Estimating Networks of Sustainable Development Goals

Abstract

An increasing number of researchers and practitioners advocate for a systemic understanding of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) through interdependency networks. Ironically, the burgeoning network-estimation literature seems neglected by this community. We provide an introduction to the most suitable estimation methods for SDG networks. Building a dataset with 87 development indicators in four countries over 20 years, we perform a comparative study of these methods. We find important differences in the estimated network structures as well as in synergies and trade-offs between SDGs. Finally, we provide some guidelines on the potentials and limitations of estimating SDG networks for policy advice.

Complexity and the Sustainable Development Goals: A Computational Intelligence Approach to Support Policy Mix Designs

“…On the other hand, "harmony with nature" (e.g., SDGs 6,12,13,14, and 15) do not easily mix with the calls for and the targets of continued global economic growth (SDG 8) [3]. Thus, interactions among SDGs also draw increasing attention of scholars and practitioners and are studied by various scholars and institutions [4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20].…”