In 2015, United Nations Member States adopted the to guide global action on the urgent economic, social, and environmental challenges facing our planet. The SDGs set an ambitious vision to build a more sustainable, safe, equitable, and prosperous world for all humanity by 2030.
Unfortunately, no country is on track to achieve the SDGs by 2030, Â (as of 2025). Health pandemics, climate-induced disasters, and rapidly changing economic models based on artificial intelligence are but a few examples of major transformations happening around the world that the SDGs can help guide global responses and transitions towards.
What does it mean to 'Localize the SDGs'?
The SDGs set out an international framework of indicators and targets to track progress over time. These indicators and targets are the products of political negotiations by national governments. For the SDGs to be successful, we must ‘localize’ them, aligning the international agenda of the SDGs with local community priorities and data.
The SDGs have increasingly gained attention from municipal leaders as a useful common language to connect municipal and community efforts around shared sustainability goals. Commitments by municipalities for the SDGs often explore how current municipal actions and priorities contribute to the SDGs with an eye for gaps in planning, opportunities, and partnerships. When done well, the SDGs can be integrated into municipal planning with the opportunity to make local sustainability efforts more comprehensive and coordinated.