The Ultimate Guide to Education for Sustainable Development in 2025
In today’s fast-changing world, as a teacher, you’ve likely faced the challenge of discussing global issues and challenges with your students. They must be eager to understand their role in shaping the future, and you want to guide them in that process.
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That’s where we come in to support you: we’ve created a comprehensive teaching resource featuring animated books, lesson plans, activity tips, and worksheets focused on the United Nations’ 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). These goals, adopted in 2015, outline a roadmap to end poverty, protect the planet, and ensure peace and prosperity by 2030.
BOOKR Class’s UN Handbook on Sustainability will guide you to teach these goals in an easier and more engaging way, so you can help the younger generation build a better future. The secret is, as always, doing it together!
Our handbook offers
- interactive stories that will help you explain the sustainable development goals,
- engaging worksheets to implement classwide ideas, and
- hands-on projects that bring the 17 SDGs to life in your classroom.
Whether you’re discussing the importance of clean water, gender equality, or sustainable cities, the tools needed to inspire students to become global changemakers are in your hands.
But what exactly are the 17 sustainable development goals, and how did they come to life?
The UN’s 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) were crafted through a long and wide global process following the success of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) that expired in 2015. In 2012, world leaders gathered at the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development, where they recognized the need for a new, more comprehensive set of goals that would address a broader range of issues, including:
- environmental sustainability,
- economic inequality, and
- social justice.
The process involved consultations with governments, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), civil society, businesses, and millions of people worldwide.
The goals were developed through extensive negotiations, aiming to reflect the most urgent and critical challenges faced by the global community.
The 17 goals were chosen because they represent the most pressing global issues, each goal addressing a different but interconnected area of concern. They were picked to be holistic – each goal impacts the others.
For example:
- addressing poverty (Goal 1) directly affects hunger (Goal 2) and health and well-being (Goal 3)
- tackling climate change (Goal 13) impacts life on land and in water (Goals 14 and 15).
The idea was to create a comprehensive roadmap for sustainable development that leaves no issue behind and addresses the root causes of global challenges in a way that benefits everyone.
Let’s explore each SDG in detail, along with our curated BOOKR Library book recommendations designed to support your teaching journey.
1. No Poverty
Why is no poverty important?
Poverty is more than just the lack of income — it’s the deprivation of resources and opportunities. Therefore, SDG 1 focuses on eradicating extreme poverty and ensuring all people have access to food, shelter, education, and healthcare.
Here are some ideas the UN suggests as solutions:
- Access to education: Making sure all children can go to school so they have better job opportunities in the future.
- Better job opportunities: Helping people get good jobs with fair pay.
- Social protection: Offering support like healthcare and financial help to those in need.
- Affordable services: Making housing, food, and healthcare more affordable for everyone.
- Community support: Encouraging local communities to help each other through programs like food banks or free training sessions.
Use our resources to help students create a better-informed view of poverty that will help them cultivate empathy and a sense of global citizenship. Find our dedicated book on this subject in the library.
Project Idea
Have your class create care packages for those in need around them locally, and learn together about the impact of poverty on families worldwide.
BOOKR Library Recommendations
- The Sock Thief: A Brazilian boy finds creative solutions to his poverty.
- Dorothea Lange: The story of a photographer who captured the struggles of those living in poverty.
- Anup and the Wonderful Oven: A tale that highlights the importance of dreams in overcoming challenges.
2. Zero Hunger
Do you think there is a definition of zero hunger?
Well, the UN’s ambitious goal says it means creating a world free of hunger by 2030. Hunger affects millions of people worldwide, and SDG 2 aims to end it and achieve food security.
How does the UN think we can do that?
- Improve food access – Ensuring that everyone, especially children, has enough nutritious food to eat.
- Support sustainable farming – Teaching farmers to grow more food using methods that protect the environment.
- Reduce food waste – Encouraging people and companies to waste less food by sharing and saving extra food.
- Invest in agriculture – Helping farmers with tools, education, and financial support to produce better crops.
- Ensure food security – Building strong food systems to make sure food is available during crises, like natural disasters.
Your students may ask about the causes of hunger, and you can use our dedicated book to discuss poverty and climate change and discover ways they can make a difference through food drives or school garden projects. Find our Zero Hunger book in the library.
Project Idea
Organize a school-wide food drive or grow a community garden to raise awareness about hunger and food sustainability.
BOOKR Library Recommendations
- Food for Everyone: A guide to solving hunger through food drives and gardens.
- The Power of Your Plate: Tips for creating a healthy diet and avoiding hunger.
3. Good Health and Well-being
As a teacher, you’re probably well informed about the extensive range of facts of what good health and well-being constitute. Health is more than just the absence of illness — it’s about physical, mental, and emotional well-being. Globally speaking, we have to consider the lack of access to:
- proper healthcare,
- vaccines, and
- services in many developing parts of the world as the obstacles to having overall good health globally.
SDG 3 encourages equal access to these, as well as healthy lifestyles. Teaching students about these issues can include talking to them about the importance of a balanced lifestyle, including a balanced diet that contains all the nutrients they need to become healthy adults, regular exercise, and being outdoors as much as they can.
Let’s also not forget that mental health is just as important as physical health, and the two are interconnected. Taking care of your mental well-being can have lifelong benefits. Our project idea can jumpstart your students in doing just that.
Project Idea
Have students track their physical activity and its effects on their mood using a wellness tracker.
BOOKR Library Recommendations
- 2020: A Year Without Sports?: Exploring how the pandemic impacted physical activity and well-being.
- Healthy Habits: A guide to maintaining physical and mental health.
- The Happy Brain: A fun introduction to understanding emotions and how to manage stress.
4. Quality Education
Here are some ideas the UN suggests as solutions:
- Free education: Making sure all children can finish primary and secondary school for free and get a good education.
- Early learning: Helping young children learn and grow before they start school.
- Higher education for all: Making college, university, and job training affordable for everyone.
- Useful skills: Teaching young people and adults skills they need to get good jobs.
- Better schools: Building schools that work well for all children, including those with disabilities.
- Good teachers: Training more teachers, especially in countries that need them most.
- Scholarship programs: Creating more scholarships for students from developing countries.
- Global education partners: Building partnerships between schools in different countries to share knowledge.
- Education in emergencies: Making sure children can keep learning during disasters and conflicts.
- Adult literacy: Helping adults who missed school learn to read and write.
- Inclusive teaching methods: Training teachers to reach students with different learning styles and abilities.
- School safety: Making schools safe places where all students feel protected.
Project Idea
Set up a book exchange or reading club that promotes lifelong learning and access to diverse educational materials.
BOOKR Library Recommendations
- Dorothea Lange: Learning through photography and history.
- The Magic of Learning: A story about how education changes lives.
- The School of Fun: A playful exploration of learning environments.
5. Gender Equality
Gender equality is a symbol of a more developed future, and it is essential for achieving sustainable development. SDG 5 promotes the empowerment of women and girls by ensuring equal opportunities.
You might have already talked to students who ask questions about gender equality. Bringing these chats to the classroom helps them challenge stereotypes and promotes fairness and respect for all.
Here are some ideas the UN suggests as solutions:
- End discrimination: Stopping unfair treatment of women and girls everywhere.
- Stop violence: Protecting women and girls from violence, trafficking, and abuse.
- End harmful practices: Stopping traditions that hurt girls, like child marriage.
- Value home work: Recognizing the importance of unpaid work at home through better support systems.
- Equal leadership: Making sure women have the same chances to be leaders as men.
- Health access: Ensuring women can get the healthcare they need, including reproductive health services.
- Equal rights: Giving women the same rights to own property and use banks and financial services.
- Equal pay: Making sure women and men get paid the same amount for doing the same work.
- Girls in STEM: Encouraging girls to study science, technology, engineering, and math.
- Media representation: Showing strong women and girls in books, TV, and movies.
- Women’s networks: Creating support groups for women in business and leadership.
Project Idea
Host a classroom debate on gender equality and encourage students to explore the roles women and girls play in different cultures.
BOOKR Library Recommendations
- Anup and the Wonderful Oven: A story that empowers children to dream big, regardless of gender.
- Girl Power!: Stories about girls making a difference.
- The Little Inventor: A tale that encourages creativity and problem-solving, breaking down gender stereotypes.
6. Clean Water and Sanitation
Today, our planet faces more and more serious clean water and sanitation problems, and we are looking for solutions. Water is life, and access to clean water and sanitation is fundamental for good health and well-being. The United Nations sees the biggest problems with clean water and sanitation as the lack of access to safe drinking water, inadequate sanitation facilities, and poor hygiene, affecting billions of people.
These issues are particularly serious in rural and poorer regions, leading to waterborne diseases, child mortality, and blocked development.
The UN’s Sustainable Development Goal 6 aims to solve these problems by 2030 through:
- Ensuring universal access to safe, affordable water and sanitation.
- Improving water quality by reducing pollution.
- Enhancing water-use efficiency and sustainable management of water resources.
- Supporting local communities in improving water and sanitation management.
Solutions involve investing in:
- infrastructure,
- promoting hygiene education,
- protecting ecosystems, and
- encouraging international cooperation.
By discussing SDG 6, you can teach students about the importance of conserving water and ensuring that everyone has access to safe drinking water and adequate sanitation facilities. They can get innovative and creative in discussing clean water and sanitation problems and solutions.
Project Idea
Lead a water conservation experiment in the classroom and explore ways to reduce water waste.
BOOKR Library Recommendations
- Water Wise: A story about how to conserve water and protect our resources.
- Clean Water for All: Learning about global water shortages and solutions.
- The Water Warriors: A group of kids who fight to save their local river.
7. Affordable and Clean Energy
One of the keys to a better future for all of us is finding new ways to power our lives. SDG 7 focuses on ensuring access to clean and affordable energy that is reliable and modern. Clean energy solutions are essential for combating climate change and promoting sustainable economic growth.
The UN’s goal for clean and affordable energy is to ensure that everyone, no matter where they live, can access reliable, sustainable, and modern energy at a reasonable cost. Clean energy sources are those that don’t harm the environment and are renewable, meaning they can be replenished naturally.
Some examples the UN highlights are solar power, wind energy, and hydropower:
- Solar Power: Solar panels can power homes, schools, and businesses by using sunlight to generate electricity. Solar energy is especially useful in remote areas that don’t have access to traditional power grids.
- Wind Energy: Wind turbines capture the power of the wind and convert it into electricity. Wind farms, both on land and at sea, are a great way to generate large amounts of clean energy.
- Hydropower: By using the flow of water, such as rivers or dams, hydropower plants create electricity. This method is one of the oldest forms of renewable energy and can generate power on a large scale.
In the UN’s view, these solutions can provide clean energy while also creating jobs, reducing air pollution, and helping to slow down climate change.
You can make teaching students about renewable energy fun and spark their interest in science and innovation. Find our dedicated book on this subject in the library.
Project Idea
Build small-scale solar models to demonstrate renewable energy in action.
BOOKR Library Recommendations
- The Power of Solar: A simple introduction to solar energy.
- Wind Wonders: Exploring the power of wind as a renewable energy source.
- Green Energy Heroes: How individuals and companies are switching to clean energy.
8. Decent Work and Economic Growth
Economic growth should benefit everyone, and SDG 8 promotes sustained, inclusive economic growth and decent work for all.
The UN’s goal for SDG 8 is to promote sustained economic growth and provide opportunities for everyone to have decent work.
This means jobs that are safe, pay fairly and allow people to support themselves and their families. It also aims to reduce unemployment, especially for young people, and ensure equal opportunities for all.
Here’s how the UN suggests we achieve this:
- Support Small Businesses: The UN encourages governments to create policies that help small and medium-sized businesses grow. These businesses often drive job creation, especially in developing countries, and help boost local economies.
- Invest in Education and Training: By ensuring that people have the skills they need for modern jobs, the UN believes we can reduce unemployment and increase productivity. This includes job training, especially for young people and those living in poverty.
- Promote Fair Trade and Equality: Granting that workers around the world are paid fairly and work in safe conditions is a key part of SDG 8. This involves enforcing labor laws and reducing inequality so that everyone, regardless of gender or background, can find decent work.
You can explore these concepts of entrepreneurship and innovation together so your students can understand how economies function and how they can contribute to a more just world.
Project Idea
Host a mock career day where students present innovative business ideas that promote sustainability.
BOOKR Library Recommendations
- The Busy Bees: A story about the importance of teamwork and productivity.
- Smart Startups: How kids can get creative with business ideas.
- The Young Entrepreneur: Teaching the basics of business and innovation.
9. Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure
The UN’s goal for SDG 9 is to build strong infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialization, and encourage innovation. This means creating systems that support:
- long-term economic growth,
- new technologies, and
- environmentally friendly industries, especially in developing countries.
Here’s how the UN suggests we work toward this:
- Build Reliable Infrastructure: The UN emphasizes the need for well-built roads, bridges, internet access, and clean water systems. Reliable infrastructure helps communities connect to markets, education, and healthcare, making life easier and more productive.
- Support Sustainable Industries: The goal is to create industries that are both profitable and environmentally friendly. This includes encouraging the use of clean technologies and making sure industries have fair working conditions. Sustainable industrialization means growth that doesn’t harm the environment.
- Promote Innovation: Investing in research and encouraging new technologies can help solve global challenges like climate change and poverty. Innovation drives economic growth and improves the quality of life by creating new solutions to old problems, such as renewable energy sources or more efficient transportation systems.
You can explore these complex ideas with your students in a way that will trigger their creativity and curiosity. They can team up to work together on finding solutions to these challenges in smaller but just as important ways.
Project Idea
Create a classroom project where students design their own innovative solutions for modern infrastructure problems.
BOOKR Library Recommendations
- The Innovation Game: A story about creative problem-solving.
- Building the Future: Exploring infrastructure development around the world.
- Smart Cities: How technology is transforming our urban spaces.
10. Reduced Inequality
Inequality exists in many forms, and SDG 10 is about reducing inequality within and among countries. Students can learn about the importance of fairness and justice, as well as how education and community action can reduce disparities.
You probably agree how important it is to teach them how education reduces inequality!
Here are some ideas the UN suggests as solutions:
- Help the poorest: Making sure the poorest 40% of people see their incomes grow faster than average.
- Include everyone: Helping all people join in society fully, no matter who they are or where they come from.
- Fair rules: Getting rid of laws and practices that treat some groups unfairly.
- Better policies: Creating tax, wage, and social support systems that make society more equal.
- Give all countries a voice: Ensuring developing countries have more say in global decisions.
- Safe migration: Creating better systems for people who need to move to other countries.
- Accessible technology: Making sure everyone can use important technology, not just the wealthy.
- Fair trade: Creating trade rules that help poorer countries sell their goods at fair prices.
- Disability inclusion: Making sure people with disabilities have equal access to opportunities.
- Access to justice: Helping everyone get legal help when they need it, not just those who can afford it.
- Youth empowerment: Supporting young people from all backgrounds to become leaders.
Project Idea
Discuss how education can reduce inequality and promote opportunities for all.
BOOKR Library Recommendations
- The Fair Trade Journey: Teaching equality through global trade.
- Equal Chances: A story about providing equal opportunities for success.
- Everyone is Different: A celebration of diversity and inclusion.
11. Sustainable Cities and Communities
The UN’s goal for SDG 11 is to make cities and communities inclusive, safe, resilient, and sustainable. With more and more people living in cities, it’s important to plan and manage urban spaces in a way that benefits both people and the environment.
Here’s how the UN suggests we achieve this:
- Affordable Housing for All: The UN emphasizes the need for affordable and safe housing, especially for people living in poverty. Creating accessible homes ensures that everyone has a decent place to live and helps reduce homelessness in cities.
- Sustainable Transportation: Promoting public transportation, biking, and walking is a big part of creating sustainable cities. Less traffic means cleaner air and less environmental impact while making cities safer and more livable.
- Green Spaces and Disaster Resilience: The UN encourages cities to create parks and green spaces, which improve the quality of life and help the environment. Additionally, cities should be planned to withstand natural disasters like floods or earthquakes to bounce back quickly when challenges arise.
Inspire your students to think about the future of their cities and how they can be more eco-friendly. It’s a great way to connect topics like urban life, sustainability, and environmental responsibility in lessons.
Project Idea
Design and build a model of a sustainable city with students.
BOOKR Library Recommendations
- The Eco Village: Learning about sustainable living.
- Green Cities: How urban areas are adapting to climate change.
- The Future of Our Cities: A story about the challenges and solutions of modern cities.
12. Responsible Consumption and Production
The UN’s goal for SDG 12 is to ensure that we use resources in a sustainable way, meaning we produce and consume goods in a manner that reduces waste and minimizes harm to the environment. Responsible consumption and production focus on doing more with less while preserving the planet for future generations.
Here are some examples of how this can work:
- Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle: One of the easiest ways to be responsible consumers is to reduce waste by reusing products whenever possible and recycling materials like paper, plastic, and metal. This helps conserve resources and reduce pollution.
- Sustainable Packaging: Companies can switch to eco-friendly packaging, such as using biodegradable materials or eliminating unnecessary plastic. This reduces the environmental impact of products from production to disposal.
- Energy-Efficient Products: Buying energy-efficient appliances, such as LED lights or eco-friendly refrigerators, helps reduce energy consumption at home and in businesses. The UN encourages companies to design products that last longer and use fewer resources.
- Fair Trade Products: Supporting fair trade means choosing goods made by workers who are paid fairly and work under safe conditions. This encourages ethical production and helps reduce inequality, particularly in developing countries.
- Sustainable Food Choices: Consumers can make responsible choices by buying locally grown or organic food, reducing food waste, and supporting businesses prioritizing sustainable farming. The UN also encourages a shift toward plant-based diets, which have a lower environmental impact.
There are many great ways to explore topics like environmental conservation, ethical shopping, and mindful consumption with your students. You can spark conversations about how small changes in daily habits can make a big difference in protecting the planet.
Project Idea
Conduct a waste audit in the classroom and develop a plan for reducing waste.
BOOKR Library Recommendations
- Leftover Man: A fun story about reducing food waste.
- Reuse, Recycle, Reimagine: Teaching kids to rethink consumption.
- The Zero Waste Challenge: A story about living waste-free.
13. Climate Action
Climate change is one of the biggest challenges facing our planet, and SDG 13 focuses on taking urgent action to combat it. Teach your students about climate action and inspire them to be part of the solution, whether through small lifestyle changes or larger community projects.
The International Day of Climate Action is observed on October 24th each year. This day is dedicated to raising awareness and taking action to combat climate change.
It encourages:
- people,
- communities, and
- governments worldwide to participate in activities that help protect the environment and promote sustainable practices.
Project Idea
Start a climate action campaign where students brainstorm ways to reduce their carbon footprint.
BOOKR Library Recommendations
- The Climate Challenge: A story about kids taking action against climate change.
- Green Heroes: Learning about real-life environmental activists.
- Our Changing Planet: Understanding the science of climate change.
14. Life Below Water
Oceans cover more than 70% of our planet, yet they are threatened by:
- pollution,
- overfishing,
- and climate change.
SDG 14 aims to conserve marine life and protect our oceans for future generations. Teaching students about marine ecosystems and how human actions impact life below water can inspire them to take action to protect these precious environments.
Here are some of the key problems:
- Marine Pollution: A huge amount of waste, especially plastic, ends up in our oceans. This pollution harms marine life, disrupts ecosystems, and can enter the food chain, affecting humans.
- Overfishing: Overfishing depletes fish populations and harms ocean biodiversity. Many species are being pushed to the brink of extinction due to unsustainable fishing practices.
- Ocean Acidification: The ocean absorbs excess carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, causing the water to become more acidic. This damages coral reefs and other marine life that rely on stable pH levels to survive.
- Habitat Destruction: Coastal areas, coral reefs, and mangroves are often destroyed due to human activities such as coastal development, pollution, and climate change, which directly affect the organisms that live in these habitats.
And the suggested solutions:
- Reduce Marine Pollution: The UN calls for reducing waste, particularly plastics, by encouraging recycling and waste management practices. Governments can enforce policies that limit plastic use and promote the cleanup of polluted beaches and water bodies.
- Sustainable Fishing Practices: The UN advocates for fishing regulations that protect fish populations and marine ecosystems. This includes setting catch limits, protecting endangered species, and promoting sustainable aquaculture.
- Protect Marine Habitats: Establishing marine protected areas (MPAs) helps safeguard important ecosystems like coral reefs and mangroves. These areas allow marine life to recover and thrive without human interference.
- Combat Ocean Acidification: Reducing greenhouse gas emissions is the key to preventing further ocean acidification. This includes transitioning to clean energy, such as solar and wind power, and promoting global efforts to limit carbon emissions.
Why don’t you introduce your students to the importance of oceans and explore together how we can take action, such as reducing plastic use or supporting sustainable seafood choices? It’s a great way to discuss environmental responsibility and global citizenship.
Project Idea
Create a classroom research project on ocean pollution, focusing on how plastic waste affects marine life.
BOOKR Library Recommendations
- The Ocean Guardians: A group of children protect their local beach from pollution.
- Save Our Seas: A story about reducing plastic waste in our oceans.
- The Marine Mystery: Students solve the mystery of disappearing marine species.
15. Life on Land
Forests, mountains, and grasslands are all part of life on land, and they are critical to biodiversity. SDG 15 focuses on protecting ecosystems and promoting sustainable land use.
The UN suggests the following solutions:
- Reforestation and sustainable forestry: The UN advocates planting new trees and protecting existing forests through sustainable forest management practices. This includes harvesting wood in a way that allows forests to regenerate, ensuring they remain a resource for future generations.
- Conservation of biodiversity: Establishing and maintaining protected areas, like national parks and wildlife reserves, helps safeguard endangered species and critical habitats. The UN also promotes policies to end illegal wildlife trade and conserve species at risk of extinction.
- Sustainable agriculture: The UN supports sustainable farming techniques that help preserve soil quality and prevent land degradation. This includes crop rotation, agroforestry, and reducing the use of harmful chemicals. These practices can help restore degraded land and increase food security.
- Combating desertification: The UN encourages efforts to prevent desertification by managing water resources wisely, restoring degraded land, and planting drought-resistant crops. Global cooperation and community-level actions are essential to protect vulnerable regions from becoming deserts.
You can introduce SDG 15 through lessons on nature, ecosystems, and environmental stewardship. It’s a great way to inspire your students to take action in their own communities, like planting trees or learning about endangered species, while understanding the global importance of life on land.
Project Idea
Have students design and present conservation posters to raise awareness about endangered species in their region.
BOOKR Library Recommendations
- The Forest Keepers: A story about preserving forests and wildlife.
- The Great Tree: Learning about the importance of biodiversity.
- Saving Our Planet: Practical steps students can take to protect nature.
16. Peace, Justice, and Strong Institutions
SDG 16 aims to promote peaceful and inclusive societies, ensuring access to justice for all. Teaching your students on their own level about:
- fairness,
- justice, and
- responsible citizenship can help build a foundation for a more peaceful world.
Here are some good examples and suggestions by the UN:
- Promote the rule of law and ensure equal access to justice: Strengthening legal systems so that everyone, regardless of background or income, has access to justice. This includes providing legal aid and making courts more efficient and transparent.
- Fight corruption and bribery: Implementing anti-corruption policies and transparency measures in governments and institutions to reduce bribery and unethical practices. Promoting open government and the accountability of officials is key to building trust in public institutions.
- Protect human rights: Ensuring all individuals are protected under human rights laws, including women, children, and ethnic minorities. This involves preventing human trafficking, child labor, and all forms of exploitation.
- Build inclusive and accountable institutions: Creating institutions that represent all members of society, including women, minorities, and disadvantaged groups. Encouraging public participation in decision-making processes to ensure inclusivity and representation.
- End violence and promote peaceful communities: Reducing violence by investing in conflict prevention and resolution. The UN supports initiatives like peacekeeping missions, disarmament programs, and local mediation efforts to prevent conflicts from escalating.
- Strengthen democratic processes: Supporting free and fair elections to ensure that governments are representative of their people. The UN encourages election monitoring and efforts to prevent election-related violence or manipulation.
- Support refugees and displaced persons: Offering protection and support for refugees and internally displaced people through humanitarian aid and ensuring their rights are respected.
- Promote global cooperation: Strengthening international cooperation to tackle global challenges such as terrorism, organized crime, and human trafficking. The UN calls for countries to collaborate on these issues and share information to protect global peace and security.
Create opportunities to explore themes like fairness, justice, and peace in real-life situations with your students. These can lead to meaningful classroom discussions about how they can contribute to a more peaceful and just world.
Project Idea
Conduct a mock trial in class to teach students about justice systems and the importance of fairness.
BOOKR Library Recommendations
- The Justice League: A story that introduces concepts of fairness and responsibility.
- Peaceful Solutions: Teaching conflict resolution and the importance of dialogue.
- Building Bridges: A tale about how communities can come together to solve problems.
17. Partnerships for the Goals
Lastly, a goal that works like a needle brings all the different threads together. Achieving the SDGs requires cooperation and partnerships on a global scale.
Therefore, SDG 17 emphasizes the importance of collaboration between governments, organizations, and communities. Teaching your students about the value of teamwork and international cooperation can foster a sense of global citizenship.
Some examples and suggestions from the UN on how partnerships can help achieve the goals:
- Public-private partnerships: Collaborations between governments and private companies can drive innovation and investment in sustainable solutions. For example, many renewable energy projects result from partnerships between governments and energy companies, which combine public funding with private sector expertise.
- Global Financial Support: Developed countries are encouraged to provide financial and technological support to developing countries. This can take the form of direct investment, grants, or favorable trade agreements to help them build sustainable infrastructure, improve education, and boost economic growth.
- North-South and South-South cooperation: Countries in the Global North (developed countries) and Global South (developing countries) work together to share knowledge, technology, and resources. South-South cooperation refers to partnerships between developing countries to address common challenges, such as climate change or poverty.
- Technology transfer and innovation: Developed countries can support developing nations by transferring technologies that help achieve the SDGs. This can include renewable energy technology, medical advancements, or agricultural techniques that boost food security.
- International trade and market access: Encouraging fair trade practices and removing trade barriers between countries can promote sustainable economic growth. The UN promotes equitable global trade agreements that allow all nations, particularly developing countries, to participate in the global economy.
- Strengthening data collection and monitoring: To track progress on the SDGs, strong partnerships are needed to improve the quality of data and statistical systems, especially in developing countries. International organizations often work with governments to gather data, ensuring better decision-making and resource allocation.
- Civil society partnerships: NGOs, community groups, and other civil society organizations play a crucial role in achieving the SDGs by raising awareness, advocating for change, and implementing grassroots solutions.
When introducing this goal, you can discuss the importance of teamwork and global cooperation. Lessons can focus on how partnerships across different sectors can drive real-world change, inspiring your students to think about how working together can help solve complex global challenges.
Project Idea
Partner with a school in another country to learn about different cultures and how global partnerships can help achieve the SDGs.
BOOKR Library Recommendations
- The Global Helpers: A story about how international partnerships solve global problems.
- Working Together: Learning about the importance of cooperation and teamwork.
- The Power of Partnerships: How collaboration can lead to positive change.
Bringing the SDGs to Your Classroom
Our UN Handbook aims to help you teach the Sustainable Development Goals in a dynamic and engaging way. Each goal is paired with practical activities and compelling stories from our library. We added five books dedicated to specific goals, and we are continuing to expand this range. We have also prepared printable worksheets about the 17 sustainable development goals.
What is really at the heart of our goal with this book is that students will not only understand the SDGs but also see how they can contribute to achieving them.
Whether you are leading a discussion on climate action or organizing a food drive, our handbook provides the tools and inspiration to help you understand and make a real-world impact.
So, why don’t you start teaching sustainability today and empower your students to build a better tomorrow?
Discover how teachers are bringing the UN Sustainable Development Goals to life in classrooms around the world! Join our teacher community to access exclusive materials, share your experiences with the handbook, and connect with educators passionate about impactful teaching.
About the author
Zsuzska Balogh
Zsuzsanna has a background in higher education, she spent years as a university researcher and teacher. She also worked as a translator of various articles and manuscripts. Transitioning to younger learners, Zsuzsanna taught English to kindergarteners before joining BOOKR. At BOOKR, she contributes to new feature development, researches theoretical backgrounds, product impact, digital education practices and AI tools. She also authors whitepapers and articles about teaching English to K-12 students using digital tools.
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