The UN Sustainable Development Goals

The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are 17 goals agreed by all UN member countries in 2015, as part of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. They cover poverty, hunger, health, education, gender equality, clean water, energy, jobs, infrastructure, inequality, cities, consumption, climate, oceans, land, peace and partnerships.

The SDGs were written for governments, but companies and investors now use them too. Companies use them to show how their business contributes to wider goals. Investors use them to label funds and to report on impact.

The SDGs are useful as a common language. But because they are broad, almost any company can claim to support some of them. That makes them easy to misuse, so analysts should treat SDG claims as a starting point for questions, not as evidence.

The 17 goals

1. No poverty
2. Zero hunger
3. Good health and well-being
4. Quality education
5. Gender equality
6. Clean water and sanitation
7. Affordable and clean energy
8. Decent work and economic growth
9. Industry, innovation and infrastructure
10. Reduced inequalities
11. Sustainable cities and communities
12. Responsible consumption and production
13. Climate action
14. Life below water
15. Life on land
16. Peace, justice and strong institutions
17. Partnerships for the goals

Each goal has specific targets underneath it, and each target has indicators to measure progress at the national level.

India and the SDGs

NITI Aayog tracks India's progress through the SDG India Index, which scores states and union territories on each goal. For investors, the index is a useful guide to regional differences in health, education, infrastructure and other areas.

Company use of the SDGs

• Mapping: linking business activities to specific goals in annual or sustainability reports
• Revenue alignment: estimating what share of revenue comes from products that support a goal (for example, affordable medicines and goal 3)
• Target setting: setting company targets that support a goal (for example, water use reduction and goal 6)

Investor use of the SDGs

• Thematic funds: funds focused on one or more goals
• Impact reporting: reporting a portfolio's contribution to specific goals
• Screening: favouring companies with high revenue from SDG-aligned products