2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development / Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) — core principles summary, not full text

Issued by: United Nations General Assembly (resolution 70/1)
Adopted: 2015
Type: declaration
Category: human-rights
Scope: universal

Earth from space, swirling clouds over blue oceans and the outline of Africa — NASA / Apollo 17 crew

The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development is a political declaration adopted by all 193 UN member states in 2015, not a binding treaty. It sets out 17 Sustainable Development Goals broken into 169 measurable targets, organised around five commitments the Agenda itself names People, Planet, Prosperity, Peace and Partnership. It describes those goals as integrated and indivisible, balancing the economic, social and environmental dimensions of sustainable development. This record holds the Goals and the Agenda's core commitments rather than all 169 targets.

The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development was adopted by the UN General Assembly on 25 September 2015 in resolution 70/1. It is a political declaration agreed by all 193 UN member states, not a binding treaty, and it creates no court, no complaint procedure and no enforceable obligation on any state. The Agenda organises its ambition around five areas it calls the five Ps. People means ending poverty and hunger and ensuring dignity and equality. Planet means protecting the planet from degradation through sustainable consumption, production and management of natural resources, and taking urgent action on climate change. Prosperity means ensuring all people can enjoy prosperous and fulfilling lives, with economic, social and technological progress in harmony with nature. Peace means fostering peaceful, just and inclusive societies free from fear and violence. Partnership means mobilising the means of implementation through a revitalised global partnership, based on solidarity and focused on the needs of the poorest and most vulnerable. Its seventeen Goals are the Agenda's ethical architecture: no poverty; zero hunger; good health and well-being; quality education; gender equality; clean water and sanitation; affordable and clean energy; decent work and economic growth; industry, innovation and infrastructure; reduced inequalities; sustainable cities and communities; responsible consumption and production; climate action; life below water; life on land; peace, justice and strong institutions; and partnerships for the goals. The Agenda describes these Goals as integrated and indivisible, balancing the three dimensions of sustainable development, which are the economic, the social and the environmental. Its governing phrase, repeated throughout the document, is leave no one behind. States committed to reaching the furthest behind first, and to pursuing the Goals for all nations and peoples and for all segments of society. That pledge is what turns a list of goals into a stated priority order. This record is deliberately a summary. Beneath the seventeen Goals sit 169 specific measurable targets, of the kind that reads by 2030, reduce maternal mortality to less than 70 per 100,000 live births. Those targets are implementation detail rather than separate ethical commitments, and they are not reproduced here. The complete Agenda, including all 169 targets and the accompanying indicator framework, is published by the United Nations.

What it says, article by article

5 Ps: People
The Agenda commits to ending poverty and hunger in all forms and ensuring dignity and equality for all people.
5 Ps: Planet
The Agenda commits to protecting the planet from degradation through sustainable consumption, production, and management of natural resources, and urgent action on climate change.
5 Ps: Prosperity
The Agenda commits to ensuring all people can enjoy prosperous and fulfilling lives, with economic, social, and technological progress occurring in harmony with nature.
5 Ps: Peace
The Agenda commits to fostering peaceful, just, and inclusive societies free from fear and violence.
5 Ps: Partnership
The Agenda commits to mobilizing the means to implement it through a revitalized global partnership grounded in solidarity, focused on the needs of the poorest and most vulnerable.
Goal 1
States commit to ending poverty in all its forms everywhere.
Goal 2
States commit to ending hunger, achieving food security and improved nutrition, and promoting sustainable agriculture.
Goal 3
States commit to ensuring healthy lives and promoting well-being for all at every age.
Goal 4
States commit to ensuring inclusive, equitable quality education and promoting lifelong learning opportunities for all.
Goal 5
States commit to achieving gender equality and empowering all women and girls.
Goal 6
States commit to ensuring availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all.
Goal 7
States commit to ensuring access to affordable, reliable, sustainable, and modern energy for all.
Goal 8
States commit to promoting sustained, inclusive, and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment, and decent work for all.
Goal 9
States commit to building resilient infrastructure, promoting inclusive and sustainable industrialization, and fostering innovation.
Goal 10
States commit to reducing inequality within and among countries.
Goal 11
States commit to making cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient, and sustainable.
Goal 12
States commit to ensuring sustainable consumption and production patterns.
Goal 13
States commit to taking urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts.
Goal 14
States commit to conserving and sustainably using the oceans, seas, and marine resources.
Goal 15
States commit to protecting, restoring, and promoting sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably managing forests, combating desertification, and halting land degradation and biodiversity loss.
Goal 16
States commit to promoting peaceful and inclusive societies, providing access to justice for all, and building effective, accountable, and inclusive institutions.
Goal 17
States commit to strengthening the means of implementation and revitalizing the global partnership for sustainable development.
Standing pledge
States commit to leaving no one behind, pledging to reach the furthest behind first and to pursue the Goals for all nations, peoples, and segments of society.