A Quantitative Analysis of the Relationships between the Sustainable Development Goals

The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development has the seventeen Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) at its heart and describes the path to ensure well-being, reduce inequality, encourage economic growth, and preserve the environment. Goals and targets are interconnected by construction. A standard approach to quantify synergies and trade-offs relies on the computation of positive and negative correlation coefficients between the indicators. In this work, we propose a method based on copulas to analyze SDGs interactions, offering a practical and innovative solution. Copulas allow studying more specific types of dependence beyond the linear association described by the correlation coefficients. We illustrate the practical application of this approach by analyzing the interactions between the goals' targets related to health and well-being (Goal 3) and those related to biodiversity (Goals 6,13,14,15).