NPR

The U.N. plan to improve the world by 2030 is failing. Does that make it a failure?

The 17 Sustainable Development Goals — starting with an end to poverty — were set in 2015. At the halfway mark, the world is reeling from crises. Progress is stunted. Do the goals still help?
The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to achieve by 2030.

What if you made a self-improvement plan and failed to meet your goals.

Imagine that in a moment of unusual optimism and resolve, you decided that the only way you were ever going to be the healthy, happy and productive person you want to be was by writing down a detailed list of goals and committing to accomplish them in the next 15 years.

Now imagine that eight years later, more than halfway through your 15-year life improvement plan, not only are you way off track when it comes to accomplishing most of what you committed to, but in some cases you've even slid backward. Maybe you faced an unexpected illness. Maybe you suffered a crushing breakup. Maybe you got some bad financial advice. Maybe you just didn't try hard enough.

What would

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