Data matters in understanding Sustainable Development Goal interactions

We compile the existing Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) databases into one unified SDG database and examine the effects of the data selection on our understanding of SDG interactions. Mainly, we use databases provided by the United Nations (UN), the World Bank Group (WBG), and the Bertelsmann Stiftung & Sustainable Development Solutions Network (BE-SDSN). Among the databases, we observed more different than similar SDG interactions. The figure shows the top ten SDG pairs with similarities (a) and differences (b) in interactions based on the four databases globally. Due to the increased data availability, the unified SDG database offers a more nuanced and reliable view of SDG interactions. Thus, the SDG data selection may lead to diverse findings, fostering actions that might neglect or exacerbate trade-offs. [Souce: Warchold et al. 2022 (https://doi.org/10.1002/sd.2316)]