Welcome. In this module, we will learn the Sustainable Development Goals
and their relation to solid waste management. Do you know what the Sustainable Development Goals are? How would it be if the world had an internationally agreed and shared agenda to tackle
the most burning problems of this century? Well this is not science fiction! That's exactly what the Sustainable Development Goals are for. In this module, we will learn what the Sustainable Development Goals are
and how they work. We will then point out those targets directly related to solid waste management, and finally, we will number some of the existing challenges to report these SDGs. These goals, also referred to as SDGs, are a collection of 17 global goals set by the United Nations
after a massive consultation exercise. The SDGs cover the three dimensions of sustainable development: environmental protection, represented here as the biosphere, the society, and the economy. This diagram shows to which dimension each goal belongs. Each SDG consists of three levels. Every goal is composed of several targets and each target is operationalized or measured by one or more indicator. There are 17 goals, 169 targets and more than 300 indicators - so quite an extensive list! All these goals need to be achieved by every UN member state in a time span of 15 years, that is by 2030. That's why the SDGs are also known as Agenda 2030. The SDGs were developed to replace the Millennium Development Goals, which ended in 2015. The SDGs are some sort of updated version of the MDGs. Are there any SDGs related to solid waste management? Yes there are. Among the 17 goals and 169 targets, we have identified at least 8 indicators that directly relate to solid waste. These are: one in goal 11, 11.6.1, on urban solid waste collection and disposal; next to the number of each indicator, we will see the custodian agencies in charge of this indicator; Six on goal 12, 12.2.1, on material footprints, which is equal to target 8.4.1; 12.2.2 on domestic material consumption, which is equal to target 8.4.2; 12.3.1, global food loss index; 12.4.1 on the number of parties with international multilateral environmental agreements on hazardous waste; 12.4.2 on generation of hazardous waste, and 12.5.1 on national recycling rates; and one in goal 14, 14.1.1, on plastic debris in coastal areas. This all sounds great - but is it as smooth as it sounds? Unfortunately not. Waste statistics is still at an early stage of development in many countries and data is often sparse. Furthermore, in terms of waste indicators, the methodologies on how to calculate them are not apparent, and consequently, many countries fail to report the data or end up estimating the required data based on assumptions
that are not necessarily reliable. All the indicators are classified into three tiers based on the methodological development level and the data availability
at global scale. The indicators in Tier 1 are conceptually clear, have an internationally established methodology and
standards available, and countries regularly produce data. Indicators in Tier 2 are also conceptually clear, have an internationally established methodology and
standards available, but countries do not regularly produce data. Finally, indicators in Tier 3 are clear but, have no internationally established methodology or standard,
and countries are not reporting data. Where are the waste-related indicators? Well, we see that the majority of the waste SDG indicators fall under Tier 3, which means that our global society
has a huge gap of information on those aspects. Luckily, the responsible custodian agencies and organizations are already working to strengthen national monitoring and reporting capacities as well as to develop international standards and to recommend standardized methodologies on how to measure,
calculate and/or estimate this data, with the goal of allowing international comparability among countries. Let's summarize what we learned in this module. We first learned what the SDGs are and how they work. Then, we talked about those targets directly related to solid waste management. And finally, we numbered some of the existing challenges to report these SDGs. If you are involved anyhow in the current reporting system or are interested in waste statistics, keep yourself updated with the custodian agencies when it comes to the methodologies for monitoring the SDGs. For further information, we recommend you to check the following links.