Alternatives to solve SDG trade-offs and to enforce SDG synergies: a systematic literature review

Abstract

PurposeThis paper takes a critical view of synergies and trade-offs and discloses the practices that countries and companies should apply to achieve sustainable development.Design/methodology/approachThis paper offers a systematic literature review of 408 papers to find models of sustainable development goals (SDGs) interaction with the aim of shedding light on the existing synergies and trade-offs and finding solutions to enhance these synergies and minimize the trade-offs.FindingsBoth rich and developing countries should follow multiple strategies to improve the quality of life of their citizens. Developing countries should focus on eradicating poverty. Rich countries should apply new economic models that are more likely to be environmental-friendly. Finally, the topic of SDGs should be revisited by the United Nations.Practical implicationsBoosting the quality of education and providing clean energy are two of the most relevant actions that should to be taken by countries, as they will accelerate the fulfilment of all the other SDGs. The use of circular economic models or new business models, such as the sharing economy, is essential to the achievement of sustained economic growth without negative environmental impact.Originality/valueThe paper analyzes SDG interactions and offers a critical vision of practices that countries and companies should adhere to for achieving sustainable development.

Mapping enablers for SDG implementation in the private sector: a systematic literature review and research agenda

“…Moreover, the literature does not consider the significance of synergetic SDGs, which may be problematic because they are key to attaining the rest of the goals and can help in the progression of others. The goals with the most synergies are SDGs 7 (Affordable and Clean Energy) and SDG 4 (Quality Education) (Boar et al 2021 ). Therefore, inductive research to develop theories on the successful strategies of SDG implementation at corporate level should be carried out, emphasizing the research on strategies that deal with the implementation of SDG 7 and SDG 4, since these will lead to the progression of others.…”

Disparities in sustainable development goals compliance and their association with country risk

“…Universal sustainable development is only achievable with global partnerships and global cooperation by all countries. Thus, to achieve the 169 targets defined under the 17 SDGs, the synergies between them must be harnessed to solve possible conflicts and reinforce positive interactions (Boar et al, 2021; Kostetckaia & Hametner, 2022; Zhao et al, 2021). Efforts to create such synergies have resulted in the grouping of the SDGs around five central axes (5Ps), facilitating the allocation of resources and thus optimizing the results achieved.…”

Businesses’ Role in the Fulfillment of the 2030 Agenda: A Bibliometric Analysis

“…Although there are other instruments that can be used for conducting literature reviews (e.g., PRISMA-statement and SciMAT), we chose VOSviewer because it has been broadly used in previous studies [43,44].…”