
Have you heard about the SDGs?
“SDGs” stands for Sustainable Development Goals. In 2015, the United Nations General Assembly adopted 17 Sustainable Development Goals to be achieved by 2030. The SDGs were made based on a strong sense of crisis: Poor people are being forgotten about, the global environment is getting worse, and if nothing is done, eventually the world will collapse.

“Sustainable” means that something can carry on forever. The SDGs aim to create better ways of life without destroying the environment and resources for the future.
Of course, it’s important that leaders of countries and companies work together to achieve these goals. But we too need to think and talk about the SDGs, and live in ways that help benefit other people and the Earth. Let’s look at the 17 goals.

Goal 1 : No poverty
The goal is to end poverty in every shape and form, all over the world. Solving the type of poverty where people don’t have enough to eat in order to live is the first step. This goal goes beyond just food and water; it also includes making sure everyone has work and a place to live, access to hospitals, and the opportunity to say what they think or to use the skills they have.


Goal 2 : Zero hunger
Starvation is a state of malnutrition that occurs when you haven’t eaten properly for a long time. This goal is to make sure everyone, from children to the elderly, gets enough food with sufficient nutrition. The goal is to preserve environment and crop diversity (having lots of different types of things available), while increasing stable food production.


Goal 3 : Good health and well-being
The goal is for everyone to be healthy, to prevent disease, and to have access to adequate medical treatment. Women should be able to have babies safely, and medicines or vaccines should be available to everyone. This goal also includes reducing injuries or deaths due to accidents and contamination of air, water, and land.


Goal 4 : Quality education
The goal is to provide equal education of high quality to everyone, with lifelong opportunities for learning. Providing safe, easily accessible schools and increasing the number of qualified teachers will help achieve this. It's important to continue education even in the middle of conflict and disaster.


Goal 5 : Gender equality
The goal is to empower women and girls to stop discrimination against them. Ways of doing this include preventing physical, emotional, and sexual harm to women; valuing work done in the home; protecting women's rights relating to pregnancy and childbirth; and encouraging equal participation in politics, economics, and so on.


Goal 7 : Affordable and clean energy

Goal 9 : Industry, innovation, and infrastructure
Infrastructure means the buildings, transport, services and so on that people need in their daily lives. More examples are water supply, railroads, gas, electricity, and the Internet. The goal is to build disaster-proof infrastructure, encourage sustainable and inclusive economic development, and make it easier to come up with new technologies.


Goal 11 : Sustainable cities and communities
The goal is to create cities and communities where everyone lives in safe, good-quality housing with access to water, electricity, and other essential services. Communities must be resilient against disasters. And they must monitor air pollution and waste management while providing safe and easy access to services for children, the elderly, and other vulnerable people.


Goal 12 : Responsible consumption and production
The goal is to make sure resources are not wasted when things are made and used. Important ways of achieving this include halving food waste worldwide; monitoring harmful chemicals that are discharged when making things to prevent water, air, and soil contamination; and adopting the Three R's (reduce, reuse, recycle) to minimize waste.


Goal 15 : Life on land

Goal 17 : Partnerships for the goals
The goal is make sure that all countries work together to achieve Goals 1 to 16. The SDGs must be included in national plans while greater steps are taken to attain them. Each country needs to think about what actions it can take and how it can use its financial resources to achieve the goals. Developed countries can help developing countries in their efforts.



Let’s find out how companies are working to achieve the SDGs!

You can play a boardgame about the SDGs to learn more!
Go Goals! is an SDGs learning game fun for kids to adults. Play it and learn about the SDGs at the same time!
“Go Goals! A game to learn about the SDGs” United Nations Information Center, Tokyo
Note: The Panasonic Kids School “What are the SDGs?” web page was created with the cooperation of Toshio Tejima, deputy chairperson of the Japanese Society of ESD, and with reference to web pages explaining the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in the United Nations Information Center and Save the Children websites.