Chapter 7 An integrated approach to the Sustainable Development Goals from an interlinkage perspective: methodology, decision support tool and applications

The 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) broadly cover the social, economic and environmental dimensions of sustainable development. Achieving one target will affect the achievement of others through their intrinsic linkages, either positively or negatively. Achieving the SDGs requires an integrated approach. Existing knowledge on SDG interlinkages remains limited in terms of comprehensiveness (covering all goals and targets), understanding the SDG causality, quantifying the interlinkages, and practical applications in supporting SDG decision-making. This chapter introduces a four-step methodology for identifying and quantifying SDG interlinkages. A free online tool to visualise the SDG interlinkages in 27 countries in Asia and Africa is presented. The case studies in Bangladesh and Indonesia demonstrate how the tool can be used to support integrated SDG planning, priority setting and institutional arrangement. A few areas need to be strengthened to extend practical applications of the tool including using artificial intelligence-based technologies, filling the data gaps to improve the methodology and engaging with stakeholders to promote case studies.