How can we enable Planetary Wellbeing through the UN Sustainable Development Goals?

The concept of Planetary Wellbeing means that the health of our bodies is intrinsically linked to the health of the planet. This is why I advocate for a greener, more sustainable Mother Earth — one that is inclusive, peaceful, and respects every life form, big or small.

The UN Sustainable Development Goals are heavily influenced by this idea — goals 13, 14, and 15 in particular. Goal 13 is all about climate action, and, in its exact wording , urges us to “take action to combat climate change and its impacts.” Goals 14 and 15 are aiming to protect the sustainable use of ecosystems — in the oceans and seas, and “on land”, respectively. As humans, we depend on these ecosystems functioning well if we want them to be enjoyed for generations to come.

It’s vital to highlight that the past decade has been the warmest one recorded in history : this has not only taken a toll on our national economies, but on the livelihoods of individuals. In India, heatwaves are increasingly common ; in 2019, when the temperature reached 50.6 degrees Celsius, 36 people died.

The Times of India predicts that around seven million people may have to be displaced from parts of Mumbai and Chennai if global temperatures rise by no more than 2°C. One cannot even begin to think what the impact of that would be on local communities.

What can be done, in that case? The UN’s goal covers a wide range of solutions. Among them, and those I find the most interesting are to strengthen resilience and provide adaptive capacity to climate-related disasters; to integrate climate change measures into policies and planning; and to build knowledge and capacity to meet climate change.

It is clear, after more than 30 years of debate and study by scientists and the UN, that climate change cannot be stopped without an organized, political movement that will use a science-based approach and, in turn, hold itself accountable for achieving specific benchmarks. Our governments need to think of new ways to mitigate the effects of natural disasters. As of now, only 85 countries (out of 195) have national disaster risk reduction strategies aligned to the so-called Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction. We must do better.

The UN’s Sustainable Development goals need to be used as a starting point. The resources are certainly out there; it is just a case of utilizing them more effectively. Sometimes, it’s easy to get overwhelmed; after all, climate change is such a serious and complex issue that we may think our individual actions don’t matter. This kind of thinking is dangerous. It eschews responsibility under the hazy guise of pessimism. Never think you can’t make a difference. Saving the planet wholistically starts with each of us, individually.