The use of spatially aware artificial intelligence in studying and monitoring Sustainable Development Goals is examined in this chapter. Spatially aware AI incorporates spatial data and AI algorithms to achieve particular SDGs, such as poverty eradication, hunger eradication, excellent health and wellbeing, quality education, clean water and sanitation, sustainable cities, climate action, life below the water, life on land, and partnerships. The incorporation of GeoAI presents ethical, legal, technical, and social challenges even while it provides useful insights. Collaboration, transparency, accountability, and addressing biases and discrimination are essential to ensure responsible and effective deployment. By overcoming these challenges, stakeholders can accelerate progress toward achieving the SDGs.
TopSustainable Development Goals
UN adopted the SDGs, a comprehensive framework of global goals, to address urgent issues and advance sustainable development on a global level. SDGs, which were unveiled in 2015 to replace the Millennium Development Goals. It reflects a commitment on the part of governments, organizations, and individuals to address important issues affecting our planet and its inhabitants (Nations, 2015).
The SDGs, which have 17 goals (see Figure 1) and 169 targets, cover a wide range of interrelated and dependent issues, such as ending poverty, ending hunger, ensuring that everyone has access to quality education, promoting gender equality, providing clean water and sanitation, achieving economic growth and decent work conditions, addressing climate change, protecting life on land and under the sea, and more (UNDP, 2023). Each goal outlines concrete benchmarks and indicators to gauge progress toward sustainable development and offers a clear vision and road map for revolutionary action.
Figure 1. The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
By committing to the SDGs, nations, and stakeholders promise to focus their efforts and resources on achieving shared goals that seek to eradicate poverty, safeguard the environment, and promote prosperity for everyone. With the help of the SDGs, nations can align their policies, plans, and actions with common objectives for a sustainable and inclusive future by using a framework that cuts beyond national boundaries.
The SDGs' adoption has sparked worldwide action and sparked revolutionary projects in a variety of sectors and industries. Businesses are aligning their operations with sustainable practices, governments are incorporating the aims into their national development plans, and civil society organizations are pushing for inclusive and equitable policies. The SDGs act as a compass, pointing individuals and decision-makers in the direction of sustainable routes while encouraging collaboration and sparking innovation.