Global Goals (SDGs) of our Sustainability Initiative
Explore our 17 Sustainable Development Goals each described below.
Goal 1: No Poverty
Contribute to poverty reduction by:
- Examining the impact of poverty and/or food supply chains
- Measuring and understanding poverty
- Advancing social protections or old age protections
- Measuring or reducing unemployment rates
- Addressing job security
- Creating or designing universal (digital) identity cards
Goal 2: Zero Hunger
Strive for zero hunger through the following steps:
- Reducing food waste
- Reducing food insecurity
- Creating sustainable food systems/agriculture
- Reducing obesity rates
Goal 3: Good Health and Well-being
Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages by:
- Reducing traffic accidents
- Reducing premature preventive disease
- Reducing infant mortality rates and/or maternal mortality rates
- Reducing inequalities in health
- Reducing tobacco use
- Tackling mental health issues
- Preventing the spread of infectious disease
Goal 4: Quality Education
Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all through:
- Reducing disparities in learning outcomes
- Improving lifelong learning
- Providing early childhood development
- Reducing disparities or unequal access to quality education
- Education related to STEM
- Education related to the SDGs
Goal 5: Gender Equality
Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls by:
- Preventing trafficking in persons/female genital mutilation/child marriage
- Promoting gender equality in the workplace
- Providing gender equality in educational institutions (including through sports)
- Preventing or reducing violence against women
- Preventing care and domestic work that is unpaid
Goal 6: Clean Water and Sanitation
Ensure availability and sustainable management water and sanitation for all by:
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Increasing access to clean water
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Improving water management systems
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Reducing or eliminating the use of plastic bottles and/or straws
Goal 7: Affordable and Clean Energy
Ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and clean energy for all by:
- Addressing energy poverty
- Increasing access to or developing forms of renewable energy
- Using renewable energy
- Increasing energy efficiency
Goal 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth
Promote sustained, inclusive, sustainable economic growth, full and productive work and decent work for all by:
- Addressing the future of work and workers in increasing economic opportunity
- Combating human trafficking
- Reducing youth unemployment and/or increasing youth inclusion
- Measuring Gross Value Added to the economy
- Improving access to fair financial services
Goal 9: Industry, innovation, and infrastructure
Build infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialization and foster innovation through:
- Improving transportation infrastructure
- Increasing digital connectivity
- Advancing technology for social good
- Creating or improving low-carbon infrastructure including in buildings
Goal 10: Reduced Inequalities
Reduce inequality within and among countries by:
- Reducing hate crimes and/or increasing inclusion
- Increasing equity
- Working on tax flows or the creation of a modern tax system
- Providing people with safe migration options
Goal 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities
Cities and Human Settlements become inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable by:
- Strengthening efforts to protect and safeguard the world’s cultural and natural heritage
- Increasing access to green spaces and parks
- Reducing homelessness
- Working with municipalities on the SDGs
- Working on affordable housing
- Promoting work on or use of public transport/sustainable transport
- Measuring clean air/tracking pollution
Goal 12: Responsible Consumption and Production
Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns through:
- Tracking supply chains
- Reducing food waste
- Recycling, composting or engaging the circular economy
- Changing consumer behavior
Goal 13: Climate Action
Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts by:
- Moving toward carbon neutrality or planning for de-carbonization
- Providing education related to climate change
- Using design that is climate friendly
- Reducing light pollution
Goal 14: Life Below Water
Conserve use of the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development by:
- Cleaning rivers
- Reducing waste
- Increasing protected areas
- Increasing water quality
- Reducing or eliminating the use of plastic bottles and/or straws
Goal 15: Life on Land
Protect, restore and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably manage forests, combat desertification, halt and reverse land degradation and halt biodiversity loss by:
- Enhancing green spaces (including gardens)
- Protecting species
Goal 16: Peace, Justice, and Strong Institutions
Promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels through:
- Work reducing or preventing violence (including domestic violence, human trafficking and urban violence with guns, mass atrocities, human rights abuse and conflict and fragility)
- Increasing access to justice (including transitional justice and environmental justice)
- Exposing and/or combating corruption (including uncovering beneficial ownership and illicit flows of money)
- Creating or designing universal (digital) identity cards
Goal 17: Partnerships for the Goals
Strengthen the implementation and revitalize the global partnership for sustainable development:
- With the City of Pittsburgh or the greater Allegheny region on elements of the SDGs
- With other universities on the SDGs
- With nongovernmental organizations on the SDGs
- With national governments on the SDGs
- With multilateral organizations on the SDGs
- With the private sector, including the entertainment industry, on the SDGs
- By establishing SDG-consistent procurement processes
- By establishing SDG-consistent operational performance metrics