Assessing Sustainable Development through Multidimensional Framework of Synergies and Trade-offs

Since the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) were proposed, China has adopted diverse strategies to accelerate their realization. However, most studies on SDGs focus predominantly on national or provincial levels, overlooking the dynamic changes and unique challenges at the local level. Given t...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Yunting Xiong, Kongming Li, Qi Wang, Zhenjun Zhang, Bin Sun, Jingjing Yuan, Yonglong Lu
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) 2025-01-01
Series:Ecosystem Health and Sustainability
Online Access:https://spj.science.org/doi/10.34133/ehs.0351
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1850035489502920704
author Yunting Xiong
Kongming Li
Qi Wang
Zhenjun Zhang
Bin Sun
Jingjing Yuan
Yonglong Lu
author_facet Yunting Xiong
Kongming Li
Qi Wang
Zhenjun Zhang
Bin Sun
Jingjing Yuan
Yonglong Lu
author_sort Yunting Xiong
collection DOAJ
description Since the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) were proposed, China has adopted diverse strategies to accelerate their realization. However, most studies on SDGs focus predominantly on national or provincial levels, overlooking the dynamic changes and unique challenges at the local level. Given the substantial disparities in regional development, policy gaps vary markedly across regions. This underscores the need for tailored, multidimensional evaluation systems that account for regional characteristics and analyze interactions among dimensions to pinpoint priorities for effective policy interventions. This study developed a multidimensional evaluation framework comprising 4 primary dimensions—Green Economy, Social Progress, Ecological Environment, and Innovative Technology, further divided into 16 secondary dimensions and 80 specific indicators. Using this framework, we conducted a detailed evaluation of Huzhou’s sustainable development from 2003 to 2022 and found notable improvements in all the dimensions since 2003, with the greatest progress in Innovative Technology. While synergies outweighed trade-offs in most secondary dimensions, marked trade-offs were identified between air quality and green space construction. This study provides a practical framework for evaluating the delivery of SDGs and identifying priority aspects to accelerate sustainable development at a city level.
format Article
id doaj-art-8e91d3417b5046c28eab7f8a1dfd73e3
institution DOAJ
issn 2332-8878
language English
publishDate 2025-01-01
publisher American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)
record_format Article
series Ecosystem Health and Sustainability
spelling doaj-art-8e91d3417b5046c28eab7f8a1dfd73e32025-08-20T02:57:28ZengAmerican Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)Ecosystem Health and Sustainability2332-88782025-01-011110.34133/ehs.0351Assessing Sustainable Development through Multidimensional Framework of Synergies and Trade-offsYunting Xiong0Kongming Li1Qi Wang2Zhenjun Zhang3Bin Sun4Jingjing Yuan5Yonglong Lu6State Key Laboratory of Marine Environmental Science and Key Laboratory of the Ministry of Education for Coastal Wetland Ecosystems, College of the Environment and Ecology, Xiamen University, Fujian 361102, China.State Key Laboratory of Marine Environmental Science and Key Laboratory of the Ministry of Education for Coastal Wetland Ecosystems, College of the Environment and Ecology, Xiamen University, Fujian 361102, China.State Key Laboratory of Marine Environmental Science and Key Laboratory of the Ministry of Education for Coastal Wetland Ecosystems, College of the Environment and Ecology, Xiamen University, Fujian 361102, China.State Key Laboratory of Marine Environmental Science and Key Laboratory of the Ministry of Education for Coastal Wetland Ecosystems, College of the Environment and Ecology, Xiamen University, Fujian 361102, China.State Key Laboratory of Marine Environmental Science and Key Laboratory of the Ministry of Education for Coastal Wetland Ecosystems, College of the Environment and Ecology, Xiamen University, Fujian 361102, China.State Key Laboratory of Marine Environmental Science and Key Laboratory of the Ministry of Education for Coastal Wetland Ecosystems, College of the Environment and Ecology, Xiamen University, Fujian 361102, China.State Key Laboratory of Marine Environmental Science and Key Laboratory of the Ministry of Education for Coastal Wetland Ecosystems, College of the Environment and Ecology, Xiamen University, Fujian 361102, China.Since the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) were proposed, China has adopted diverse strategies to accelerate their realization. However, most studies on SDGs focus predominantly on national or provincial levels, overlooking the dynamic changes and unique challenges at the local level. Given the substantial disparities in regional development, policy gaps vary markedly across regions. This underscores the need for tailored, multidimensional evaluation systems that account for regional characteristics and analyze interactions among dimensions to pinpoint priorities for effective policy interventions. This study developed a multidimensional evaluation framework comprising 4 primary dimensions—Green Economy, Social Progress, Ecological Environment, and Innovative Technology, further divided into 16 secondary dimensions and 80 specific indicators. Using this framework, we conducted a detailed evaluation of Huzhou’s sustainable development from 2003 to 2022 and found notable improvements in all the dimensions since 2003, with the greatest progress in Innovative Technology. While synergies outweighed trade-offs in most secondary dimensions, marked trade-offs were identified between air quality and green space construction. This study provides a practical framework for evaluating the delivery of SDGs and identifying priority aspects to accelerate sustainable development at a city level.https://spj.science.org/doi/10.34133/ehs.0351
spellingShingle Yunting Xiong
Kongming Li
Qi Wang
Zhenjun Zhang
Bin Sun
Jingjing Yuan
Yonglong Lu
Assessing Sustainable Development through Multidimensional Framework of Synergies and Trade-offs
Ecosystem Health and Sustainability
title Assessing Sustainable Development through Multidimensional Framework of Synergies and Trade-offs
title_full Assessing Sustainable Development through Multidimensional Framework of Synergies and Trade-offs
title_fullStr Assessing Sustainable Development through Multidimensional Framework of Synergies and Trade-offs
title_full_unstemmed Assessing Sustainable Development through Multidimensional Framework of Synergies and Trade-offs
title_short Assessing Sustainable Development through Multidimensional Framework of Synergies and Trade-offs
title_sort assessing sustainable development through multidimensional framework of synergies and trade offs
url https://spj.science.org/doi/10.34133/ehs.0351
work_keys_str_mv AT yuntingxiong assessingsustainabledevelopmentthroughmultidimensionalframeworkofsynergiesandtradeoffs
AT kongmingli assessingsustainabledevelopmentthroughmultidimensionalframeworkofsynergiesandtradeoffs
AT qiwang assessingsustainabledevelopmentthroughmultidimensionalframeworkofsynergiesandtradeoffs
AT zhenjunzhang assessingsustainabledevelopmentthroughmultidimensionalframeworkofsynergiesandtradeoffs
AT binsun assessingsustainabledevelopmentthroughmultidimensionalframeworkofsynergiesandtradeoffs
AT jingjingyuan assessingsustainabledevelopmentthroughmultidimensionalframeworkofsynergiesandtradeoffs
AT yonglonglu assessingsustainabledevelopmentthroughmultidimensionalframeworkofsynergiesandtradeoffs