Integrating the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) into Urban Climate Plans in the UK and Japan: A Text Analysis

Abstract

Cities are increasingly adopting potentially sustainable climate plans. Integrating the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) into these plans could help stabilize the climate while generating jobs, narrowing equity gaps, fostering innovation, and delivering other sustainability benefits. Yet, how much cities are integrating the SDGs into climate plans remains poorly understood. This article shed light on this question with a text analysis of SDG “keywords” in climate plans for two British and two Japanese cities. The results revealed that none of the surveyed cities have connected climate with socioeconomic priorities covered in SDG1 (poverty), SDG8 (employment), SDG5 (gender), and SDG10 (inequalities). Meanwhile, the United Kingdom cities made more connections between climate and responsible consumption and production (SDG12) than the Japanese cities. Further, Kyoto, Japan shares a climate-SDGs linkages profile that resembles the United Kingdom cities more than Kawasaki. Though not without limitations, text analysis can facilitate the city-to-city peer learning needed to make urban climate plans sustainable within and across countries.

Nexus between Urban Circular Economies and Sustainable Development Goals: A Systematic Literature Review

“…China has been actively promoting a circular economy as an alternative approach to resource management, aiming to maximise the utility of resources through renewable energy integration and minimum waste [14]. The UK has actively participated in research and development initiatives related to decarbonisation and urban circular economies [15]. In particular, studies in the UK context have looked at the drivers of sustainable business expansion in different regions and the development of industrial symbiosis in eco-industrial parks [15].…”

“…The UK has actively participated in research and development initiatives related to decarbonisation and urban circular economies [15]. In particular, studies in the UK context have looked at the drivers of sustainable business expansion in different regions and the development of industrial symbiosis in eco-industrial parks [15]. One such study highlights the specific contributions of the UK in advancing knowledge and practices related to net-zero-energy solutions and the urban circular economy.…”

Contributions of the voluntary local review process to policy integration: evidence from frontrunner cities

“…These include: (1) setting local priorities and policy alignment with the SDGs; (2) facilitating policy integration for sustainable development; (3) feeding into VNRs by providing on-the-ground data and localisation experiences; and (4) providing evidence-based monitoring tools 4,24,27,28,34 . While there is a growing body of literature exploring SDGs actions by local governments [35][36][37][38] , there is little empirical evidence to corroborate these claims-a situation that echoes the lack of evidence around the outcomes of policy integration processes put in place to address complex environmental issues 39,40 . Moreover, despite the emphasis on achieving policy integration when applying the SDGs, how to do so remains an understudied area of research, especially regarding organisational aspects and operationalisation 10,21,41,42 .…”