4.4 Examine how the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are being used to improve health

1. What are the SDGs?

The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are a shared global framework used to improve quality of life and protect the planet by 2030. They apply to Australia as much as they apply internationally.

For Health and Movement Science, the key idea is that the SDGs are being used to improve health by improving the determinants of health. The determinants of health are the social, economic, and environmental conditions that affect whether people become unwell, how well they recover, and how long they live.

A second core idea is that the SDGs are interconnected. Progress in one goal can strengthen progress in another, which can create stronger and more sustainable health improvement than isolated action.

1.1 Key features of the SDGs

In 2015, all 193 United Nations Member States, including Australia, agreed to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and adopted the 17 SDGs.

The goals reflect the idea that long-term improvements in health and wellbeing rely on progress in areas such as poverty reduction, education, equality, safe environments, and climate stability. These areas shape daily living conditions, which then shape health outcomes.

The SDGs are supported by targets and indicators:

• A target is a specific aim within a goal (what should change).
• An indicator is a measure used to track progress (how change is monitored). This structure supports accountability because it encourages countries to move from broad intentions to measurable action.

Many SDG actions follow a practical policy cycle:

• set priorities and align policy to SDG targets
• implement action across sectors
• monitor progress using indicators
• adjust approaches when progress is slow or inequity remains

The SDGs are often grouped into five broad areas: People, Planet, Prosperity, Peace, and Partnership. This reinforces that improving health usually requires coordinated action on living conditions and environments, not only changes in individual behaviour.

Example: A state government may track avoidable hospitalisations and smoking prevalence (health indicators), alongside housing stress and food insecurity (determinants). If housing stress rises, SDG-aligned action would treat housing and income protection as part of the health response because these conditions shape illness risk over time.

1.2 How SDGs improve health through the determinants of health

The SDGs can improve health by strengthening determinants such as economic security, food access, education, safety, housing and infrastructure, liveable communities, and climate stability.

SDG 3: Good Health and Wellbeing is the most clearly health-focused goal. However, the SDG framework shows that other goals can also improve health by changing upstream causes of illness and injury. This matters because many health problems are produced by living conditions long before someone enters the health system.

A useful way to examine SDG impact is to ask what an action changes in everyday life, and which groups benefit. For many health problems, risk builds up when several determinants are unfavourable at the same time, such as low income, insecure housing, and limited access to services.

To make the determinants link clear, SDG-aligned action commonly targets:

• economic security (income and employment stability)
• food security (reliable access to nutritious food)
• education and health literacy (ability to access and act on health information)
• safety and inclusion (freedom from violence, discrimination and exclusion)
• housing, water and infrastructure (safe living conditions, hygiene, access to services)
• liveable communities (walkability, transport safety, green space)
• climate stability (reduced heat, smoke and disaster exposure)

Example: Building safe walking paths and increasing green space (linked to SDG 11) can increase daily physical activity, reduce stress, and strengthen social connection. Over time, this can lower chronic disease risk, even though the project is not a hospital initiative.

1.3 Equity and the principle of leave no one behind

A central SDG principle is equity, often expressed as leave no one behind. Equity means fairness in outcomes, not sameness in treatment. This matters in Australia because overall health outcomes are strong, but some groups still experience poorer outcomes, including many Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, people in remote communities, and people facing ongoing financial hardship or insecure housing.

The SDG approach encourages decision-makers to identify which groups are missing out and design targeted action so benefits are shared fairly. This is important because population averages can improve while inequity stays the same.

Example: A universal health campaign may lift average outcomes slightly, but still miss remote communities if it assumes the same service access everywhere. An SDG equity approach treats access barriers as part of the health problem, not as individual failure.

2. How has the World Health Organization applied a health lens to the SDGs?

The World Health Organization (WHO) promotes applying a health lens across the SDG agenda.

This supports an important idea: health is not only a goal (SDG 3), it is also shaped by progress across many other goals. A health lens focuses on how decisions outside the health system can improve wellbeing by changing determinants, reducing inequity, and preventing avoidable harm.

2.1 The health lens and Health in All Policies

A health lens means considering how decisions in any sector will affect health outcomes and wellbeing, then designing policy so the health impact is positive, fair, and sustainable.

This links to Health in All Policies, a WHO-influenced health promotion approach that grew from the idea that improving population health requires healthy public policy across the whole of government, not just the health system. Because the SDGs also focus on the wider determinants of health and require coordinated action across sectors, a Health in All Policies approach is a practical way to apply a health lens when planning and evaluating SDG-aligned action.

Health in All Policies treats health as a shared responsibility across sectors such as education, transport, housing, employment, environment, and finance. The main shift is upstream: instead of waiting for illness and then treating it, systems work to prevent illness by improving conditions that support health.

Example: A transport decision about safer crossings near a school is also a health decision. It can reduce injury risk, support walking and cycling, and increase daily physical activity for young people.

2.2 Interrelationships and shared responsibility

WHO emphasises that the SDGs are connected. Progress in one area can support others.

Strong health services and prevention (SDG 3) can support education and employment because healthier populations can attend school and work consistently. At the same time, progress in education (SDG 4), poverty reduction (SDG 1), gender equality (SDG 5), and water and sanitation (SDG 6) can reduce disease risk and improve life expectancy by improving living conditions and access.

Example: If a young person has poorly controlled asthma, they may miss school, fall behind in learning, and find it harder to access stable work later. Improving air quality, housing quality, and access to affordable care can improve health and support better participation in education.

A health lens treats many health challenges as cross-sector problems. Many leading causes of illness and injury are shaped by environments, social norms, and access, not only personal choices. WHO therefore encourages shared responsibility to reduce health inequities. This means policy design in any sector should consider health impacts, especially for groups experiencing disadvantage.

Example: A national SDG report could show overall improvements in health outcomes, while indicators for rural and remote communities stay the same. That pattern suggests universal policies are not reaching everyone. A stronger SDG-aligned response would add targeted, cross-sector action (for example improving transport options, housing quality, and service access) to reduce inequity, rather than relying only on more health-system activity.

2.3 Example: Coronary heart disease

Coronary heart disease shows why WHO emphasises cross-sector action. Reducing heart disease is not only about hospitals and doctors. The biggest health improvements usually happen when determinants are improved across several settings:

• Health-sector action includes screening, early detection, and treatment.
• Education can build health literacy around nutrition, physical activity, and risk awareness.
• Workplaces can support wellbeing initiatives that reduce stress and support smoking cessation.
• Urban planning can increase parks, footpaths, and cycling infrastructure so physical activity is easier and safer in daily life.

When these actions align, the health impact is larger than any single intervention.

3. How are the SDGs being used in Australia?

Australia uses the SDGs to align priorities, coordinate action across sectors, and report progress. The SDGs did not replace existing policy agendas. Instead, they provide clearer language, targets, and accountability for work that was already happening, while highlighting areas where inequity persists.

3.1 Australia’s adoption and reporting

Australia has committed to the SDGs and has reported progress through national processes, including a Voluntary National Review (VNR).

Reporting matters because it requires governments to explain actions taken, progress made, and areas that need stronger focus. SDG reporting is strongest when it links policy action to measurable outcomes, including changes in determinants of health and reductions in inequity.

3.2 Partnerships and monitoring in the Australian context

The SDGs are used across society because many health-producing conditions sit outside the health system. This includes government agencies, businesses, universities, non-government organisations and charities, and local councils and community groups.

The SDG framework helps reduce siloed work by encouraging shared goals and coordinated action.

Example: A homelessness service can link its work to SDG 1 (No Poverty) and SDG 3 (Good Health and Wellbeing) by showing that stable, affordable housing reduces the costs and harms of poverty. For example, it can track how rapid rehousing and rental support reduce nights spent rough sleeping, improve safety, and increase access to Medicare, GP care, mental health support, and consistent medication use. This makes the health impact visible through determinants (housing security, income stability, service access), which can strengthen partnerships and funding because the service can report measurable changes, not only service delivery.

A common SDG task in Australia is aligning existing data to SDG indicators. This can be difficult because data is spread across agencies and jurisdictions, and some indicators do not have consistent national methods.

Monitoring matters because it shows whether progress is happening across the whole population or mainly for groups already advantaged. Without monitoring, inequity can be hidden behind national averages.

3.3 Selected Australian examples showing SDG-aligned action improving health

The SDGs are easiest to see when a policy or programme is linked to a determinant and then to likely health outcomes. The table below shows how an SDG-aligned action can shift determinants, then shift health outcomes.

4. How could the SDGs be used to promote the health of young people in a local community?

In local communities, the SDGs are most useful when they turn broad goals into practical action. They can help communities identify a youth health issue, identify determinants driving the issue, build partnerships, and monitor whether action is reducing inequity.

4.1 Mapping youth health issues to relevant SDGs and determinants

Youth health issues are rarely caused by one factor. SDG mapping helps identify both health outcomes and the determinants that can realistically be changed locally.

For example, youth mental health can link to SDG 3, SDG 4, SDG 11, and SDG 10. Vaping and nicotine use can link to SDG 3, SDG 4, and SDG 11 because prevention is shaped by health literacy, local environments, and access to youth-friendly support.

Example: If a coastal community notices rising youth distress after repeated flooding events, SDG mapping can link mental wellbeing support (SDG 3) with school-based connection and routines (SDG 4), safe community spaces (SDG 11), and targeted support for households under financial pressure (SDG 10).

4.2 Partnerships that change environments and access

Local SDG action is strongest when it changes environments and access, not only awareness. Effective youth health promotion often involves partnerships between:

• schools and education services
• local councils and youth services
• primary care and youth health services
• sport and recreation organisations
• community-led Aboriginal health organisations (where relevant)
• charities or social enterprises addressing food insecurity, transport barriers, or housing stress

Cross-sector coordination aligns with a WHO health lens because it targets determinants across settings where young people spend time.

Example: A youth wellbeing initiative may combine a school-based wellbeing space, clear referral pathways to youth-friendly primary care, and council-run safe evening recreation options. The combined effect is often stronger than just one program because it removes common barriers (not knowing where to go, long wait times, cost, and feeling unsafe) and it adds protective supports (a safe place, trusted adults, and healthy routines).

4.3 Measuring impact and strengthening equity for priority youth groups

Using the SDGs locally also encourages communities to decide how they will know whether action is working. This often means tracking a small set of indicators that reflect outcomes and access, then checking whether improvements are happening for the groups most affected.

An equity focus is essential. If improvements occur only for young people who already have strong support, leave no one behind has not been met. Local SDG approaches should consider barriers faced by young people in financial hardship, rural and remote communities, young people living with disability, and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander young people who may face structural barriers and racism.

Example: A community may report higher participation in youth sport overall, but monitoring might show lower participation among girls or young people without transport. An SDG equity approach would treat cost, transport, inclusive marketing and safety as part of the health solution, not as excuses for non-participation.