scholarly journals Industry 4.0: a step towards achieving the SDGs? A critical literature review

2021 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Grischa Beier ◽  
Silke Niehoff ◽  
Mandy Hoffmann
Keyword(s):  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Literature Review ◽  
Industry 4.0 ◽  
Sustainable Development Goals ◽  
Sustainable Production ◽  
Economic Dimension ◽  
The Sustainable Development ◽  
2030 Agenda ◽  
Development Goals ◽  
Critical Literature

AbstractThe transformation of industrial production is one of the big challenges on the pathway to sustainable development. Therefore, expectations regarding the contribution of Industry 4.0 are high. So far there is only little research focusing on the relation between the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the United Nations 2030 Agenda and the digitalization of industrial processes. We argue that sustainability aspects must be an integral part of Industry 4.0 implementation to support a sustainable development. For that reason, the digital manufacturing concept itself must take essential characteristics of sustainability into account. Our analysis has investigated to what extent sustainability aspects are currently reflected in the most recognized articles about Industry 4.0. For that purpose, we have conducted a systematic literature review, in which we have analysed the top cohort of most frequently cited articles published after 2013 on GoogleScholar dealing with “Industry 4.0”. Our literature review reveals that the descriptions reflect many expectations and hopes while only few of them are evidence-based. According to our results Industry 4.0 mainly deals with the economic dimension of sustainability such as growth and productivity. Although there are expectations that Industry 4.0 creates a window of opportunity for a more sustainable production, we could not find evidence to support this idea. Instead of targeting a more sustainable production, many descriptions draw a picture in which Industry 4.0 processes run exactly as before, just in a digital way.

scholarly journals Evolution to Emergence of Green Buildings: A Review

2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 6 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jam Khan ◽  
Rozana Zakaria ◽  
Siti Shamsudin ◽  
Nur Abidin ◽  
Shaza Sahamir ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Literature Review ◽  
Sustainable Development Goals ◽  
Green Buildings ◽  
Future Research ◽  
The Sustainable Development ◽  
Development Goals ◽  
Tools And Techniques ◽  
Development Perspective ◽  
Critical Literature

“Green Buildings” are essential in being responsive to the challenges of climate change and global warming while inhibiting natural resources degradation. This demand requires specific attention to increase the adoption of green-certified buildings within the construction industry. Innovative tools and techniques are needed to meet global challenges and strategies set for Sustainable Development Goals of 2030 agenda. This paper provides an intensive review of the evolution of green buildings from a sustainable development perspective which investigates the current global adoption of green buildings. Systematic Literature Review (SLR) and Selective Critical Literature Review Analysis (SCLRA) methodologies were adopted focusing on the content analysis to develop more in-depth knowledge. The scope of this study enlightens the sustainable development goals and initiatives. This paper highlighted that there is still inadequate adoption of green buildings and their rating tools on a significant basis in developing countries. This research adds a method towards the better understanding of green buildings and current scenarios that shall be considered for future research.

scholarly journals Defining and Quantifying National-Level Targets, Indicators and Benchmarks for Management of Natural Resources to Achieve the Sustainable Development Goals

2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 462 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chris Dickens ◽  
Vladimir Smakhtin ◽  
Matthew McCartney ◽  
Gordon O’Brien ◽  
Lula Dahir
Keyword(s):  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Natural Resources ◽  
Sustainable Development Goals ◽  
National Level ◽  
Resource Quality ◽  
The Sustainable Development ◽  
Country Level ◽  
2030 Agenda ◽  
Development Goals ◽  
Global Indicators

The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), are high on the agenda for most countries of the world. In its publication of the SDGs, the UN has provided the goals and target descriptions that, if implemented at a country level, would lead towards a sustainable future. The IAEG (InterAgency Expert Group of the SDGs) was tasked with disseminating indicators and methods to countries that can be used to gather data describing the global progress towards sustainability. However, 2030 Agenda leaves it to countries to adopt the targets with each government setting its own national targets guided by the global level of ambition but taking into account national circumstances. At present, guidance on how to go about this is scant but it is clear that the responsibility is with countries to implement and that it is actions at a country level that will determine the success of the SDGs. Reporting on SDGs by country takes on two forms: i) global reporting using prescribed indicator methods and data; ii) National Voluntary Reviews where a country reports on its own progress in more detail but is also able to present data that are more appropriate for the country. For the latter, countries need to be able to adapt the global indicators to fit national priorities and context, thus the global description of an indicator could be reduced to describe only what is relevant to the country. Countries may also, for the National Voluntary Review, use indicators that are unique to the country but nevertheless contribute to measurement of progress towards the global SDG target. Importantly, for those indicators that relate to the security of natural resources security (e.g., water) indicators, there are no prescribed numerical targets/standards or benchmarks. Rather countries will need to set their own benchmarks or standards against which performance can be evaluated. This paper presents a procedure that would enable a country to describe national targets with associated benchmarks that are appropriate for the country. The procedure builds on precedent set in other countries but in particular on a procedure developed for the setting of Resource Quality Objectives in South Africa. The procedure focusses on those SDG targets that are natural resource-security focused, for example, extent of water-related ecosystems (6.6), desertification (15.3) and so forth, because the selection of indicator methods and benchmarks is based on the location of natural resources, their use and present state and how they fit into national strategies.

scholarly journals Financial Institutions’ Risk Profile and Contribution to the Sustainable Development Goals

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (14) ◽  
pp. 7738
Author(s):  
Nicolás Gambetta ◽  
Fernando Azcárate-Llanes ◽  
Laura Sierra-García ◽  
María Antonia García-Benau
Keyword(s):  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Financial Institutions ◽  
Sustainable Development Goals ◽  
Sustainability Reporting ◽  
Risk Profile ◽  
The Sustainable Development ◽  
Corporate Reporting ◽  
2030 Agenda ◽  
Development Goals ◽  
The Impact

This study analyses the impact of Spanish financial institutions’ risk profile on their contribution to the 2030 Agenda. Financial institutions play a significant role in ensuring financial inclusion and sustainable economic growth and usually incorporate environmental and social considerations into their risk management systems. The results show that financial institutions with less capital risk, with lower management efficiency and with higher market risk usually make higher contributions to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), according to their sustainability reports. The novel aspect of the present study is that it identifies the risk profile of financial institutions that incorporate sustainability into their business operations and measure the impact generated in the environment and in society. The study findings have important implications for shareholders, investors and analysts, according to the view that sustainability reporting is a vehicle that financial institutions use to express their commitment to the 2030 Agenda and to higher quality corporate reporting.

scholarly journals Multiple Criteria Decision Making for the Achievement of the UN Sustainable Development Goals: A Systematic Literature Review and a Research Agenda

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (8) ◽  
pp. 4129
Author(s):  
Manuel Sousa ◽  
Maria Fatima Almeida ◽  
Rodrigo Calili
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Literature Review ◽  
Systematic Literature Review ◽  
Research Agenda ◽  
Sustainable Development Goals ◽  
Multiple Criteria Decision Making ◽  
Multiple Criteria ◽  
2030 Agenda ◽  
Development Goals

Multiple-criteria decision making (MCDM) methods have been widely employed in various fields and disciplines, including decision problems regarding Sustainable Development (SD) issues. The main objective of this paper is to present a systematic literature review (SLR) on MCDM methods supporting decisions focusing on the achievement of UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development in regional, national, or local contexts. In this regard, 143 published scientific articles from 2016 to 2020 were retrieved from the Scopus database, selected and reviewed. They were categorized according to the decision problem associated with SDGs issues, the MCDM methodological approach, including the use (or not) of fuzzy set theory, sensitivity analysis, and multistakeholder approaches, the context of MCDM applications, and the MCDM classification (if utility-based, compromise, multi-objective, outranking, or other MCDM methods). The widespread adoption of MCDM methods in complex contexts confirms that they can help decision-makers solve multidimensional problems associated with key issues within the 2030 Agenda framework. Besides, the state-of-art review provides an improved understanding of this research field and directions for building a research agenda for those interested in advancing the research on MCDM applications in issues associated with the 2030 Agenda framework.

scholarly journals Industry 4.0 and Sustainability Implications: A Scenario-Based Analysis of the Impacts and Challenges

2018 ◽  
Vol 10 (10) ◽  
pp. 3740 ◽  
Author(s):  
Silvia Bonilla ◽  
Helton Silva ◽  
Marcia Terra da Silva ◽  
Rodrigo Franco Gonçalves ◽  
José Sacomano
Keyword(s):  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Industry 4.0 ◽  
Sustainable Development Goals ◽  
Big Data Analytics ◽  
Industrial Process ◽  
Raw Material ◽  
The Sustainable Development ◽  
Long Run ◽  
Development Goals ◽  
Negative Impacts

The new evolution of the production and industrial process called Industry 4.0, and its related technologies such as the Internet of Things, big data analytics, and cyber–physical systems, among others, still have an unknown potential impact on sustainability and the environment. In this paper, we conduct a literature-based analysis to discuss the sustainability impact and challenges of Industry 4.0 from four different scenarios: deployment, operation and technologies, integration and compliance with the sustainable development goals, and long-run scenarios. From these scenarios, our analysis resulted in positive or negative impacts related to the basic production inputs and outputs flows: raw material, energy and information consumption and product and waste disposal. As the main results, we identified both positive and negative expected impacts, with some predominance of positives that can be considered positive secondary effects derived from Industry 4.0 activities. However, only through integrating Industry 4.0 with the sustainable development goals in an eco-innovation platform, can it really ensure environmental performance. It is expected that this work can contribute to helping stakeholders, practitioners and governments to advance solutions to deal with the outcomes emerging through the massive adoption of those technologies, as well as supporting the expected positive impacts through policies and financial initiatives.

scholarly journals Relationship between tourism and Sustainable Development Goals in Africa: Circular Economy as a future bet

2020 ◽  
Vol 38 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
José Miguel Rodríguez-Antón
Keyword(s):  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Circular Economy ◽  
Poverty Reduction ◽  
Sustainable Development Goals ◽  
Tourist Destination ◽  
The Sustainable Development ◽  
2030 Agenda ◽  
Peace And Justice ◽  
Development Goals

No one has the slightest doubt about the enormous potential that the African continent has as a tourist destination. The diversity of cultures, the great biodiversity that it possesses, the multiple artistic manifestations that it offers and the beauty of the seas that surround it are key pieces in continuing to promote its capacity as a tourist attraction, which is approximately 60 million tourists per year who generate seven percent of exports and employment. However, in order for Africa to take off, it is necessary that a number of conditions related to security, health, education, eradication of poverty, reduction of inequalities, peace and justice and quality of its waters, among others, are intimately related to the Sustainable Development Goals defined in the 2030 Agenda. In this context, we maintain that the implementation of the Circular Economy in Africa will be a key tool in this process of improving the sustainability of this continent in its three aspects, economic, social and environmental, and raising its level of tourism competitiveness.

scholarly journals Sport and the Sustainable Development Goals: Where is the policy coherence?

2018 ◽  
Vol 54 (7) ◽  
pp. 793-812 ◽  
Author(s):  
Iain Lindsey ◽  
Paul Darby
Keyword(s):  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Sustainable Development Goals ◽  
Sport Participation ◽  
Policy Coherence ◽  
Sustainable Development Goal ◽  
Development Goal ◽  
The Sustainable Development ◽  
Development Framework ◽  
2030 Agenda ◽  
Development Goals

This article addresses the urgent need for critical analysis of the relationships between sport and the 17 Sustainable Development Goals enshrined in the United Nations’ global development framework, the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Importantly, there has yet to be any substantial academic exploration of the implications of the position accorded to sport as ‘an important enabler’ of the aims of 2030 Agenda and its broad set of Sustainable Development Goals. In beginning to address this gap, we draw on the concept of policy coherence for two reasons. First, the designation of a specific Target for policy coherence in the 2030 Agenda is recognition of its centrality in working towards Sustainable Development Goals that are considered as ‘integrated and indivisible’. Second, the concept of policy coherence is centred on a dualism that enables holistic examination of both synergies through which the contribution of sport to the Sustainable Development Goals can be enhanced as well as incoherencies by which sport may detract from such outcomes. Our analysis progresses through three examples that respectively focus on: the common orientation of the Sport for Development and Peace ‘movement’ towards education-orientated objectives aligned with Sustainable Development Goal 4; potential synergies between sport participation policies and the Sustainable Development Goal 3 Target for reducing non-communicable diseases; and practices within professional football in relation to several migration-related Sustainable Development Goal Targets. These examples show the relevance of the Sustainable Development Goals across diverse sectors of the sport industry and illustrate complexities within and across countries that make pursuit of comprehensive policy coherence infeasible. Nevertheless, our analyses lead us to encourage both policy makers and researchers to continue to utilise the concept of policy coherence as a valuable lens to identify and consider factors that may enable and constrain various potential contributions of sport to a range of Sustainable Development Goals.

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