Sustainable development

Sustainable development was first defined in the World Commission on Environment and Development’s 1987 Brundtland report ‘Our common future’ as ‘development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs’. It seeks to reconcile promoting economic prosperity with social inclusion and environmental stewardship, and serves as a basis for all European Union (EU) policies and initiatives. Sustainable development is formally one of the EU’s long-term goals under Article 3(3) of the Treaty on European Union.

The EU is committed to achieving the 17 sustainable development goals (SDGs) of the United Nations’ 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, adopted in September 2015. The EU has various policies, strategies and initiatives in place to meet challenges such as tackling climate change, transitioning to a low-carbon economy, fostering innovation and entrepreneurship, and promoting equal opportunities, access to jobs, education and healthcare, and social protection. These include the European Green Deal, the European semester, the circular economy action plan, the environment action programme, the better regulation agenda, the EU cohesion policy and the European Pillar of Social Rights action plan. In 2023, the EU published and presented at the UN its first-ever voluntary review on the implementation of the 2030 Agenda.

Beyond its borders, the EU recognises the links between global challenges and the importance of international cooperation. It played a leading role in shaping the global 2030 Agenda and the SDGs, and is actively involved in forums and initiatives to address challenges such as poverty, hunger, health, education, gender equality, clean water and sanitation. In 2017, the EU adopted the European Consensus on Development, which sets out its policy on development cooperation, and, in 2021, it adopted the Neighbourhood, Development and International Cooperation Instrument – Global Europe, its most recent development cooperation instrument. By means of its trade policy, the EU seeks to promote sustainable development in the trade agreements that it signs with partner countries.

Eurostat, the EU’s statistics office, along with the European Commission, other EU agencies, EU Member States and other stakeholders, has developed a series of indicators to track the EU’s progress in meeting the SDGs. The Sustainable Development in the European Union’report, published annually by Eurostat, compiles and reviews trends in these indicators, allowing EU policies to be evaluated and, where appropriate, adapted.

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Sustainable development