United Nations

The UN’s SDGs

The United Nations has multiple websites. I highly recommend spending time on this site (the URL is directly below the image of the 19 goals). There is a lot of information under each category, so spend some time delving deeply into each of the 17 SDGs. Note that each SDG is very broad, so each lists between 5 and 13 targets and multiple events, publications, and actions. Look at them and select the ones of most relevant to you.

All the SDGs are relevant to the DBW book, but here are the ones most directly related.

Goals relevant to the 6 sections of DBW

I. Artificial

Relevant Goals: All 17. Because the artificial way the power structures of the world have divided the land and sea, established hierarchies of power, and determined policies that govern humanity, have led to the need for the goals (and even includes number 17, the ability to form meaningful partnerships).

II. Meaningful

The real issue in meaningfulness is measurement of the relevant variables (often through irrelevant measures), especially the tendency to assign monetary amounts to the issues. So the goals that are relevant are those that depend upon inappropriate or misleading and confusing measurements.

Relevant Goals: 3 (well-being), 4 (education), 8 (work and economic growth), 12 responsible consumption and production, 13, 14, and 15 (air, sea, and land), and 16, because it depends upon appropriate measurements.

iii. Sustainable

Relevant Goals: 6 (water and sanitation, 7 clean energy, 9 industry, 11, cities, 12 consumption and production, 13, 14, and 15 (sustainable quality of air, sea, and land), and 16 (sustainable development).

IV. Humanity-Centered

Relevant Goals: All 17. Because every one impacts and emphasizes ensuring a high quality of life for all living things, quality of the ecological systems, where goal 16 sets the overall targets and 17 brings together the necessary parties.

V: Human Behavior

Obviously, human behavior is heavily involved in all 17 goals, however the major goals where major changes in people’s belief’s, value structures, and behavior are required are:

Relevant Goals: 4 (education), 5 (gender equality), 8 (decent work and economic growth), 10 reduced inequalities, 12 (sustainable consumption), 16 (peaceful and inclusive societies).

VI: Action

All the SDGs require active action on the parts of society and all people. Each of the 17 SDGs list between 900 and 2,000 actions that they are directly involved in.

The United Nations Association of the USA (UNA-USA)

(This is an American organization. There may be other equivalent groups in other countries.)

UNA-USA is a movement of Americans who believe that our interests and values can best be advanced by standing with the planet’s only truly universal institution: The United Nations. We stand up for the UN, so the UN can keep standing up for the world. Will you join us? https://unausa.org/

They have chapters across the United States: their website lists them. (I attended a meeting of the Orange County (California) group, that covers Southern California from Los Angeles to San Diego–possibly further north). It included people well-placed in government and other organizations. Here is their website, which gives you an idea of what they are trying to accomplish. https://www.una-oc.org/