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Monitoring the evolution of sustainable development goals in the European Union: a synthetic approach

Author

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  • Esther López-Vizcaíno

    (IGE–Instituto Galego de Estatística, Complexo Administrativo San Lázaro)

  • Patricio Sanchez-Fernandez

    (GEN-Universidade de Vigo, Faculty of Business and Tourism, University Campus)

Abstract

This paper aims to monitor status and progress in sustainable development within the European Union. To this end, we select a set of representative indicators of the different objectives of United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to elaborate a synthetic indicator allowing for country classification and performance. For this purpose, we propose a procedure that starts applying functional principal component analysis to reduce the dimensionality of the available data and to evaluate the likely loss of original information. Then, the procedure calculates a synthetic indicator for each SDG using the explained variance. Finally, a global indicator is obtained considering that each goal has the same importance. This procedure allows us to obtain a set of synthetic indicators which show the differences between European countries. By doing so, we provide valuable help for policy-making and implementing agencies as far it is possible to identify countries with the best performance, namely Nordic and Eastern European countries.

Suggested Citation

  • Esther López-Vizcaíno & Patricio Sanchez-Fernandez, 2025. "Monitoring the evolution of sustainable development goals in the European Union: a synthetic approach," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 27(3), pages 7973-8001, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:endesu:v:27:y:2025:i:3:d:10.1007_s10668-023-04234-5
    DOI: 10.1007/s10668-023-04234-5
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