Technology

Technology plays a central role in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly SDG 9 (Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure), SDG 4 (Quality Education), SDG 3 (Good Health and Well-being), and SDG 13 (Climate Action). The transformative power of technology can accelerate progress towards all the SDGs by driving economic growth, reducing inequalities, enhancing access to basic services, and promoting sustainability.

Under SDG 9, technology, particularly in terms of Information and Communication Technology (ICT), is a key enabler of industrial innovation and infrastructure development. ICT has the potential to drive economic growth by enhancing productivity, creating jobs, and fostering entrepreneurship. Moreover, it can contribute to making industries more sustainable by facilitating the transition towards smart manufacturing and circular economy models.

Regarding SDG 4, technology can greatly enhance access to quality education. Digital technologies, including e-learning platforms, can break down barriers to education, such as geographical distance, socio-economic status, and physical disabilities. They can also enrich the learning process by enabling personalized, student-centered learning experiences.

In the context of SDG 3, technology has a profound impact on health outcomes. Medical technologies, from simple devices like thermometers to complex systems like MRI machines, have revolutionized healthcare delivery. Furthermore, digital health technologies, such as telemedicine and mobile health apps, can enhance access to health services, improve patient outcomes, and reduce healthcare costs.

For SDG 13, technology offers powerful tools for mitigating and adapting to climate change. Renewable energy technologies can help to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, while climate information services can enhance resilience to climate impacts. Furthermore, digital technologies can facilitate the monitoring and reporting of climate actions, contributing to greater transparency and accountability.

However, the benefits of technology are not automatic, and there are significant challenges to overcome, including the digital divide, cybersecurity threats, and ethical issues related to privacy and data ownership. Thus, policy interventions and multi-stakeholder partnerships are needed to ensure that technology serves as a catalyst for sustainable development and does not exacerbate inequalities.

To advance goal 7, this chapter examines how biotransformation, namely the use of micro-organisms to fractionate and enhance petroleum, might help mitigate the associated pollution and upgrading of crude oil.
To advance goal 7, this chapter discusses how the generation of electric power from renewable energy systems, like photovoltaic (PV), can meet the world’s energy needs.
This chapter addresses goal 7 by presenting an overview of the principles and techniques of distributed generation (DG) units.
This chapter addresses goals 6 and 9 by discussing the recent advances of carbon-based nanomaterials and nanocomposite membranes for effecctive treatment of emulsified oil/water mixtures.
Clarifying the scope and activity within the large field of artificial intelligence (AI) can help research leaders, policymakers, funders and investors, and the public navigate AI and understand how it has evolved over time. In doing so, this report provides clues to where AI is headed and how policies might be shaped to continue making advances in a responsible way, contributing to SDG 9.
OI 2018 logo - China
Supporting Goal 14: Life Below Water and advancing Target 14.a: to increase scientific knowledge, develop research capacity and transfer marine technology, OI China helps organisations to improve their strategies for measuring, developing, protecting and operating in the world’s oceans.
Since their launch in 2015, the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals have been adopted by a wide range of businesses to capture their efforts in corporate sustainability. This review highlights specific examples from the chemical industry, together with an evaluation of the approaches and tools some companies are using to support the realisation of the goals. A view towards the efforts required by the chemical industry in order to maximise the impact of the goals is also provided.
Elsevier, Current Opinion in Green and Sustainable Chemistry, Volume 13, October 2018
Sustainable green chemistry depends on technically feasible, cost-effective and socially acceptable decisions by regulators, industry and the wider community. The discipline needs to embrace a new suite of tools and train proponents in their use. We propose a set of tools that will bridge the gap between technical feasibility and efficiency on one hand, and social preferences and values on the other. We argue that they are indispensable in the next generation of regulators and chemistry industry proponents.
Elsevier, Current Opinion in Green and Sustainable Chemistry, Volume 13, October 2018
Until now, much Green and Sustainable Chemistry has been focused on how chemicals are made. Here we suggest that, if chemistry is to contribute effectively to achieving the SDGs, we need to change the way that things are done at both ends of the chemical supply chain. For chemical research at the start of the chain, we need to rethink how we build the laboratories in which we carry out the research so as to minimize the use of energy.
Elsevier,

Advanced Rehabilitative Technology, Neural Interfaces and Devices, 2018, Pages 1-10

Presents insights into emerging technologies and developments that are currently used or on the horizon in biological systems and mechatronics for rehabilitative purposes. This chapter addresses SDG 10 by providing detailed description of the bio-mechatronic systems used and then presents implementation and testing tactics to address the challenges of rehabilitative applications in areas of bio-signal processing, bio-modelling, neural and muscular interface, and neural devices.

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