Abstract
This paper analyses the complex interactions among the seventeen sustainable development goals (SDGs) and presents them in a hierarchical framework using interpretive structural modeling technique. The driving and dependence powers of each of these goals have been ascertained to help the developing and least developed countries improve their strategic orientation for a particular goal within a given time frame. This would also help them in prioritizing their resource allocations on a specific SDG by focusing on its hierarchical ranking on one hand and driving and dependence powers on the other.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Akenji, L., & Bengtsson, M. (2014). Making sustainable consumption and production the core of sustainable development goals. Sustainability, 6(2), 513–529.
Annan, K. A. (2002). Toward a sustainable future. Environment, 44, 10–15.
Berger, G. (2009). Governance for sustainable development: Concepts, principles and challenges. Paper presented at the Eurofound expert meeting: Industrial relations and sustainability, Brussels.
Bouma, J. (2014). Soil science contributions towards sustainable development goals and their implementation: Linking soil functions with ecosystem services. Journal of Plant Nutrition and Soil Science, 177(2), 111–120.
Cicin-Sain, B., Necht, R. W., & Fisk, G. W. (1995). Growth in capacity for integrated coastal management since UNCED: An international perspective. Ocean and Coastal Management, 29(1–3), 93–123.
Costanza, R., Daly, L., Fioramonti, L., Giovannini, E., Kubiszewski, I., Mortensen, L. F., et al. (2016a). Modelling and measuring sustainable wellbeing in connection with the UN sustainable development goals. Ecological Economics, 130, 350–355.
Costanza, R., Fioramonti, L., & Kubiszewski, I. (2016b). The UN sustainable development goals and the dynamics of well-being. Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment, 14(2), 59.
Costanza, R., McGlade, J., Lovins, H., & Kubiszewski, I. (2014). An overarching goal for the UN sustainable development goals. Solutions, 5(4), 13–16.
Esquivel, V. (2016). Power and the sustainable development goals: A feminist analysis. Gender & Development, 24(1), 9–23.
Esquivel, V., & Sweetman, C. (2016). Gender and the sustainable development goals. Gender & Development, 24(1), 1–8.
Fredman, S., Kuosmanen, J., & Campbell, M. (2016). Transformative equality: Making the sustainable development goals work for women. Ethics & International Affairs, 30(02), 177–187.
Griggs, D., Stafford-Smith, M., Gaffney, O., Rockström, J., Öhman, M. C., Shyamsundar, P., et al. (2013). Sustainable development goals for people and planet. Nature: International Weekly Journal of Science, 495, 305–307.
Griggs, D., Stafford Smith, M., Rockström, J., Öhman, M. C., Gaffney, O., Glaser, G., et al. (2014). An integrated framework for sustainable development goals. Ecology and Society, 19(4), 49. doi:10.5751/ES-07082-190449.
Haines, A., & Cassels, A. (2004). Can the millennium development goals be attained? British Medical Journal, 329, 397–994.
Joshi, D. K., Hughes, B. B., & Sisk, T. D. (2015). Improving governance for the post-2015 sustainable development goals: Scenario forecasting the next 50 years. World Development, 70, 286–302.
Kamepalli, L. B., & Pattanayak, S. K. (2015). From millennium to sustainable development goals and need for institutional restructuring. Current Science, 108(6), 1043–1044.
Klapper, L., El-Zoghbi, M., & Hess, J. (2016). Achieving the sustainable development goals: The role of financial inclusion (pp. 1–15). Working Paper. Retrieved from https://www.unsgsa.org/files/3114/6489/8605/sdgs_paper_final_003.pdf.
Kumar, S., Kumar, N., & Vivekadhish, S. (2016). Millennium development goals (MDGS) to sustainable development goals (SDGS): Addressing unfinished agenda and strengthening sustainable development and partnership. Indian Journal Of Community Medicine: Official Publication of Indian Association of Preventive & Social Medicine, 41(1), 1–4.
Lange, P., Driessen, P. P., Sauer, A., Bornemann, B., & Burger, P. (2013). Governing towards sustainability—Conceptualizing modes of governance. Journal of Environmental Policy & Planning, 15(3), 403–425.
Malik, O. A., Hsu, A., Johnson, L. A., & de Sherbinin, A. (2015). A global indicator of wastewater treatment to inform the sustainable development goals (SDGs). Environmental Science & Policy, 48, 172–185.
Mandal, A., & Deshmukh, S. G. (1994). Vendor selection using interpretive structural modeling (ISM). International Journal of Operations & Production Management, 14(6), 52–59.
MDG Report. (2015). Foreword by UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon. Available http://www.un.org/millenniumgoals/2015_MDG_Report/pdf/MDG%202015%20rev%20(July%201).pdf.
Niestroy, I. (2014). Governance for sustainable development: How to support the implementation of SDGs? Chapter 10 of ASEF outlook report 2014–2015 facts and perspectives (pp. 151–165). Retrieved from http://www.asef.org/images/docs/ASEM%20Outlook%202015%20Vol%20II.pdf#page=156.
Norheim, O. F., Jha, P., Admasu, K., Godal, T., Hum, R. J., Kruk, M. E., et al. (2015). Avoiding 40% of the premature deaths in each country, 2010–30: Review of national mortality trends to help quantify the UN sustainable development goal for health. The Lancet, 385(9964), 239–252.
Norström, A. V., Dannenberg, A., McCarney, G., Milkoreit, M., Diekert, F., Engström, G., Fishman, R., Gars, J., Kyriakopoolou, E., Manoussi, V., & Meng, K. (2014). Three necessary conditions for establishing effective sustainable development goals in the anthropocene. Ecology and Society, 19(3), 8.
Osborn, D., Cutter, A., & Ullah, F. (2015). Universal sustainable development goals: Understanding the transformational challenge for developed countries. Report of a Study by Stakeholder Forum (pp. 5–20).
Osborn, D., & Ullah, F., (2014). Sustainable development goals. A Universal Agenda that should shape strategies, priorities and action in both developed and developing countries, and in middle income countries. How to build on the Draft Goals prepared by the UN’s open working group—A challenge—And an opportunity—For Europe. Paper by Stakeholder Forum for ESDN conference. Rome 6–7 November 2014.
Pablos-Mendez, A., Cavanaugh, K., & Ly, C. (2016). The new era of health goals: Universal health coverage as a pathway to the sustainable development goals. Health Systems & Reform, 2(1), 15–17.
Pinter, L., Almassy, D., Antonio, E., Niestroy, I., Olsen, S., & Pulawska, G. (2013). Sustainable development goals and indicators for a small planet. Part I: Methodology and goal framework, Interim Report (pp. 1–84). Retrieved from http://sdg.earthsystemgovernance.org/sdg/sites/default/files/files/publications/Sustainable%20Development%20Goals%20and%20Indicators%20for%20a%20Small%20Planet-Interim%20Report.pdf.
Pisano, U., Lange, L., Berger, G., & Hametner, M. (2015). The sustainable development goals (SDGs) and their impact on the European SD governance framework. ESDN Quaterly report (pp. 1–65). Retrieved from http://www.sd-network.eu/quarterly%20reports/report%20files/pdf/2015-January-The_Sustainable_Development_Goals_(SDGs)_and_their_impact_on_the_European_SD_governance_framework.pdf.
Sachs, J. D. (2012). From millennium development goals to sustainable development goals. The Lancet, 379(9832), 2206–2211.
Steurer, R. (2009). Sustainable development as governance reform agenda; an aggregation of distinguishes challenges for policy-making. Institute of forest, environment and natural resource poliy. Discussion paper (pp. 1–18). Retrieved from http://www.wiso.boku.ac.at/fileadmin/data/H03000/H73000/H73200/InFER_Discussion_Papers/InFER_DP_09_1_SD_as_governance_reform_agenda_final.pdf.
Stokstad, E. (2015). Sustainable goals from UN under fire. Science, 347(6223), 702–703.
Szabo, S., Renaud, F. G., Hossain, M. S., Sebesvári, Z., Matthews, Z., Foufoula-Georgiou, E., et al. (2015). Sustainable development goals offer new opportunities for tropical delta regions. Environment: Science and Policy for Sustainable Development, 57(4), 16–23.
Thornicroft, G., & Patel, V. (2014). Including mental health among the new sustainable development goals. BMJ, 349(7972), 5.
UNGA. (2015). Transforming our world: The 2030 Agenda for sustainable development. Resolution adopted by the general assembly on 25 September 2015, seventieth session Agenda items 15 and 116. Available: A/RES/70/1, http://www.un.org/ga/search/view_doc.asp?symbol=A/RES/70/1&Lang=E.
United Nations (UN). (2012). The future we want: Outcome document adopted at Rio+20. United Nations, New York, New York, USA. [online] URL http://www.un.org/futurewewant.
Votruba, N., Eaton, J., Prince, M., & Thornicroft, G. (2014). The importance of global mental health for the sustainable development goals. Journal of Mental Health, 23(6), 283–286.
Waage, J., Banerji, R., Campbell, O., Chirwa, E., Collender, G., Dieltiens, V., et al. (2010). The Millennium Development Goals: A cross-sectoral analysis and principles for goal setting after 2015. The Lancet, 376(9745), 991–1023.
WCED. (1987). World commission on environment and development. Our common future (p. 9). Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Acknowledgement
Authors acknowledge the following experts for their opinions shared with us in this research paper: Prof. Anil Kumar Haritas, Department of Environmental Engineering, Delhi Technological University, Delhi. Prof. A. N. Sarkar, Environmental and Social issues expert, Asia-Pacific Institute of Management, New Delhi. Prof. Arun Tripathi, Management Development Institute, Gurugram, Haryana. Dr. K. R. Kaushik, Gujrat State Fertilizers and Chemicals Limited, New Delhi. Mr. Hamid Ahmad, State Consultant for World Bank assisted project on drinking water and sanitation, Govt. of Karnataka, Bengaluru. Prof. Anurika Vaish, Department of Management Studies, Indian Institute of Information Technology, Allahabad. Prof. Imlakh Saikh, Management Development Institute, Gurugram, Haryana. Dr. Harendra Kumar, Amity University Noida, Uttar Pradesh. Mr. M. Absar Alam, Consultant, Asian Development Bank, New Delhi.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Kumar, P., Ahmed, F., Singh, R.K. et al. Determination of hierarchical relationships among sustainable development goals using interpretive structural modeling. Environ Dev Sustain 20, 2119–2137 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10668-017-9981-1
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10668-017-9981-1