scholarly journals Contribution of the extractive industry to sustainability in the Middle East and North African (MENA) Region

2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 210-238
Author(s):  
Adenike A. Akinsemolu
Keyword(s):  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Middle East ◽  
Environmental Sustainability ◽  
Sustainable Development Goals ◽  
Political Stability ◽  
Extractive Industries ◽  
North African ◽  
Mena Region ◽  
Extractive Industry ◽  
Development Goals

The extractive industry has great potential for mobilizing financial support as well as physical, technological, and human resources to advance the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). This article traces developments in the industry with a view to identifying existing gaps in knowledge and the proactive measures needed to ensure that the extractive industry makes a crucial contribution to the society. More specifically, this article explores the historical and current contributions that extractive industries have on social development, political stability, and economic prosperityin the Middle East and North African (MENA) region. Practical and specific examples are used to show the progress made in the attainment or support of the SDGs. The first finding is that the extractive industry in the region has the potential and opportunity to contribute to the attainment of all the 17 SDGs. The second finding is that despite the extractive industry being diverse, the nature and scope of typical activities highlight that various common opportunities can be leveraged on to achieve progress on the SDGs. Thirdly, an unprecedented level of stakeholder cooperation is needed to attain the SDGs. Finally, extractive industries in the MENA region are lagging in furthering SDGs because their activities contribute to  environmental degradation. Keywords: Sustainable Development Goals; Mining; Middle East; NorthAfrica; Environmental Sustainability.

scholarly journals Aligning Climate Change and Sustainable Development Goals With an Innovation Systems Roadmap for Renewable Power

2020 ◽  
Vol 1 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rebecca R. Hernandez ◽  
Sarah M. Jordaan ◽  
Ben Kaldunski ◽  
Naresh Kumar
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Renewable Energy ◽  
Environmental Sustainability ◽  
Sustainable Development Goals ◽  
Innovation Systems ◽  
Low Carbon ◽  
Environmental Consequences ◽  
Research Themes ◽  
Development Goals

Energy development improves quality of life for humans, but also incurs environmental consequences. A global energy transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy may mitigate climate change but may also undermine the capacity to achieve some or all 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). In this study, we use an innovation systems approach to construct a comprehensive roadmap for solar and wind energy to anticipate and improve impacts of a transition to a low carbon future in a manner ensuring climate goals and SDGs are mutually reinforcing. Our multidisciplinary approach began with an assessment of public investments in renewable energy followed by a 2-day research prioritization workshop. Fifty-eight expert workshop participants identified six research themes that proactively address the environmental sustainability of renewable energy. Next, we identified linkages between the six research themes and all 17 SDGs. Finally, we conducted a scientiometric analysis to analyze the research maturity of these themes. The results of these efforts elucidated the limits of existing knowledge of renewable energy-SDG interactions, informing the development of a research, development, demonstration, and deployment (RD3) roadmap to a renewable energy future aligned with both climate goals and SDGs. The RD3 roadmap has been designed to systematically develop solutions for diverse actors and organizations. Overall, our findings confer a broad vision for a sustainable transition to renewables to minimize unintended environmental consequences while supporting interoperability among actors particularly poised to influence its magnitude and direction.

scholarly journals A STUDY OF DRINKING WATER AND SANITATION IN INDIA UNDER THE SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS 2030

2019 ◽  
pp. 12-20
Author(s):  
Dr. Basanta Kalita
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Environmental Sustainability ◽  
Sustainable Development Goals ◽  
Addis Ababa ◽  
Paris Declaration ◽  
Water And Sanitation ◽  
The Sustainable Development ◽  
Sanitation Services ◽  
Development Goals

The SDGs agenda is the outcome of a series of international conferences on the issue of environmental sustainability. A principle of common and differentiated responsibility was endorsed by the Rio Declaration on Environment and Development (1992) and the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development, Rio+20 (2012). The political commitments from the world leaders were confirmed during the 3rd International Conference on Financing for Development held in Addis Ababa in July 2015 for a common policy on sustainable development. The goals are broad based and interdependent. Finally the Paris Declaration on Climate Change (2016) paved the way for the adoption of a comprehensive list of goals to be achieved by 2030. Each of the 17 sustainable development goals has a list of targets which are measured with indicators and are interdependent. The present study will be confined to the 6th goal which is ensuring “Clean water and Sanitation” in the Indian context. KEYWORDS: SDGs agenda, Climate Change, employment, sanitation services

scholarly journals Environmental Education in Environmental Engineering: Analysis of the Situation in Colombia and Latin America

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (18) ◽  
pp. 7239
Author(s):  
Pedro Mauricio Acosta Castellanos ◽  
Araceli Queiruga-Dios ◽  
Ascensión Hernández Encinas ◽  
Libia Cristina Acosta
Keyword(s):  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Latin America ◽  
Environmental Education ◽  
Environmental Sustainability ◽  
Sustainable Development Goals ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Environmental Engineering ◽  
University Education ◽  
Educational Models ◽  
Development Goals

Environmental education (EE) has become the only tool for environmental sustainability in training processes in Colombia, for basic cycles in primary and secondary, as well as university education. EE tends to transform human actions in nature, based on multidisciplinary knowledge that supports decision-making. Its goal is to generate a change in social behavior in order to achieve the recovery, conservation, and preservation of the environment. In Colombia, education for sustainable development (ESD) is embedded in EE. These educational models (EE and ESD) seek to achieve sustainable development goals (SDGs), which generally seek the economic and social well-being of nations, both for current and future generations. Environmental engineering is a relatively new degree course in Colombia and Latin America since it appeared in the mid-nineties, and it must involve EE within its curriculum. Students are trained in this trend. This research intends to demonstrate, through a curricular review of the environmental engineering curricula and also surveying students from this degree, the level of inclusion of EE in Latin America. Strengths are identified in the curricula, such as the strong presence of EE in disciplinary subjects and opportunities for improvement based on the needs of the students. The situation in South America is also included in this study.

scholarly journals Impact of Industry 4.0 on Environmental Sustainability

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (11) ◽  
pp. 4674 ◽  
Author(s):  
Judit Oláh ◽  
Nemer Aburumman ◽  
József Popp ◽  
Muhammad Asif Khan ◽  
Hossam Haddad ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Environmental Sustainability ◽  
Industry 4.0 ◽  
Sustainable Development Goals ◽  
New Technologies ◽  
Raw Materials ◽  
Negative Relationship ◽  
Efficient Production ◽  
German Industry ◽  
Development Goals

Industry 4.0 is a concept that originated from the German industry, and whose essence is the use of technology for efficient production. In business today, the emergence of Industry 4.0 for production, and its related technologies, such as the Internet of Things (IoT) and cyber-physical systems, amongst others, have, however, a negative impact on environmental sustainability as a result of air pollution, the poor discharge of waste, and the intensive use of raw materials, information, and energy. The method used in this study is an analysis of a literature review of manuscripts discussing topics related to Industry 4.0 and environmental sustainability published between 2000 and 2020. There is currently a gap existing between the actual and the desired situation, in that production occurs in a weak sustainability model, and, therefore, this research debates the effects on environmental sustainability and the challenges facing Industry 4.0. Four scenarios are discussed: a deployment scenario, an operation scenario, integration and compliance with sustainable development goals, and a long-run scenario. The results indicate that there is a negative relationship related to the flow of the production process from the inputs to the final product, including raw materials, energy requirements, information, and waste disposal, and their impacts on the environment. However, the integration of Industry 4.0 and the sustainable development goals enhance environmental sustainability to create ecological support that guarantees high environmental performance with a more positive impact than before. This paper will help stakeholders and companies to provide solutions to the existing environmental challenges that can be mediated through adopting new technologies. The novelty of this study is its depiction of Industry 4.0 and its technologies integrated with sustainable development goals to create a sustainable Industry 4.0 combining environmental protection and sustainability.

scholarly journals Social Justice, Food Loss, and the Sustainable Development Goals in the Era of COVID-19

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (12) ◽  
pp. 5027 ◽  
Author(s):  
Janet Fleetwood
Keyword(s):  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Human Rights ◽  
Social Justice ◽  
Environmental Sustainability ◽  
Food Supply ◽  
Sustainable Development Goals ◽  
Food Loss ◽  
Development Goals ◽  
Global Food ◽  
Global Food Supply

The United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) rest on a set of broadly accepted values within a human rights framework. The SDGs seek to improve human lives, improve the planet, and foster prosperity. This paper examines the human rights framework and the principles of social justice and shows that, while the SDGs do not specifically state that there is human right to food, the SDGs do envision a better, more just, world which rests upon the sufficiency of the global food supply, on environmental sustainability, and on food security for all. Then the paper examines the interrelationships between the SDGs, food access and waste, and human rights within a framework of social justice. Finally, it looks at the potential pandemic of hunger wrought by COVID-19, showing that COVID-19 serves as an example of a crisis that has raised unprecedented challenges to food loss and waste in the global food supply system and tests our commitment to the principles espoused by the SDGs.

scholarly journals Indigenous entrepreneurship on customary land in the Pacific: Measuring sustainability

2017 ◽  
Vol 23 (6) ◽  
pp. 774-785 ◽  
Author(s):  
Regina Scheyvens ◽  
Glenn Banks ◽  
Litea Meo-Sewabu ◽  
Tracy Decena
Keyword(s):  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Environmental Sustainability ◽  
Sustainable Development Goals ◽  
Pacific Island ◽  
Cultural Economic ◽  
The Pacific ◽  
Development Goals ◽  
Solid Foundation ◽  
Indigenous Entrepreneurs ◽  
Customary Land

AbstractCustomary land is commonly perceived as a barrier to economic development and indigenous entrepreneurship in Pacific Island countries. We turn this proposition on its head, arguing that customary land provides a solid foundation for indigenous entrepreneurs who wish to achieve social, cultural and environmental, as well as economic, goals for their businesses. Furthermore, we assert that appropriate tools are needed to measure the success of indigenous businesses on customary land, as conventional tools have a narrow focus on economics that fails to capture the more holistic, sustainable development goals that indigenous people hope to achieve through their businesses. The indicators we utilise relate to socio-cultural, economic and environmental sustainability. The tool’s usefulness was scrutinized through pre-testing on two indigenous businesses in Fiji; this revealed that culturally oriented tools are essential if the sustainability of indigenous business is to be measured in terms that are meaningful to Pacific communities.

scholarly journals Circular Economy and Environmental Sustainability: A Policy Coherence Analysis of Current Italian Subsidies

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (15) ◽  
pp. 8150
Author(s):  
Andrea Molocchi
Keyword(s):  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Environmental Sustainability ◽  
Circular Economy ◽  
Sustainable Development Goals ◽  
Policy Instruments ◽  
Large Set ◽  
Policy Coherence ◽  
Development Goals ◽  
Development Approach ◽  
The Eu

Policy instruments for a circular economy and for environmental protection both aim at sustainable development, but do not necessarily share the same goals. The purpose of the paper is to assess the coherence with the EU-recognized circular economy principles of a large set of subsidies currently in force in Italy: those listed in the Italian Catalogue of Environmentally Harmful Subsidies and Environmentally Friendly Subsidies. The method is inspired by the OECD’s “Checklist” method and “Policy Coherence for Sustainable Development” approach recommended by the UN 2030 Agenda, which can be usefully applied to all policy instruments, including subsidies and green budgeting. The analysis allows one to identify as many as 56 potentially harmful subsidies for the circular economy in Italy, for a financial value of at least 13.5 billion euros in 2019, and 75 potentially friendly subsidies for the circular economy, for at least 13.0 billion euros. A total of 25% of subsidy schemes analyzed with a circular economy perspective have contradictory effects when compared to the Catalogue’s results obtained with an environmental perspective. The results of the study underline the importance of coordination between environmental and circular economy policies in achieving sustainable development goals. The analysis can be considered a “pilot study” on a national case; its method can be easily replicated by administrations also in ex-ante evaluation of new subsidy schemes.

scholarly journals Environmental Sustainability and Libraries: What do the Students Think?

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jelena Andreja Radaković ◽  
Nataša Petrović ◽  
Aleksandra Kručičan ◽  
Marko Ćirović ◽  
Andrija Tomić
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Environmental Sustainability ◽  
Sustainable Development Goals ◽  
Future Generation ◽  
The Other ◽  
Free Access ◽  
Access To Information ◽  
Development Goals

Nowadays, great attention is paid to the role of libraries in sustainability. Their role is especially given in promoting not only sustainable development goals (SDGs) but their achievements, too. The reason for this is in their part in necessary promotion of literacy and offering free access to information about environment, environmental protection, sustainability, and SDGs. This is easily understandable bearing in mind that libraries must have their task in providing indispensably knowledge for current and future generation about these crucial issues for survival of mankind. In addition, it is generally known that current and future generation represent the foundation of sustainable development and all of the SDGs. On the other hand, higher education is a crucial mean for creating globally competent students for a more sustainable future. Bearing this in mind, we have conducted a survey on the students’ opinion about the role of libraries in providing environmental sustainability and SDGs goals knowledge. Results of the survey were analyzed using SPSS 24 software for statistical analysis and they are presented in final parts of this paper.

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