature In All Goals publication presents 17 case studies that demonstrate the importance of nature in delivering the SDGs.

By working with nature, we can develop lasting solutions to hunger, poverty, and inequity, and build a safe, resilient, prosperous, and peaceful world that leaves no one behind.

Realising the opportunities requires mainstreaming nature into all decision-making, building multi-stakeholder partnerships, and strengthening good governance.

"We need to transition to a wellbeing economy founded on the SDGs, and based on the understanding of what truly matters - health, nature, education, and communities. The SDGs are our roadmap for the transition to an economy and a world that prioritizes the health of its peoples and the planet." Rebecca Humphries, WWF European Policy Office

People, Nature & the SDGs

Our health and that of the planet are undeniably interconnected. Nature provides us with vital resources such as food, air, water, and energy but is being degraded at a rapid rate with alarming consequences. Climate change, nature loss, and pollution continue to adversely impact all dimensions of the SDGs and if current trends continue, they will undermine progress towards 80% of reviewed SDG targets relating to poverty, hunger, health, water, cities, climate, oceans, and land.

The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed our broken relationship with nature, and building lasting social, economic, and environmental resilience relies in no small measure on investing in nature and forging a global economy that is nature-positive as well as net zero.

Ultimately, the degradation and loss of nature affects us all but the most severe effects are disproportionately impacting the most vulnerable groups in society, particularly people living in poverty. These groups are less likely to be able to access support or replace the natural services and resources they have lost. At the same time, these communities are powerful agents of change in our efforts to build a sustainable future.

Common to all our efforts must be recognising and upholding human rights, securing inter-generational and gender equity, supporting and protecting environmental and human rights defenders, and providing for the full participation and free, prior and informed consent of all stakeholders, and fair and comprehensive benefit-sharing.

Nature can and must be harnessed to create solutions to the challenges set out in the SDGs, solutions that are positive for social, economic, governance, and environmental outcomes.