WASHINGTON, DC – Any reader of the daily news could be forgiven for thinking the world is in decline. Amid so many conflicts and societal strains, the United Nations regularly warns that only 17% of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) – the economic, social, and environmental targets all countries set in 2015 – are on track to be met by 2030, as agreed, leading many to wonder whether such goals still serve any purpose. But rather than succumb to pessimism, we would do better to examine where the world is making sound progress, where it seems stuck on autopilot, and where things are indeed moving backwards or approaching a tipping point for the worse.
The Climate-Conflict Nexus Getty Images Quarterly 0The Climate-Conflict Nexus
Kyungmee Kim shows how wars and geopolitical tensions are hindering progress on climate-change mitigation and adaptation. Escaping the New Gilded Age Theo Wargo/WireImage Longer Reads 2Escaping the New Gilded Age
Daron Acemoglu thinks the social, cultural, and political influence wielded by the superrich has reached a dangerous level. China’s Economic Paradox GREG BAKER/AFP via Getty Images Free to read Economics 4China’s Economic Paradox
Yuen Yuen Ang explains a seemingly contradictory trajectory characterized by a high-tech boom and stagnating growth. This is what we set out to do in a recent study, with our colleague Odera Onyechi, estimating country-level progress around the world. One of our topline findings is that “business as usual” aptly describes many trends since 2015. Yet the SDGs must be........